I only got up to about 60MPH and it was the stretch between Keystone and that light that was a million miles away lol. Nobody was on the road. I dont go 100mph in traffic man. I have common sense.

 

Bought some new gauges. Temp, oil pressure and volts.

Was trying to to figure out how and where I could mount them for the longest time. I have a gauge pod that mounts on the pillar. Its only for 2 gauges, I think they look kind of tacky so decided not to go that route. I am completely against cutting on the dash. Its also one of the reasons I dont have an aftermarket Tach yet. I will not put scews in the dash. I do have plans later on down the road after I get bored of drag racing with it to turn the car back into a street car.

So I was trying out different things. Then found the perfect spot. Since I have no heat of A/C anyway. What did I need the controls for? So I mounted the gauges in where the heat and ac controls were. Looks pretty clean.

I had been worried because the oil pressure had been showing 30lbs and wasnt going over 30 - 35lbs even at higher rpms. A friend had suggested replacing the sending unit first. The engine had the original oil sending unit. The oil pressure gauge came with a new sending unit so I intalled it and viola. Beautiful oil pressure. Have 45 lbs of oil pressure at idle and jumps up to 70lbs of pressure at 6000 rpm. I am very pleased as this took a load off my mind. Also have a working temp gauge now. Woo hoo,.. I'm happy.

Car is slowly coming together. Still a long way to go,.. but getting there little by little.

Heres some pics.
Even got the lights in the gauges to work when I turn on the dash lights.










Was difficult to get a good shot showing the lights in the gauges.







Thats the last update I will do for a while. Wont be able to do much until after then wedding in Feb. Then should be able to get some money together for some much needed things.




Hurst

 

Gauges look good bud. What did you use to mount them into that slot where the HVAC controls were? I've been looking for a 3 guage cage for 2 1/16" gauges to no success yet...

 

I used a regular plate that would normally get mounted under the dash.

I was trying to get it to fit in where the radio was,.. but there was no bracket or anything to screw it to on the top that lined it up correctly. Inside the HVAC slot was a perfect fit and easy to mount. Probably going to get something like a Painless panel to cover where the radio was.

Hurst

 

Nice addition Jim. Good job

 

i like em. i took my dash from the 85 a\nd made custom cutouts from plastic, for my shift light, oil press, and water temp. looks good man

 

Went out to DH8 last weekend. Had a lot of fun.

Turned in my best times so far. Going faster is good right?




Discovered the reason I cant dead hook is because the stock Trac Loc has seen better days and breaks posi on a hard launch. So a spool is now on the list of to do things.

Thanks,..

Hurst

 

Fucking awesome!!

 

Why not use the factory gauges?

 

Because these gauges are more accurate and give me the actual readings that I need to know. Not a rough gues,.. like,.. well ok,. this is a safe 'zone'. I'll know exactly what my oil pressure is,.. I'll know exactly what my voltage is. Factory temp gauges are notoriously inaccurate and different from car to car. For instance my 96 GT and my fiance's 96 Cobra. My gauge always hovered barely off the bottom,.. if it got near the middle I was running hot. Where on her car,.. the middle was normal,.. and if it got near the red,.. then it was running hot. This way I know 180 - 190 is still a safe range to run down the track in,.. 210 is a little warm and best to sit out a few rounds to cool things down.

35 lbs of oil pressure is very good at idle. The factory gauge had been showing low oil pressure. I feared the motor may have had some bearings going bad or other problems creeping in. I changed sending units and put in the new gauge,.. now I know my oil pressure was good and the factory gauge was misleading,.. where before I was unsure because I did not have an actual number to go by. The factory fuel gauge and amp are still hooked up. But will soon swap over the amps to the volt meter.

Plus,.. I have no heat or AC anyway,.. the controls were just there for aestetics. Now with the gauges in their place I think it looks pretty cool and has been a topic for conversation each time someone sees it for the first time. The most common question is what plate I used to mount them in. I used the reagular 3 guage plate that would normally go under a dash. It fit in there perfectly and there is a plastic ridge above that it can screw into and lines up perfectly for when I snap in the trim cover.

Hurst