Allison 1000MH TEMPERATURE MONITORING

[Robert92867]

THIS ONLY APPLIES TO ENTRY-LEVEL 26K GVWR DIESEL COACHES. (KNIGHT, CAYMAN).

2001 Cummins ISB 5.9 24 VALVE mated to an Allison 1000MH.  This entry-level setup can be identified by the manual Morse Cable Shift, as opposed to electronic shift found in 2000 series and up.  Silverleaf will not read engine or transmission paremeters for this application, making it useless. I wanted a PSI pressure gauge to monitor the air governor, and transmission temperature gauge.  The AIR PSI gauge was easy, tap in the 3/8 tube just below the parking brake mushroom button in the armrest.  The transmission temp was harder.  Readily available are Allison 1000 Test Port Adapters (Glowshift and other manufacturers), but they don't read the hottest part of the fluid.  I also found AN inline port adapters, but all the AN fittings were made out of aluminum, creating a weak link in the steel jic 37 degree fittings connecting the outlet / inlet hoses to the transmission cooler.   

HYDRACHECK carries the inline port adapter that solved the problem.

 

 

[Craggar]

An fittings come in steel as well as aluminum.

[BradHend]

Excellent!! I think I might have to do this. Basically have the same mechanics as yours, same front cluster as well.  
Mind sharing where you sourced your gauge from?  Thanks. 
 

If I remember correctly, the Bluefire 9-pin   Port in the engine bay could display the transmission temperature but the 6-pin port in the drivers bay didn’t display that data for whatever reason.  Would be nice to see it in a real analog gauge like it was meant to be there, and I wouldn’t have to worry about buying and routing a 9-pin extension cable for the little bit of extra data the Bluefire provides. 

Edited March 28, 2023 by BradHend

[Robert92867]

The gauge is Auto Meter 2552, includes sensor. Amazon $71

[Rikadoo]

Remember to attach a ground wire to that fitting.

[Scotty Hutto]

18 hours ago, BradHend said:

…I wouldn’t have to worry about buying and routing a 9-pin extension cable for the little bit of extra data the Bluefire provides. 

Just finished adding a 9-pin J1939 port under the dash on my 06 Diplomat. I’ll post a separate write-up soon, but it was easier than expected.  I put a Deutsch 3-pin (DT-3) “Y” in the J1939 bus cable going to the Aladdin/J1939 bridge (located in the driver’s side console on my coach.)  From there I had to run 3 wires (data + / data - / data shield) to the location of the 6-pin connector.  I then replaced the gray J1708 6-pin connector with a green J1939 9-pin connector using 12+, ground, J1708+, J1708-, plus the 3 J1939 lines. 7 of the 9 pins are populated. Checked it and have full J1939 and J1708 busses operational now. Total cost about $50-60-ish and a few hours’ time. 

[BradHend]

@Scotty Hutto My entry level Cayman doesn’t have the Aladdin system. ☹️

[Scotty Hutto]

1 hour ago, BradHend said:

@Scotty Hutto My entry level Cayman doesn’t have the Aladdin system. ☹️

Understood, but it is still likely to have the J1939 bus in the driver console.  It also connects to the Bendix brake controller and the Allison transmission ECM from there.  I wouldn't suggest "messing" with either of those controllers, but if the Aladdin was an option for the Cayman, you likely have an unused data cable there.  They used a similar (if not the same) wiring harness in all of the lower-end diesel coaches (Cayman, Knight, Diplomat), so there's a pretty decent chance...

It might be worth a look to see...  Her's pic of my brake controller and the Aladdin connector in my coach.  
 

[BradHend]

Thanks Scotty!!  I will be taking a look!

[Jim McGarvie]

Hey Bob,

That dash looks very familiar. We have a 2002 30' Knight, also original owner. They didn't make the 30-footers for long; guess they weren't very popular, but a lot of people ask about ours and want us to let them know when we decide to sell (not likely).

I too added a couple of gauges to our dash: a transmission temp gauge on the right, and a voltmeter on the left. They were both from a 2002 Windsor, and match our other gauges. Can I ask where you got the air pressure gauge? I might like to add one of those too.

Thanks.

[Robert92867]

On 3/29/2023 at 6:26 AM, Rikadoo said:

Remember to attach a ground wire to that fitting.

Doesn't the 4/0 gnd to the engine block effectively ground that brass fitting?  Anyway, I planned on testing it without a dedicated ground first. the dash gauge shares a common ground with the rest of the lineup.

[Jim McGarvie]

Thanks for the gauge info, Bob.

[Rikadoo]

Hey Bob, on my HR the union that holds the temp sender is between two hydrolic hoses, it has a wire that goes directly to ground, if your “T” is going to be connected to the transmission or some other grounded location then NP however if its like mine it will need to have a good ground.😎

[Robert92867]

Finally finished 2023 Maintenance.  Took the RV  for a 2 mile freeway run.  Trans temp gauge works fine.  Registers 150 F. on flat ground.