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Question. Suzuki Trim gauge on a Merc

F

FUZZ

New member
Hello all!

first time poster, moderate part time lurker. Ive tried looking for my answer online with no luck.

We are overhauling a 2004 Proline 20 Sport with a brand new 2023 Mercury 150 Pro Xs.

We are replacing all the gauges. The gauges we found are discontinued but we found a set that will include a "mercury" GPS speedo, 7000 RPM tach, oil pressure and water temp.

To complete our gauge set, we found a similar "Suzuki" set that includes a trim gauge, voltage gauge and fuel gauge.

I will be ordering new pigtails and wiring the gauges myself. My question are this.

  • 1. I dont think there is any different with a Mercury/ Suzuki fuel gauge. Am I correct in saying this?

  • 2. The Mercury and Suzuki trim gauge will have different Ohm requirements. How can I make the Suzuki trim gauge work with the Mercury motor? How much less or more resistance should I add? Is there an adapter to accomplish this?



Any help would be greatly appreciated. Let me know if I am in the wrong category.
 
On Q#1, not enough detail to answer, assuming it was a question.

On Q#2, If the gauges have different ohm value requirements for the senders driving them, the best approach is to replace either part with a matching unit. There is no standard adapter for that job as their are multiple options...
 
If you're spending this much for a new 150HP Mercury, why are you trying to 'make do' with the gauges?

I wouldn't expect a Mercury OB that uses their proprietary system to work with other brands.
 
makomark said:
On Q#1, not enough detail to answer, assuming it was a question.

On Q#2, If the gauges have different ohm value requirements for the senders driving them, the best approach is to replace either part with a matching unit. There is no standard adapter for that job as their are multiple options...
Click to expand...
makomark said:
On Q#1, not enough detail to answer, assuming it was a question.

On Q#2, If the gauges have different ohm value requirements for the senders driving them, the best approach is to replace either part with a matching unit. There is no standard adapter for that job as their are multiple options...
Click to expand...


#1- from what I can see online. There is no specific Mercury/ suzuki fuel gauge. (With the exception of smartcraft gauges, Im just talking about standard analog gauges) A fuel gauge is fuel gauge. My question to the group was, is this correct? Is a fuel gauge universal across all brands? If it is, then I can use the fuel and voltage gauge from the “suzuki” gauge pack and just need to source a merc trim gauge.

From what I can see online the mercury/ suzuki gauge packages are specific to each brand because of the speed range and rpm range on the gauge face as well as the trim ohm rating. Most all other analog gauges (water temp, oil temp and oil pressure) appear to be standard/ universal across all boat brands.

Meaning you *could use the speedo and tach from a “suzuki” gauge pack on a mercury if your good with having a gauge face with a different rpm/speedo range,

but it looks like I cant use a suzuki trim gauge on a mercury because of the ohms difference. I am just trying to see if there is a work around that would allow me to use the suzuki trim gauge on my merc amd to confirm my belief that a fuel gauge is a fuel gauge.
 
jimn said:
If you're spending this much for a new 150HP Mercury, why are you trying to 'make do' with the gauges?

I wouldn't expect a Mercury OB that uses their proprietary system to work with other brands.
Click to expand...

The gauges in the boat are the original gauges and are faded and worn. The merc engine harness has ring terminals for the gauges so we can use any gauges we would like.

The ones we found match the boat. The issue is the trim gauge because of the ohm difference . Im trying to see if there is a work around so we can get matching set
 
The fuel gauge care about the sender unit, in the tank, being matched to its expected inputs....most american hull makers have used the american standard for the past few decades but not all. "EMPTY" will show when the sender provided 240 ohms, "FULL" will show when the sender provided 33 ohms.

The tachometers are particular to the ignition system used (specifically its frequency range)...Speedos are typically driven by a pitot tube and dont care what engine is on the hull...
 
FUZZ said:
The gauges in the boat are the original gauges and are faded and worn. The merc engine harness has ring terminals for the gauges so we can use any gauges we would like.

The ones we found match the boat. The issue is the trim gauge because of the ohm difference . Im trying to see if there is a work around so we can get matching set
Click to expand...
How much of a difference is there in the trim gauge? Is it higher, or lower than the original one?
makomark said:
The fuel gauge care about the sender unit, in the tank, being matched to its expected inputs....most american hull makers have used the american standard for the past few decades but not all. "EMPTY" will show when the sender provided 240 ohms, "FULL" will show when the sender provided 33 ohms.

The tachometers are particular to the ignition system used (specifically its frequency range)...Speedos are typically driven by a pitot tube and dont care what engine is on the hull...
Click to expand...

WRT tank senders- true, although I have seen some that weren't in the same range. WRT tach, if it's not using injection/ECM, the gray wire and the adjustment on the back of the gauge lets it work with 4, 6 and 8 cylinder engines but the trim gauge is just a simple device that could work with various makes of OB, but probably don't, for some reason like the total range of motion. The switch shouldn't matter, but Suzuki trim switches are much smaller than Mercury/Mercruiser, IIRC.

If the gauges have an MDC box (Medallion, etc), the speedo could use the typical plastic tube or a paddlewheel, which is electric.
 
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