Engine Monitoring

L

larry nelson

New member
Apr 9, 2001
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I have a fancy engine monitor on a plane. It monitors cylinder head temps, oil temps, fuel flow, exhaust gas temps, and compares readings on several
parameters. I could see some value to having cylinder head (spark plug base) temps, and maybe (distant second) fuel flow. Exhaust gas temp, not so
much. Does J.C. Whitney or Sears and Roebuck have such a system for my 8 cylinder, water cooled, 455 cubic inch machine? I possibly with cylinders all
hooked together by one head and a water jacket, some of these may be of little value. It is nice, I must say, to read that one cylinder is not cutting
any mustard.
--
Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
 
Hmmm. Let me see. We could have an O2 sensor on every cylinder, and a
exhaust gas temperature thermocouple as well. and a gage for each one
individually. That ought to remove our eyes from the road long enough to
wander off the road, or over the double yellow lines into oncoming traffic
or ?? It's just a motorhome, powered by a 50 year old design made for an
automobile. Not a 777. If the engine quits on this thing, you just pull
safely out of the traffic and call a tow truck. EZ-PZ.
Jim Hupy
Salem, Oregon

On Mon, Feb 8, 2021 at 1:29 PM Larry Nelson via Gmclist <

> I have a fancy engine monitor on a plane. It monitors cylinder head temps,
> oil temps, fuel flow, exhaust gas temps, and compares readings on several
> parameters. I could see some value to having cylinder head (spark plug
> base) temps, and maybe (distant second) fuel flow. Exhaust gas temp, not so
> much. Does J.C. Whitney or Sears and Roebuck have such a system for my 8
> cylinder, water cooled, 455 cubic inch machine? I possibly with cylinders
> all
> hooked together by one head and a water jacket, some of these may be of
> little value. It is nice, I must say, to read that one cylinder is not
> cutting
> any mustard.
> --
> Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
> Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
> now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
Jim, it was a rhetorical question :p . Besides, I am too fixated on my tranny temp gauge to add anything else to my scan.

Larry
--
Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
 
And my response was a poor attempt at humor. (Some say that I have a weird
sense of what is funny and what is not) I don't believe anyone wants to
complicate their lives enough to install 16 gages in their dashes, (except
to one up all their buddies) But, I have seen research engines on
dynamometers that have instrumentation like I described. The guys doing
that kind of testing do not even speak any language except "engineerspeak"
Way out of my pay grade, to be sure.
Jim Hupy
Salem, Oregon

On Mon, Feb 8, 2021, 3:54 PM Larry Nelson via Gmclist <

> Jim, it was a rhetorical question :p . Besides, I am too fixated on my
> tranny temp gauge to add anything else to my scan.
>
> Larry
> --
> Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
> Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
> now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
You need a computer to monitor all the gauges and light a mast alert with a
voice as to which gauge is out of range and by how much, like oil temp is
20 degrees over the limit.

On Mon, Feb 8, 2021 at 3:54 PM Larry Nelson via Gmclist <

> Jim, it was a rhetorical question :p . Besides, I am too fixated on my
> tranny temp gauge to add anything else to my scan.
>
> Larry
> --
> Larry Nelson Springfield, MO
> Ex GMC'er, then GM Busnut
> now '77 Eleganza ARS WB0JOT
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>

--

*John Phillips*
 
John, there is one that does the important stuff. No voice though, just a SonAlert to get your attention. It's called a 'DigiPanel'

--johnny
--
Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell
 
I have an IPAD mounted to my dash with RPM, speed, coolant temp, trans
temp, battery volts, and fuel pressure. The screen flashes red if anything
is outside the stated parameters.
I had a computer braniac design it for me so I can't tell you how he did
it, but i'm sure others on here would understand it. We made the display
very simple to read. digital format.
The fuel pressure is nice to glance at especially if the motor stumbles or
something is not running right. Easy to see when the fuel filters are
getting dirty and allows time to get pulled over to swap (my tanks were
pretty rusty. After cleaning tanks, I still am working out the gunk) The
battery voltage readout sure was nice when my alternator went out. I could
see the voltage dropping a tenth of a percentage at a time and knew I had a
problem long before it was evident. In fact, I had my wife start the
generator while I was driving in traffic and I didnt pull over for 100
miles at the nearest parts store.
Not the cylinder head temp monitor Larry 1st posted about, but I thought it
was relevant.

Ken Shaffer

On Tue, Feb 9, 2021 at 7:54 AM Johnny Bridges via Gmclist <

> John, there is one that does the important stuff. No voice though, just a
> SonAlert to get your attention. It's called a 'DigiPanel'
>
> --johnny
> --
> Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
> Braselton, Ga.
> I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me
> in hell
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
Larry,

That could all be done, and my test engine in dyno labs often had all of that and more. They also had a "Dyno Jock" watching them all the time in the
early days and later we had a computer easily the equivalent of a good PC today doing the watching. Then, we have aircraft that had 72 cylinders to
keep track of, so they had an extra crewman in the cockpit just to watch and fiddle with all gages, dials and knobs. The important thing to realize
here is that in neither of those cases was there close by or crossing traffic to deal with. This is what makes the digipanel a good idea. I put in
one because Mary likes to drive and she was never trained in the "Panel Sweep" idea. So, while she is sensitive to conditions, she won't see it if is
not near the windshield.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
So what is critical for he average GMC coach operator to have and what’s the best way to acquire it?

Speedometer
Water temp
Oil press
Amp
And it would appear fuel is almost optional because of the accuracy of the gauge .

Randy Hecht
Roswell, GA

1974 Canyon Lakes GMC Motor-coach

>
> I have an IPAD mounted to my dash with RPM, speed, coolant temp, trans
> temp, battery volts, and fuel pressure. The screen flashes red if anything
> is outside the stated parameters.
> I had a computer braniac design it for me so I can't tell you how he did
> it, but i'm sure others on here would understand it. We made the display
> very simple to read. digital format.
> The fuel pressure is nice to glance at especially if the motor stumbles or
> something is not running right. Easy to see when the fuel filters are
> getting dirty and allows time to get pulled over to swap (my tanks were
> pretty rusty. After cleaning tanks, I still am working out the gunk) The
> battery voltage readout sure was nice when my alternator went out. I could
> see the voltage dropping a tenth of a percentage at a time and knew I had a
> problem long before it was evident. In fact, I had my wife start the
> generator while I was driving in traffic and I didnt pull over for 100
> miles at the nearest parts store.
> Not the cylinder head temp monitor Larry 1st posted about, but I thought it
> was relevant.
>
> Ken Shaffer
>
>> On Tue, Feb 9, 2021 at 7:54 AM Johnny Bridges via Gmclist <

>>
>> John, there is one that does the important stuff. No voice though, just a
>> SonAlert to get your attention. It's called a 'DigiPanel'
>>
>> --johnny
>> --
>> Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
>> Braselton, Ga.
>> I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me
>> in hell
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> GMCnet mailing list
>> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
>> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
 
My take on necessary gages might be engine vacuum, RPM, oil pressure,
coolant temp, engine battery voltage/amperage, Speed and odometer, and
lastly fuel levels. I have a vacuum gage and Tachometer mounted above the
dash and next to the wrap around glass. A quick glance without taking my
eyes off the road tells me what I think is most important. That speaks
volumes for the annunciation type panels like the digi-panel. If something
is outside the pre-set limits, it yells at you to stop, look, and listen.
Or, it flashes bright lights at you or something. Others might have their
own preferences on the order of importance.
Jim Hupy
Salem,Oregon

On Tue, Feb 9, 2021, 7:40 AM Randy Hecht via Gmclist <

> So what is critical for he average GMC coach operator to have and what’s
> the best way to acquire it?
>
> Speedometer
> Water temp
> Oil press
> Amp
> And it would appear fuel is almost optional because of the accuracy of the
> gauge .
>
> Randy Hecht
> Roswell, GA
>
> 1974 Canyon Lakes GMC Motor-coach
>
>
> > On Feb 9, 2021, at 10:32, Ken Shaffer via Gmclist <

> >
> > I have an IPAD mounted to my dash with RPM, speed, coolant temp, trans
> > temp, battery volts, and fuel pressure. The screen flashes red if
> anything
> > is outside the stated parameters.
> > I had a computer braniac design it for me so I can't tell you how he did
> > it, but i'm sure others on here would understand it. We made the display
> > very simple to read. digital format.
> > The fuel pressure is nice to glance at especially if the motor stumbles
> or
> > something is not running right. Easy to see when the fuel filters are
> > getting dirty and allows time to get pulled over to swap (my tanks were
> > pretty rusty. After cleaning tanks, I still am working out the gunk)
> The
> > battery voltage readout sure was nice when my alternator went out. I
> could
> > see the voltage dropping a tenth of a percentage at a time and knew I
> had a
> > problem long before it was evident. In fact, I had my wife start the
> > generator while I was driving in traffic and I didnt pull over for 100
> > miles at the nearest parts store.
> > Not the cylinder head temp monitor Larry 1st posted about, but I thought
> it
> > was relevant.
> >
> > Ken Shaffer
> >
> >> On Tue, Feb 9, 2021 at 7:54 AM Johnny Bridges via Gmclist <

> >>
> >> John, there is one that does the important stuff. No voice though,
> just a
> >> SonAlert to get your attention. It's called a 'DigiPanel'
> >>
> >> --johnny
> >> --
> >> Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
> >> Braselton, Ga.
> >> I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to
> me
> >> in hell
> >>
> >>
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> GMCnet mailing list
> >> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> >> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
> >>
> > _______________________________________________
> > GMCnet mailing list
> > Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> > http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
If you are running the GM throttle body EFI system and the EBL add-on, you can use WinLog-EBL to display gauges on a Windows screen. You can have
gauges for all of the normal EFI variables and add 8 more of your choice using the EBL's ADC input channels. Any gauge can alarm to a WAV file - so
you can have it say "Hello Dave, this is HAL; I'm sorry but your oil pressure is very low". You can also add three Fuel/Miles/Mileage trip meters. I
have WB02 and fuel pressure on two of the channels and will add trans temp and maybe bag pressures. WinLog-EBL was adapted to the EBL using
Devtechnics WinLog program and a custom driver.

http://www.devtechnics.com/
--
Bill Van Vlack
'76 Royale; Guemes Island, Washington; Twin bed, full (DS) side bath, Brazilian Redwood counter and settee tops,455, 6KW generator; new owner a/o mid
November 2015.
 
Are you serious?
I so need to get HAL to talk to me!
Shutdown message would have be "Daisy Daisy give me your answer do...."
________________________________
From: Gmclist on behalf of Bill Van Vlack via Gmclist
Sent: Tuesday, February 9, 2021 10:35 AM
To: gmclist
Cc: Bill Van Vlack
Subject: Re: [GMCnet] Engine Monitoring

If you are running the GM throttle body EFI system and the EBL add-on, you can use WinLog-EBL to display gauges on a Windows screen. You can have
gauges for all of the normal EFI variables and add 8 more of your choice using the EBL's ADC input channels. Any gauge can alarm to a WAV file - so
you can have it say "Hello Dave, this is HAL; I'm sorry but your oil pressure is very low". You can also add three Fuel/Miles/Mileage trip meters. I
have WB02 and fuel pressure on two of the channels and will add trans temp and maybe bag pressures. WinLog-EBL was adapted to the EBL using
Devtechnics WinLog program and a custom driver.

http://www.devtechnics.com/
--
Bill Van Vlack
'76 Royale; Guemes Island, Washington; Twin bed, full (DS) side bath, Brazilian Redwood counter and settee tops,455, 6KW generator; new owner a/o mid
November 2015.

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"Copilot, Dave is in Deceleration Enleanment Mode now. Please make sure he is awake".
--
Bill Van Vlack
'76 Royale; Guemes Island, Washington; Twin bed, full (DS) side bath, Brazilian Redwood counter and settee tops,455, 6KW generator; new owner a/o mid
November 2015.
 
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