Making 914-6 GT Style Fuel Gauge Don't Spend Big $$$$, All It Takes Is A 914 Fuel Gauge & Saab 95 96 gauge Options

[914Sixer]

You need the Saab fuel gauge and an early 914 fuel gauge with the round black plugs on it. Take the Saab fuel gauge apart starting with the ring and face. Go around back and remove the 3 screws. Drop gauge out the front. Take a small fork and gently pull up on the needle. Take two screw off dial face. They are VERY SMALL. Turn assembly over and undo the two ground nuts and plug. Be careful pulling apart. There is two small washers on the base. Unit and mounting will come apart. NOTE THE TWO WIRE CONNECTIONS. Unsoder the wires. Now your ready to take the 914 gauge apart the same way you did the back of the Saab gauge. Remove needle and face screws. Go around the back and undo one post nut. Base will separate from the back. CHECK WIRE CONNECTIONS. Unsoder from base. Take the 914 unit over to the Saab base and match up the wire terminal. Soder in the wire and capacitor. Reassemble base with two small washers and 1st nut. Put ground spade and 2nd nut on centering the spade. Your conversion is DONE. Ready to send off for face plate silk screening. If you have some needle paint, go ahead and paint it too. (NHS charges $15 to paint needle).

If you started out with a known good gauge your costs should only be for a new black trim ring and silk screen cost. Trim rings are $45 each.

[914forme]

Any sign shop that does vinyl wraps should be able to do it. Just call up and ask if they can print on vinyl and cut it.

Here are some tips from using vinyl to make gauge faces.

Clean all the tick marks off the gauge face, factory ones will show through the vinyl if you do not.

Add a coat of adhesion promoter to the face to help the vinyl stick. 3M makes the good stuff.

Sharp exacto knife will help you make clean cuts.

Now for the fun part the tick marks are relative as is everything else in the gauge. These will never be precision instruments, you will go insane trying to make them precise.

As pointed out the resistance needs to be correct to make this work properly, that is where the 914 fuel gauge comes into play. Or you can measure the resistance and add a new resistor.

The 911 fuel gauge actually operates in the correct direction for this project. But the shaft size might be different than the SAAB gauge.

BTW, Mercedes also used a very similar gauge that can be found and had easier than the Saab gauges. I have about 10 of them in my shop, all oil pressure gauges, but it works the same, all pretty simple electro mechanical devices.

BTW it would be easier to use a small amber 12V LED and use some clear epoxy to set it to the back of the face. No need for light tubes etc.... This makes it a bit easier to wire up. And nobody will ever se it once it is installed.

Have Fun