Bad temp senders - lights, not gauges

[Arne]

Has anyone with warning lights (not gauges) found a temp sender that works and is reliable? I've gone through two Standard brand #TS15 so far. The first one made the cold light work properly for a very short time, then failed. I bought it online, not worth the expense to return it. Today I picked up a new one locally, and the cold part of it is DOA. No continuity between the terminal and brass base at all.

Is there a better source for these? Or should I just write off ever having the cold light work?

[bhap]

Here is an expensive one:

https://www.lectriclimited.com/catal.../category/734/

Depending on your engine application, there is a guy in this board that will turn an AC Delco unit down to 3/8 to fit a newer head - he did one for my L31 crate engine with Vortec heads. A1971Blazer is the guys user name..

[Arne]

Thanks for the reply. While I do have a later early 80s small block (305) in my truck, I also have ½" NPT ports in both the manifold and a thermostat riser, so I don't need to have one modified. I've seen a few places offer a more expensive part like that, but before I buy one I'd really like to know if they are really any better than the ones I've tried so far.

[Arne]

Took the bad one back to O'Reilly's. Warranty replacement will be here tomorrow. I will take my multi-meter with me when I pick it up and test it in the store.

[Arne]

The replacement ohm'd as good at the counter, and works as expected in the truck. We'll see how long this one lasts.

[Arne]

Originally Posted by Arne

We'll see how long this one lasts.

And the answer? Not quite 5 weeks, maybe 75 miles. The cold light worked yesterday, but not today. No telling if the hot light works, I'd be hard pressed to overheat the stock 305 small block with the high capacity aluminum radiator, thermostatically controlled electric fan and full fan shroud.

Going to have to take a look at the more expensive senders. Anyone know who makes those?

[cwcarpenter98]

I don't know who makes the letric limited senders, but I've had one in my truck for several years now without any issues. I would buy from them again.

[Arne]

Well, it is obvious that the Standard brand parts aren't cutting it. O'Reilly's has been great so far, they give the dumb things a lifetime warranty. And it hasn't been a serious issue yet, as I'm not running antifreeze in it yet, just water. I've been draining and filling it way too often for other reasons to deal with disposing of coolant. But in a few weeks I'll be doing the new HVAC, and at that point I'll want to go with real coolant and won't want to keep partially draining it every few weeks to change a sender. So I'll either need to get one from Lectric or one of the "premium" senders from American Classics.

[The Rocknrod]

Lectric Limited is the standard. It works, people have used them for years without complaint.

[Arne]

Originally Posted by The Rocknrod

Lectric Limited is the standard. It works, people have used them for years without complaint.

Interesting. I've tried 3 Standard brand in the past 3 months, one was DOA and the other two both failed within a few weeks.

[The Rocknrod]

Originally Posted by Arne

Interesting. I've tried 3 Standard brand in the past 3 months, one was DOA and the other two both failed within a few weeks.

Not Standard Brand!
The standard by which all others are judged.

[Arne]

Originally Posted by The Rocknrod

Not Standard Brand!
The standard by which all others are judged.

Ahh! Got it. The manufacturer of the inferior part has an unfortunate name. I've ordered one of the Lectric senders, and will return the failed "Standard" part to O'Reilly's for warranty refund.

[Accelo]

Sadly, this is the current culture we all live in. You as the consumers are also the companies quality control. Exactly why when I can get OEM sensors, I always use them.

Before I knew better, I had replaced a temp sensor for my 64 Chevelle. Always ran hot, so I changed out the thermostat a couple time then decided the impeller in the wp may be bad. So, I changed out the water pump. The rebuilt, replacement pump, lasted about a month. The snout broke completely off the water pump and the fan went into the radiator.
Re-cored the radiator, replaced the fan and fan clutch, water pump and all new antifreeze. It was the last rebuilt water pump I ever used. Turned out it was the China sensor; motor wasn’t overheating after all. Now I typically scour eBay for OEM sensors when I need them. After that fiasco OEM’s sensors look cheap. Even if I pay big bucks for one. It was an expensive lesson.
Cheers

[Arne]

Originally Posted by The Rocknrod

Lectric Limited is the standard. It works, people have used them for years without complaint.

Bought a sender from Lectric, it arrived yesterday. Came in a plain white box with Lectric's part number on a stick-on label. Upon opening the box, the new sender appears to be identical to the unreliable Standard brand senders I've been struggling with, down to the casting marks on the plastic insulator and the number '15' stamped on the end. And when I test it with my ohmmeter, the Cold terminal is open at ambient temp. So this one—just like one of the Standard brand before it—is DOA out of the box.

I've now gone through 4 senders in less than 4 months. Three came in Standard boxes marked TS15, the other from Lectric but also marked '15' on the sender itself. Two of these have been bad out of the box, the other two each failed with no more than an hour or two of runtime.

I'm waiting for a return phone call from Lectric support now.

[bigmoe]

What about a NOS part? You see them sometimes on Ebay.

[Arne]

Originally Posted by bigmoe

What about a NOS part? You see them sometimes on Ebay.

Yeah, it is looking as if Standard is the only manufacturer right now, and those aren't cutting it. A failure rate of 100% in less than 30 days service is ridiculous.

I missed the return call from Lectric, will try to hook up with them again tomorrow. I plan to ask them if their current offering is made by Standard, and if so I just want a refund. No point in getting another one from them as I already have a lifetime warranty on one from O'Reilly's. I can exchange those for new ones as often as needed.

But replacing with new every few weeks doesn't cut it. No way I want to partially drain the coolant several times per year just to swap out another temp sender. There must be a better option. I'll look on eBay for NOS again.

[Arne]

Does anyone know the original GM part number for these so I can cross-reference?

[Arne]

Talked with Lectric support today, he pretty much confirmed that their sender is a reboxed Standard brand part. I'm going to return it for refund. I can get new Standard parts warranteed locally any day of the week. No need to deal half way across the country.

Which doesn't help with getting a part that works and will continue to work for an extended period. I note that Classic Truck offers a normal replacement, and also one (about double the cost) that they call "OE". The thing is, the picture again looks identical to the Standard brand I've been fighting with. I may call them to see if they will tell me who manufactures it.

[bigmoe]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/37364063370...Bk9SR8iA0uzqYQ

Lots of nos on ebay

[Southcity]

Originally Posted by Arne

Talked with Lectric support today, he pretty much confirmed that their sender is a reboxed Standard brand part. I going to return it for refund. I can get new Standard parts warranteed locally any day of the week. No need to deal half way across the country.

Which doesn't help with getting a part that works and will continue to work for an extended period. I note that Classic Truck offers a normal replacement, and also one (about double the cost) that they call "OE". The thing is, the picture again looks identical to the Standard brand I've been fighting with. I may call them to see if they will tell me who manufactures it.

Interested to keep receiving updates on this as I have been dealing with this same issue on my setup (66 K10 with 292). The last two I have tried (with no luck) were the below two. The cheaper of the two (classic parts unit) would make the green cold light flash briefly at startup, then go out. The unit from Classic Truck gave me nothing.

https://classictruck.com/1961-66-wat...oe-sku-53-812a

https://www.classicparts.com/1962-66...UaAu1QEALw_wcB

[Arne]

I asked Classic Truck who makes their more expensive "OE" sender. They told me it is from Lectric. Which means that it is exactly the same as the cheaper Standard brand sender they also sell. Just like everyone else, they claim they've sold dozens of the ones from Lectric with no returns.

Maybe Lectric used to have a different supplier, and only recently had to change to Standard. But right now in 2023 I've received the Standard sender from everyone I've tried. And all of them were either DOA or failed after 2 or 3 hours of use.

[Southcity]

Appreciate all the info and due diligence Arne. I am guessing that their claim of minimal returns are folks that installed it and think that something other than the new sensor they just bought is responsible for their lights not working. My setup has all new wiring harness, terminals, ignition switch etc. I've even tried adding an additional ground strap on the sensor just in case it was not getting a good ground - still no luck.

[Arne]

Originally Posted by Southcity

Appreciate all the info and due diligence Arne. I am guessing that their claim of minimal returns are folks that installed it and think that something other than the new sensor they just bought is responsible for their lights not working. My setup has all new wiring harness, terminals, ignition switch etc. I've even tried adding an additional ground strap on the sensor just in case it was not getting a good ground - still no luck.

I agree, but since I can point to 2 different senders that test as bad before they are ever installed, we can't blame the truck. I also have all new wiring harness and such. Two were bad and never installed, 2 tested OK out of the box, but both failed a very short time.

[cwcarpenter98]

I'm sad to hear that the Letriclimited one is now just a rebox. I bought mine at least 4 years ago I think, so I guess they changed since then

[Arne]

Originally Posted by cwcarpenter98

I'm sad to hear that the Letriclimited one is now just a rebox. I bought mine at least 4 years ago I think, so I guess they changed since then

Final confirmation on this today, when I got the RMA set up. The gentleman I talked with confirmed that these senders are NOT made in house, but purchased from an outside supplier.

It seems increasingly likely that Standard Motor Parts (or whoever they contract to) is the only manufacturer left for these senders.