acceptable oil temps?

[Randy in Maine]

i believe a dumb question is better than no question, but what is a "taco plate"?

A "taco plate" is the inspection plate on a type 4 engine (that you don't have).

Looks sort of like this....with the oil temp sender installed.

[BumbleBus]

what is a "taco plate"?

it's just what some people refer to when talking about the round oil sump plate cover on the bottom end of a Type IV motor.

[SlowLane]

I still wonder how it got that nickname. It looks rather unlike a taco.

The 914 had a modified plate (see http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/ ... id=1135463), that looks a lot more like a taco. Gets the sender out of the airstream,too.

[StevesBug]

In the spirit of fair payback ( I’ve read some numbers that have reduced my worry level),
and cheap “how to” stuff, take your sending unit out, wire attached, and drop it into a pot
of boiling water. I use my single burner camp stove, but you can be creative. Water boils at
212, so you see what your sender and gauge conjure at a known 212 ( you can adjust for
altitude if needed). This is your base point and all readings can be adjusted accordingly. It’s
still not a direct reading, but it does give you a sense of where “OMG!” is and how to respond.