Gauges

[Dave]

So, I'm researching guages for the Z and want to see if you guys have any good input on companies, quality, different aspects to remember, etc.

Specifically, I'm looking for a style that is kinda plain and classy, not blingy or multi-colored. I'd prefer to go with a single brand line (ex: autometer sport-comp) for all the guages, including speedo, tach, water temp, oil pressure, fuel, and boost. Low price would be good if it will get the job done properly and not look like crap.

Recommendations of any product you've dealt with or shops with good prices would be awesome as well. Also, any input on elec. vs mech. and when to use each, proper data range (ex: temp 120-240 vs 140-280 vs 100-250). Finally, any installation hints would also be nice...

[.RJ]

[Goodspeed]

I think a multi-function meter like a Stack unit or the one above would be neat but totally not vintage/classic looking and would clash with the rest of the car.

I've always thought the old-school black-faced Greddy gauges were the best looking; you can find them used usually. You can buy them new still, but they now light up red in the dark, as opposed to a faint green that tends to match most factory gauges much better.

[PDenbigh]

+1

[Kaan]

that is bling-tastic! i love that thing!

[Dave]

down boys :-) Yes, the stack is cool, but prohibitively expensive and decidely non-retro. Not saying it isn't worth the money, as you can probably monitor the heartbeat of your grandma in Arkansas while you're checking the coolant temps going down the straight, but I don't really want that much info at this point.

Thanks Goodspeed, that's a good looking guage. I'll look into them a bit and see if they were offered in the sizes I need...

[Evan]

Autometer has a couple retro lines, look them up at jegs or summit

I personally prefer electric to mechanical gauges, but they dont have as wide of a sweep

[G.Irish]

down boys :-) Yes, the stack is cool, but prohibitively expensive and decidely non-retro. Not saying it isn't worth the money, as you can probably monitor the heartbeat of your grandma in Arkansas while you're checking the coolant temps going down the straight, but I don't really want that much info at this point.

Keep in mind that AIM makes much cheaper dashes that do a lot of the same stuff. But yeah, not retro at all.

[Mike]

i've always liked the ultra-lite (left) and sport-comp (right) lines from autometer. some day i'll install a few... some day.



nice and plain...

[ScottyB]

Dave, if you're looking for plain gauges with a decent rep, i think you might like Isspro -- Chan hooked me up with a boost gauge back when i had the owdee and it was a very complimentary piece.



stock lighting was orange, i put a cover over the bulb to get red.

diesel guys seem to like them alot.

[.RJ]

I personally prefer electric to mechanical gauges, but they dont have as wide of a sweep

For oil pressure you still may want to use a mechanical gauge - it will show pressure drops much faster than an electrical.

[Maengelito]

some day i'll install a few... some day.

if it takes you two years to flush your brake fluid, I doubt you'll ever install these.

[Mike]

some day i'll install a few... some day.

if it takes you two years to flush your brake fluid, I doubt you'll ever install these.

i hope to live a while long. let's shoot for my 50th bday.

[NTIman]

I personally prefer electric to mechanical gauges, but they dont have as wide of a sweep

For oil pressure you still may want to use a mechanical gauge - it will show pressure drops much faster than an electrical.

+1

A properly installed and working mechanical oil pressure gauge will always be better than an electric one. But make sure you get some good copper tubing to install it.

I don't think you can beat an autometer any way you slice it, there are a million styles out there, and they're top quality. If you can't find an autometer you like, you're not going to find any gauge you like. And if you're going to go to the work to install them, you might as well get a decent gauge, even if its a little bit pricier than the competition.

[kwq slvr]

You can stop by our shop in Woodstock (Whiplash Motorsports) anytime and take a look at the 2008 Autometer catalog and we can do the installs as well.

[PDenbigh]

I put VDO's "Vision" series in the XR and really like them. They matched the stock font and colors perfectly, are simple, clean, and well built.

[Maengelito]

some day i'll install a few... some day.

if it takes you two years to flush your brake fluid, I doubt you'll ever install these.

i hope to live a while long. let's shoot for my 50th bday.

haha, awesome. When is that, 2031? Your 1994 Civic might need a little work by then.

[BLINGMW]

As Scotty pointed out, the Isspro stuff is really nice and simple, we sold the heck out of those and almost never got returns, they always worked. I just don't know if they make all the stuff to match that you're looking for, but I'd say it's worth looking at their site to see. Then you can order it all up from egauges or other. I'd also recommend VDO too, but either VDO or Isspro may end up costing quite a bit more than Autometer. Keep in mind that these are OEM quality gauges, not only for automotive, but aircraft and heavy equipment too.

Autometer. Perfectly good gauges, of course we sold the heck out of them too, the install kits and instructions are well thought out, I've used them too. Obviously, the selection is WAY better, you might end up with them just because of that. Personally, I don't think they're made as well and most of them look pretty crapulent. Looking at their site now, the ES and GS series look ok. The NV series with unacceptably insane backlighting, some of the other stuff with odd double outlined, weird color writing on it, I've seen them firsthand, just horrible. However, even the decent ones with proper glowing pointers are sometimes not centered properly, and just looking closely at the plastics of the needle, they just seem cheap. Not that they're bad, but you'd never see something like that on an OEM gauge.

I guess the only two gems I'd add are recommending going electric with everything reasonable (other than boost of course) and insisting on glowing pointers and good backlighting (you might see some with LEDs, keep in mind that means you can't dim them without another add on). Skip over all the metal pointer Autometers like the ones above, they just aren't very readable and will never look like "real" gauges. And while mechanical certainly has advantages in reliability and sometimes price, routing hoses instead of wires sucks, and now you've just got more places for your precious water, fuel and oil to leak from. Maybe into your dash, yay!

[NTIman]

I figured I would revive this thread.

I was watching speed channel, and some of the NASCAR teams are using products from Pro Parts.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://propartsllc.com/">http://propartsllc.com/</a><!-- m -->

Some of the features are pretty cool, all of the gauges are memory gauges, so you can see the maximum value on each gauge.

Also, you can set the minimum value and the maximum value you'd like to see on each gauge, and it will warn you by flashing a different color instead of the regular backlighting color, such as using blue while the value is in your specified range, and flashing red for 60 seconds before changing to a solid red as a warning.

Seemed like a good idea, and I realize that its not hard to put a warning lamp in beside the gauge, but its a clean look, and probably useful in any racecar/track whore.

[Goodspeed]

Just FYI, the black/green-lit Greddy gauges are back, now called Greddy SMI gauges in either single units or with a complete set seen here