it's my father's 76 dodge, he bought new. am keeping it to honor his memory. he loved it

it's my father's 76 dodge, he bought new. am keeping it to honor his memory. he loved it

1976 has some unique wiring, but as far as I know the fuel gauge is the same as previous years.

There's a couple of ways to test the gage alone.
I think the most complete test is to connect the gage to a 10 to 74 ohm resistor or variable resistor and supply it with power from the instrument voltage regulator.

If the instrument voltage regulator is unavailable or not safely accessible, then some other 5 to 6 volt power supply will be needed.

Thermal-Electric Gauges (Session 227) from the Master Technician's Service Conference

Here are some easier preliminary tests:

Mike69cuda said
You might measure you gauges with an ohm meter before you pass judgement. You should get about 13-20 ohms if they are good

RedFish said
A 6 volt high amp lantern battery could cause a crusty gauge to do what it wouldn't do in the car with proper input. 3 volts should get needle movement a tad more than half the range.

RedFish said
Mattax said

So it is safe to put 3 volt power source directly across the gauges with no additional load?

Click to expand...

Yep, 2 double As to make up a 3 volt supply.