EU3 K Series Oil Temp Sensor (ECU) - Have you got one?

[revilla]

A question / survey for those people with standard-ish, EU3 (coil packs on top of the plugs), non-VVC K Series engines:

Do you have an oil temperature sensor like the one shown below on your oil filter housing?

I'm talking about a two-pin sensor wired to the ECU and not a single spade terminal sender for an oil temperature gauge. The connector will look something like this:

VVC engines have them on the hydraulic control unit instead. Some non-VVC engines I've seen have them, some don't. It seems some Rover tintop setups had them, some didn't as far as I can see. I know what the VVC ECU uses the sensor for but I'm not sure what the non-VVC engine might use it for. Where it is present, it is wired to the same ECU pins 6 and 32 as the VVC sensor.

I'm just trying to establish what's the "norm" (if such a thing exists as no two Caterham wiring looms seem to be quite the same) for standard Caterham non-VVC setups.

EU2 engines may be different. EU3 cars modified with Emerald ECUs may be rewired differently. So I'm most interested in cars which are, at least from an electrical wiring point of view, fairly stock.

If I can get a few answers I can start to get a feel for how they are more usually wired.

Thanks,

Andrew

[rj]

Not present on the spare EU3 1.6 engine I have.

 

[oilyhands]

AFAIK only the VVC has an oil temp sensor in the original Rover incarnation and that is on the VVC actuator, the oil filter housing only has an oil pressure switch.

Oily

[oilyhands]

AFAIK only the VVC has an oil temp sensor in the original Rover incarnation and that is on the VVC actuator, the oil filter housing only has an oil temperature switch.

Oily

[revilla]

Thanks Dave, do you know that oil pressure switch would have been wired? As in, was it wired to the ECU for some reason or just to a dash warning light? I guess I can trace it from the original Rover wiring diagrams if not.

[revilla]

Hmmm some digging about in RAVE to answer my own question suggests that some non-VVC MG Rover cars DID have oil temperature sensors on the filter housing wired to the ECU...

For example, here taken from the MG ZR wiring diagram:

This shows sensors for both VVC and MPI (described confusingly as "SWITCH-OIL TEMPERATURE" but I know that the VVC one is an MEK000030 NTC sensor). Identical sensors wired with identical wires to identical ECU pins. Different connector numbers but when you look them up they are both identical (YPC114920), just located in different places on the VVC (hydraulic control unit) and MPI (oil filter housing):

Note that connector has the keyway offset to the side; it's a "Code III" BMW connector.

The oil pressure warning on the dashboard can be traced to a connector on the fuse box ...

... through the fuse box ...

...  and out to an oil pessure switch:

This connector is different (YPC114900):

Note that this connector has the keyway in the centre. It's a "Code I" BMW connector.

So this shows both an oil pressure switch and an oi temperature sensor on a non-VVC MG ZR. In fact you can see them both together in the photograph provided in RAVE for identification:

The oil pressure switch is wired more or less directly to the dash warning light. The oil temperature sensor is wired to the ECU in an identical way to the sensor on a VVC engine. And the two connectors are difference and incompatible (so you couldnt cross them over) so it's easy to tell by looking at the connector I have in the loom in front of me that it is indeed for a temperature sensor rather than a pressure switch, as it wouldn't fit a pressure switch.

So it looks like this was normal firtment on at least some MG Rover cars.

I'd still like more feedback if possible please to get a feel for what proportion of Caterham looms make provision for this. I think the one I have here is the exception not the rule. And I think the non-VVC ECUs are generally quite happy without an oil temperature sensor connected.

[oilyhands]

 Never seen one fitted, although there is often provision on the loom for another sender, the connector for which is usually tied back onto the loom.

Oily

[revilla]

Thanks Dave. I think this one is just the odd one out!