Suggestions for monitoring oil pressure

Coelacanth

Active Member
Joined
Jul 7, 2014
What are some suggestions for monitoring oil pressure? It need not be a separate gauge; ideally I'd probably want to feed a transducer signal wire into my ALDL Bluetooth adapter so I can monitor it while driving with my cellphone. Thanks!
 
I got a 0-100psi transducer from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Pressure-tra...8-1-spons&keywords=0-100+psi+transducer&psc=1

Then I got a turbo oil feed/drain line kit from GN1: http://www.gn1performance.com/proddetail.asp?prod=ATurboOilFeedandReturnKit

Then I went to my local speed shop and got a AN union with a 1/4 NPT tap to put the sensor in (link goes to example, make sure you get the right size): https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ear-at100199erl/overview

I installed the tap on the outlet of the filter, installed the transducer in the tap, then I wired it to my Powerlogger.
 
By the time you pull out the phone and open the app it will prolly be too late.

Get a gauge. They make a real nice console pod that looks factory. You can put a temp gauge next it.
 
Why in the world would you want to monitor oil pressure on your phone? Maybe you are kidding.


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Why in the world would you want to monitor oil pressure on your phone? Maybe you are kidding.

Kidding? Nope...1320electronics ALDL Bluetooth adapter, ALDLdroid app, some wiring and you can monitor and log everything a Scanmaster can, almost in real-time, on any Android device...for less than half of the price. :)

aldldroid_tablet2-jpg.290462
 
If you are talking about data logging I guess that's one thing but if you are talking about monitoring (meaning "looking at it") oil pressure while you are driving down the road, using a cell phone just seems like a bad idea. A permanently mounted gage that is always in the car just seems a lot better. What happens when you leave your phone at home, or it slides off the console then you have no oil pressure gage?
I don't know, I guess I'm just old and don't see it.
 
Why? It will display oil pressure in real-time, right on my tablet, as shown above. Originally, there's no oil pressure or temperature monitoring whatsoever, so being able to see it in real-time on a nice, visible LCD display while driving, and probably even be able to configure alarm set-points, is just as good as adding a gauge...or better...and much better than having nothing, for sure. I've recently added electric fuel pressure and boost gauges, and I'll be tapping into those 2 signal wires, running them to my ALDL adapter so that they too will be monitored real-time on the same nice, clear display.

I did a mod for the tablet/cellphone mount, using heavy duty Velcro tape to affix a smooth round acrylic plate to the front of the console, then attached the cellphone/tablet mount with the suction cup. It's been stuck there all summer. I admit the suction cup didn't stay stuck when attached directly to the console surface, however; probably because the soft vinyl surface was too pliable. Hell, it wouldn't even stay stuck with double-sided tape. But with my hard acrylic plate attached first, that issue was resolved.
 
If you are talking about data logging I guess that's one thing but if you are talking about monitoring (meaning "looking at it") oil pressure while you are driving down the road, using a cell phone just seems like a bad idea. A permanently mounted gage that is always in the car just seems a lot better. What happens when you leave your phone at home, or it slides off the console then you have no oil pressure gage?
I don't know, I guess I'm just old and don't see it.

"Looking at it" isn't good enough unless it's a street-only car, in which case the idiot light is plenty.

If you're racing it, you need to be logging. You can't look at a gauge while trying to drive the car. You log it. You review it after each run to make sure nothing's gone south. You can compare runs and figure out what the normal pressure drop due to heating is, and when you see it drop more than that between runs you know it's time to put the car on the trailer. It can be the difference between just swapping the bearings or pulling the motor and replacing the crank and rods.

Logging to a tablet or phone is cake now with a PowerLogger and the Scanmaster-G, and all the big aftermarket ECMs have a bluetooth option now. The good ones will let you set thresholds on stuff and blink at you when something is going the wrong direction. Automation is key. And permanent installation. If it's done right, that tablet is as permanent as any gauge.
 
Right, the tablet is as good as any mounted gauge (better, IMHO), and I'll be wiring all signal wires into the ALDL Bluetooth adapter's serial port so all that data can be logged. I've already been logging all the default ALDL values for about 2 years now and have a ton of spreadsheets saved to computer, from baseline readings to when I added my custom intake, TurboTweak chip and AXiS interface, then this summer, upgraded fuel pump and hotwire kit. That's when I decided I needed to put in digital fuel pressure & boost gauges so I could view and log that data.
 
Call Casper. He makes a 2 transducer harness that allows you to log fuel and oil...and his harness plugs into your EGR harness plug. That should allow you to find the signals and monitor. No extra wiring needed.
 
Why make things more complicated than want it is
Many may not like to have gauges on pillar, but I personally like where mine is located. As I'm driving I can take a glance to the left side and see the oil pressure, boost/vac, and the A/F gauges.
I can also look slightly up and see the scanmaster.
 

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Some of you guys just aren't getting it...there's no "phone to pull out", it's mounted right at the front of the console, in plain sight, displaying everything monitored by the ALDL port in real-time. It's not like I have to pull my phone out of my pocket to check my knock, coolant temp, MAF reading or anything else the old-school Scanmasters read & display. How is that any different than mounting a gauge?
 
We are too old for that crap.

I get it and it IS a good idea if you already have a iPad on board.
 
As shown here, I have boost and fuel pressure gauges installed, but I want to log the data, not just look at it. I've already tapped into the signal wires for both gauges and working with John @ 1320electronics.com to get the BT adapter to read those signals. Then, it'll log that data (plus 7 other items if I want, at a future time, via the DB9 serial port connector) alongside all the other ALDL data.

When I start the car, I load the app, connect to the ECU and start logging. It takes about 4 presses on the screen...about 5 seconds...then I start driving. When I finish driving and park, I press "Stop Data Logging", press "Manage Data Logs" and send the log file to my email. With gauges alone, you can't log their data for later analysis.

Gauges.JPG
 
Your system will be fine. Whether you glance at a gauge or a tablet it makes no difference. I usually look at it on start up and after full warm up. Logging is helpful to see a trend.
 
Does anyone on this board monitor Oil pressure from the back of the block as Ruggles suggested way back in the day? Would love to put a transducer back there.
 
I'd be interested to know, too. I've seen online a kind of sandwich plate that installs between the oil filter and block that adds 2 or 3 NPT holes where temperature and pressure transducers could be installed, and signal wires routed into a gauge and/or the ALDL adapter. The sandwich plate looks like the easiest option to install, but has anybody used one on their Turbo Buicks?
 
Use the stock location, just make up a bunch of fittings that allow a second transducer. I have 3, the stock one, one for my gauge and one for XFI monitoring.
 
This app is pretty cool it's called real dash and it's free . Here is a picture of the gauge pack
IMG_0553.PNG
 
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