Trim Gauge Wiring for 86 Evinrude XP 200 Looper

[Allyda]

I have a new Teleflex Trim Gauge I'm installing on my 86 20 ft 8 in Shadow Tunnel Vee hull Powered by an 86 Evinrude XP 200 Looper. I've found the sending unit on my motor, but the two wires coming from it go into a harness that goes up under the engine cowling. I know one of these two wires is the sense, and the other is the ground. The problem is they are both the same color and that they go up into the engine cowling and I havent a clue where I'm supposed to splice in my sense wire from the gauge to up under there nor the ground, as I don't know where (or why for that matter) these two wires go to on the engine.:eek:

In addition since both wires are the same color it's going to make things even more difficult, and the instructions that came with my new gauge suck (and that's putting it nicely). Yes they show the sending unit and where the wires go on the gauge but not where to splice or tie into them from either from those coming from the engine to my control box or out on the motor under the cowling. And this gauge is specifically for Johnson/Evinrude/OMC.

Do these two trim sending unit wires go into my engine's control box at the helm? If so can I splice into them ftom there as I do with my tach? Or do I have to splice into them back on the engine somewhere?

I'm hoping someone out there has had experience with hooking a trim gauge up to a motor like mine and can point me in the right direction.

If photos are needed I can take some of the sending unit tomorrow after I get back from the Doctor and post them.

I thank you in advance for any help you can give.:cheers:

[Allyda]

Hmnnh, I guess nobody wants to chime in and help me with this trim guage eh? I thought things went both ways here folks -m-a-y-b-e- -n-o-t! I know somebody out there's ran across this issue before..........Have I offended anyone in some way??.................................??:confused:

Oh well..........................I'll figure it out eventually and there's always BBC and others who might be willing to assist me with this minor issue to help save me time + you tube:D

[panther150]

The wires also appear out side your shifter box and at the trim switch in the motor pan, green for down, blue for up, third colour is ground.there should be plugged off butt connectors at the shifter box woring harness to connect the guage to.

Steve

[Allyda]

The wires also appear out side your shifter box and at the trim switch in the motor pan, green for down, blue for up, third colour is ground.there should be plugged off butt connectors at the shifter box woring harness to connect the guage to.

Steve
Sorry but thereare no plugged off wires at my shifter box (I have a hot foot so control box to me is now just a shifter box)to hook the gauge to. There are however the three wires you mention coming out of the bottom of the shift handle, but that's it. I know where the sending unit is, but the two wires coming from it are the same color. BTW, I did clean them to verify this. Both are black.:mad:

[groundloop]

Don't know if you've got it figured out yet or not..... There should be 3 terminals on the trim indicator, I, G, and S. I gets 12 Volts, G goes to ground, and S goes to one of the trim sender wires. The other trim sender wire goes to ground.

Those wires don't go to the control box.... there's a 5 pin connector in the engine, the red, blue, and green wires (they control the trim relays) go to the trim switch in the control box and the other two (probably white and black) go to the trim indicator. Here's a link to a generic OMC diagram for tilt/trim, it should at least be close to yours http://maxrules.com/graphics/omc/wiring/TnTwiring.gif . If need be you can just ground one of the wires from the trim sender and run the other one directly up to your trim gauge.

[Allyda]

Don't know if you've got it figured out yet or not..... There should be 3 terminals on the trim indicator, I, G, and S. I gets 12 Volts, G goes to ground, and S goes to one of the trim sender wires. The other trim sender wire goes to ground.

Those wires don't go to the control box.... there's a 5 pin connector in the engine, the red, blue, and green wires (they control the trim relays) go to the trim switch in the control box and the other two (probably white and black) go to the trim indicator. Here's a link to a generic OMC diagram for tilt/trim, it should at least be close to yours http://maxrules.com/graphics/omc/wiring/TnTwiring.gif . If need be you can just ground one of the wires from the trim sender and run the other one directly up to your trim gauge. I already have that diagram. Yes it's simmilar to mine, and I should be able to just hook up from the relay box however when I do just that no matter where the motor is, it reads past all the way down like it's shorting to ground which I know is not possible cause my power trim/tilt works perfectly. What I thought about trying is to hook one of the two wires from the sending unit to the "S" terminal, and the other to the "G" terminal. If this don't fix it then I'm at a loss cause I've tried every other way.

[groundloop]

What I thought about trying is to hook one of the two wires from the sending unit to the "S" terminal, and the other to the "G" terminal. If this don't fix it then I'm at a loss cause I've tried every other way.

That might work, but you've got to make sure that the G terminal goes to ground.

Are you sure that the trim sender is still good? They have a bad habit of failing (something about being in a wet and high vibration environment). To check it you can just disconnect it from everything and measure resistance at the two wires coming from it. The resistance should vary smoothly as you move the trim sender from full up to full down.

[Allyda]

That might work, but you've got to make sure that the G terminal goes to ground.

Are you sure that the trim sender is still good? They have a bad habit of failing (something about being in a wet and high vibration environment). To check it you can just disconnect it from everything and measure resistance at the two wires coming from it. The resistance should vary smoothly as you move the trim sender from full up to full down.
It's quite possible I have a bad sender however it looks new. Could have gotten a bad gsuge as well.

[BigG-n-Tn]

Have you isolated the trim sender and checked the resistance change with a ohmmeter -as you rotate it- to see if it is functional? You could do the same by applying 12V and see if the voltage varies as you move it.

[Allyda]

Have you isolated the trim sender and checked the resistance change with a ohmmeter -as you rotate it- to see if it is functional? You could do the same by applying 12V and see if the voltage varies as you move it.Not yet, it's been raining here and I just haven't had the chance to. I will do these checks first decent day I get. My boat is under a 23 X 12' canopy but it's hard to work on it when it's raining.

[BigG-n-Tn]

Let us know what you find. That test will also help you determine which of the 2 wires is the input and which is the output to the gauge (if the sender ends up being functional). Theoretically, the highest voltage (or lowest resistance) should be with the sending lever in it's upmost position. Which wire is input or output may not matter unless the sender has a diode in it.

[Allyda]

Let us know what you find. That test will also help you determine which of the 2 wires is the input and which is the output to the gauge (if the sender ends up being functional). Theoretically, the highest voltage (or lowest resistance) should be with the sending lever in it's upmost position. Which wire is input or output may not matter unless the sender has a diode in it.I will. In the meantime maybe y'all can help me make my mind up on my next decision on which jackplate I want to use to replace my current. Thread is located here: http://www.screamandfly.com/showthread.php?275980-How-Good-Are-Quicksilver-Hydraulic-Jackplates&p=2561268#post2561268

[BigG-n-Tn]

Can't help much on the jack plate advice but I did reread your OP about the sending unit and gauge. You seem to be under the impression that one of the wires at the sender is a ground and the other is 12V. That's not the case. Yes, the 2 wires coming from the motor to the gauge are 12V and a ground but the 2 wires at the sender itself is one voltage signal passing through what is basically a rheostat (the sender) and coming back out. The resulting varying voltage output (depending on the motor position) pairs itself with a ground and heads towards the gauge in the harness. I may have misunderstood you though. Did I?

[Allyda]

Can't help much on the jack plate advice but I did reread your OP about the sending unit and gauge. You seem to be under the impression that one of the wires at the sender is a ground and the other is 12V. That's not the case. Yes, the 2 wires coming from the motor to the gauge are 12V and a ground but the 2 wires at the sender itself is one voltage signal passing through what is basically a rheostat (the sender) and coming back out. The resulting varying voltage output (depending on the motor position) pairs itself with a ground and heads towards the gauge in the harness. I may have misunderstood you though. Did I?Don't think so. No you haven't misunderstood and I know that the sender is some sort of rheostat, which is why I feel what I'm doing wrong is trying to just hook it up in the junction box. Honestly I can't find any butt connectors, any 5 point rubber connectors, etc., that have anything to do with the trim unit. My motor's had the powerhead replaced, and what they did with the wiring under the cowling is bypass alot of chit, so I don't know what has been bypassed with regard to the trim unit. All I know is that the power trim/tilt works as it should from all 5 access points, the stern, the shift handle, the bow, and the steering wheel (which I added), and the floor unit beside my hotfoot.

[BigG-n-Tn]

Don't think so. Don't think I misunderstood that you were thinking one sender wire was 12V and the other ground or you don't think the sender works as I described it.

[Allyda]

Don't think I misunderstood that you were thinking one sender wire was 12V and the other ground or you don't think the sender works as I described it. No you didn't -I edited the above post. I was falling asleep after writing I don't think so. So I waited til this afternoon to edit the post. If ya re-read it now you'll see your not misunderstanding things.

[BigG-n-Tn]

Posting lengthy replies is not real easy for me because I'm using my iPhone and the site has some conflicts with it right now. I can't even send you a PM for now. If you'll send me a PM with a way to contact you, I will. It would be easier for me. Not a visitor message but a PM. A visitor message will allow ANYONE to see your contact info, not just members. If you get it going, then you can post a follow up so other members can benefit from it.

[Allyda]

Posting lengthy replies is not real easy for me because I'm using my iPhone and the site has some conflicts with it right now. I can't even send you a PM for now. If you'll send me a PM with a way to contact you, I will. It would be easier for me. Not a visitor message but a PM. A visitor message will allow ANYONE to see your contact info, not just members. If you get it going, then you can post a follow up so other members can benefit from it.S-Okay, I'll PM you. However I did get to mess with it a little this evening as I had printed out a full page version of the generic diagram. What I've done is hooked my "S" wire back up to where I had it cause according to the diagram it's in the right spot (outermost bottom left terminal). I have also connected another wire to where the "G" termonal on the gauge in the diagram connects to (middle bottom left) which, tomorrow I'll run it up to the console and hook to the "G" on the gauge (I ran out of daylight so just left it coiled up under the cowling for the night). Right now, the "G" on the gauge is just hooked to my 'daisy chain' ground for the other gauges ie: tach, temp, etc., etc., and for the trim gauge that ground might not work and be what's causing my problem. Oh, I did manage to find the 5 wire connector -it was hidden under the port cylinder bank way up under there. I pulled it out for easier access. In any case what I'm getting at is, after running this second wire tomorrow the trim gauge will be hooked up exactly as it is shown in the diagram/schematic.

[BigG-n-Tn]

Sounds like you're starting to get a grip on it. The five wire connector should plug into the plug coming out under the throttle handle on the remote controls. The 2 remaining wires should be the sender wires going to the trim gauge. Does your diagram concur? Of course if the sender wiring is not connected properly at the motor, you'll still have to do that. You could build a stand alone circuit for the sender if you had to but it sure would be nice if you can get the factory wiring to work for you.

[Allyda]

Sounds like you're starting to get a grip on it. The five wire connector should plug into the plug coming out under the throttle handle on the remote controls. The 2 remaining wires should be the sender wires going to the trim gauge. Does your diagram concur? Of course if the sender wiring is not connected properly at the motor, you'll still have to do that. You could build a stand alone circuit for the sender if you had to but it sure would be nice if you can get the factory wiring to work for you.The 5 wire connector I found is under the engine cowling, hence, it being hidden under the port side cylinder bank, and goes into the trim/tilt relay/junction box where I hooked my wires to like in the diagram. There are no butt connectors or is there a 5 wire connector on or in the control box for the trim/tilt. The only wires on the control box are the three coming out of the shift handle trim switch. This is why I hooked into the junction box back on the motor as per is shown in the wiring diagram.

[BigG-n-Tn]

You are correct. On the controller end, the five wires separate. The 3 wire connector goes to the remote control and plug into the T&T switch harness and the other 2 wires should head to the gauge. Does your drawing concur? On the controller end, someone may have cut the wires for the gauge back.

[Allyda]

You are correct. On the controller end, the five wires separate. The 3 wire connector goes to the remote control and plug into the T&T switch harness and the other 2 wires should head to the gauge. Does your drawing concur? On the controller end, someone may have cut the wires for the gauge back.I'll have to check the wires. It sure would be nice to find the other two for the gauge there. However, I only have about a foot or so of the trim wires before they enter the gunnel.

[BigG-n-Tn]

Well, I have a few ideas left. PM me if you need me.

[Allyda]

Well, I have a few ideas left. PM me if you need me.I will.

[Allyda]

Well, I have a few ideas left. PM me if you need me.PM sent.

[Allyda]

Hi everyone, BigG-n-Tn. Just wanted to ley everyone know I haven't forgotten about this thread. Thanks to BigG-n-Tn's help I believe we have the problem solved and I will post a follow up outlining the solution once I've had a chance to verify the problem is indeed solved.

We've been having a few cold fronts coming through, and as a result alot of rain and I just haven't had the chance to get everything hooked up properly. As soon as I get some decent weather where I can work on my boat that evening I'll post the follow up.

I just wanted to let those who've helped me here with this issue know I haven't forgotten you or this thread. I just haven't had a chance to work on the boat since we last spoke.

Take care everyone and a Happy Thanksgiving to ya!!
Allyda

[Allyda]

Sorry everyone for it taking me awhile to get back to this thread. I just had to take care of a few things before I could get back to work on the boat. Well, after finally finding the two factory trim gauge wires on the harness for the trim gauge -white & tan for the "S", and black and tan for the "G" or "ground", I hooked these up to the gauge to the proper posts and gauge still doesn't work. It's showing all the way down regardless of position of motor. Due to this development I'm now considering the gauge itself to be faulty, or the trim sending unit to be faulty. My next step will be to check the sending unit with my volt meter to determine whether or not it is working. If it is I'll know it's the gauge and I'll need another gauge. If it's not working I'll know it's the sending unit and I'll replace it.

I'll update this thread once I run my tests on the sending unit. Other than the above I'm all out of ideas so if anybody has one I haven't thought of feel free to share them.

Again I thank everyone for their help.

Allyda