Thermometer thoughts

[rita]

I feel part of the issue is what appears to be the same item is supplied by several different vendors and no doubt built to different qualities / specs.
Mine was one of a batch I agreed to trial for a well known supplier, who with drew them due to reliablity issues I think, this was a few years ago so things may have changed.
I might re install it and see how it reads compared to the new one I have

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111052553849? ... 26_rdc%3D1

Was this the unit that you tested for the supplier or are you not sure

PS just being nosey ...

[Simon Jones]

The trial one I had was a twin sensor unit. It also just ended up always displaying 85C. Generally this type of DIN mounted unit is intended for fixed use and is just not rugged enough for vehicle use.

[winchman]

I feel part of the issue is what appears to be the same item is supplied by several different vendors and no doubt built to different qualities / specs.
Mine was one of a batch I agreed to trial for a well known supplier, who with drew them due to reliablity issues I think, this was a few years ago so things may have changed.
I might re install it and see how it reads compared to the new one I have

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111052553849? ... 26_rdc%3D1

Was this the unit that you tested for the supplier or are you not sure

PS just being nosey ...

Same unit different supplier

[winchman]

The trial one I had was a twin sensor unit. It also just ended up always displaying 85C. Generally this type of DIN mounted unit is intended for fixed use and is just not rugged enough for vehicle use.

Same as mine

[rita]

The trial one I had was a twin sensor unit. It also just ended up always displaying 85C. Generally this type of DIN mounted unit is intended for fixed use and is just not rugged enough for vehicle use.

Same as mine

That's all very interesting, what happened when the complaint was sent to the supplier, did the supplier give an explanation for this fault and in fact a Refund.

[winchman]

The Supplier Simon and I and several other tried these for refunded or upgraded them for free, he gave the remaining stock away as he felt it wasn't reliable when you consider what it has to protect.
They are manufactured in China from memory, as the Chinese ones go it has a good fast response time but its all down to trust and confidence in the item, many Ebay suppliers carry no public liability insurance so when an item fails you have no come back, it is a case of you get what you pay for, but if they sell 1000 they will get some back some people wont bother some will have no issues its just luck, I feel its not a bad product just not quite up to the quality we would need.
I did look in to making my own but once you look at component reliability etc its a mine field so easier to buy a known branded one

[haydn callow]

I can see exactly where someone is trying to lead this thread.
To clear things up.
I supplied these after buying bulk from abroad....I gave 6 out free for evaluation in a attempt to bring a cheaper alternative to the tried and tested TM2.
4 failed very quickly so I refused to bring any more into stock and gave the rest away.
They are quite flimsy and the wiring is not of a good standard.....cheap components don't help..
You get what you pay for......

[BongoBongo123]

Going with the TM-2

[winchman]

Going with the TM-2

A wise choice and an added sales point should you ever decide to sell.

[haydn callow]

We do still do the TM2 due to popular demand....however the TM4 superseded about a year ago, so do consider both before deciding.

[haydn callow]

Remember.....if you go for the £25 one on ebay...you may be o.k. And it will work perfectly forever...but is it worth the risk of it letting you down when you need it most.......out of the six I gave out to club members to trial....4 failed within 4 months, one is still working and I don't know about the 6th one....of the other six I stocked and as a result of the failure of the first six, I gave 5 of them away on the understanding I didn't support them in any way......I know 1 has failed(stuck at 85) and 2 we're never fitted, again I don't know about the others.
I pulled one to bits to try and suss out the problems.....where the sensor wires are attached to the unit is a weak spot and the wires are very thin and fragile...failure at this point gives the 85 reading....apart from this, the components are not the best and it seems the unit has been made DOWN to a price.
I don't remember now where I got the units from but they appear exactly the same as the present ebay ones.
We source ours from Australia and the components are top quality....they are made regardless of cost and then priced accordingly.....the same applies to our Low Coolant Alarms.
There are those on here who think ours are overpriced, however we have a less than 0.5% failure/return rate and some of those are due to wires being damaged etc.
We are also always on the end of the phone or email and our warranty is absolutely no quibble...

[winchman]

I have to support Haydn on this as he and Jo gave me excellent support and a quality product, I have since recommended his products to several people not just Bongo owners who are all delighted with the product.
My tale
I work for a large company who have an instrumentation department who calibrate, install and repair this sort of equipment amongst other stuff.
When I first got the Bongo I had the discussion of how to do it on the cheap after showing them what was available they told me the Chinese one was accurate but wouldn't last.
We did some temp tests and it was accurate with a good response time but the build quality wasn't good and it failed, they did say it would fail in the same way Haydn did as the construction has several weak spots.
I then bought a proper one a TM2 I think mine is.
As always you get what you pay for and often its not about price but the support, I paid and got mine the next day well packed with all the bits I needed to fit it, I made one phone call with a question that was answered in seconds so I feel it was worth the extra price.

[Simon Jones]

I've got TM2 and TM4 and find the latter with LCD display is much more readable in direct sunlight. That would be my recommendation. Haydn and now his daughter Jo, have always taken pride in the quality and reliability of what they supply so you can have confidence that you are buying the best kit for your Bongo. I used to work in the QA department for a company that manufacture digital panel meters so I can tell the good from the bad

[winchman]

Slightly off topic but
I have just seen this
http://www.coolantalarm.co.uk/shop/inde ... oductId=27
Would this bring the rad fan on at a temp I select?
I do have an paranoia as I hardly ever hear in on, Bongo peaks at 96 on a warm day so I would like to control or be able to over ride the rad fan

[haydn callow]

Yep!! They can switch fans on via a relay...however if you system is in good condition why mess with it.
It may even confuse your CPU