I just bought a 1986 XJ-S V12 (left hand drive) and neither the oil pressure light nor the pressure gauge work. Are there two sending units? One for
the light and one for the gauge? If so, where is the best place to
purchase and is this a DIY?

Thanks!

 

Mmmmmm, you appear NEW, so welcome to the forum.

Go to the top of the main page and do your intro, it keeps all the top end warm and fuzzy, and is just the "right thing to do".

At the rear of the engine, under the 1" balance pipe, is a "pedestal" with 2 sender units screwed into it. The top one is for the gauge, the one on the RH side, and smaller, is the one for the light.

The wires that attach have a bad habit of coming OFF, especially when spark plugs are changed.

The terminals at the ends of each wire also break off, old age.

Check out the parts suppliers that support this site, good place to start.

The gauge unit is about $100, and the light one is about $10, as its nothing special.

It is do-able, HAHAHA, they are a mongrel to get at, and are usually Gorilla tight, and soooo much stuff needs to come off to get a spanner in there, so the language WILL flow, and drinking will soon become your friend.

My suggestion is check the wiring very carefully, and ensure the dash does what it should. Do it once, do it properly, forget it for another 20+ years.

 

Definitely do them at the same time because all of the same stuff has to come off. I did mine separately because my idiot light didn't leak until the increased pressure from fixing my sender blew it.

you WILL need a crows foot and a good enough extension to reach past everything. May as well buy a set because its cheaper that way. I cannot remember the size but just buy it after you get the sender in.
There is one maybe 2 "flat to flat" sections in this job so just be patient and expect it on the V12.


Grants said what you need i just wanted to add my 2 cents about the crows foot

 

BTW, common aftermarket pressure sender is notoriously poor quality and in many cases lasts only a short period of time. So if your stock unit does not leak, you might want to open it up by prying top housing all around. Most common problem is thin wire coming off the coil breaking, you can reattach it and have perfectly functioning sender. I reassembled mine using gasket silicone, to seal it all around.

 

Sounds like quite a job, but I think I am up to it!

Again, manay thanks.