Tuesday, November 13, 2012 - 10:50 pm, by: Julian Mazur(Jules30)
I have been going to fit a boost gauge for the whole time I've owned the Soarer.
I was first going to mount a 2" one in a pod on top of the steering column but the plastic is too brittle and thin and cracks too easy.
I now have a 60mm gauge I plan to mount between the A pillar and instrument cluster on that flat part above the air con vent.
Only problem is there's nothing to mount it to. My thoughts so far are to use double sided tape to hold it there, which I assume won't work, or use urethane or an industrial glue to mount the bracket to the vinyl.
Any tips? Possibly I might put it on the left hand side of the instrument cluster and screw through the plastic.
Where are yours? I can't use the radio area as I use a double din radio and one gauge would look silly.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 - 12:12 pm, by: Shane Haverkamp(Havabeer)
you can get some decent epoxies that should hold it to the vinyl pretty well, it might look a little silly there, also depending on if you get a mechanical or digital gauge, either way your going to have to run wires or thin hose to it and you'll need to look at how your going to run those
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 - 12:58 pm, by: Alistair David(Aldmo87)
I put mine underneat the dash. There are small plastic tabs that pop out. They are there for different optional accessories, for example an air purifier switch.
Pop one out, drill a hole in it and mount your gauge to it. Then insert the tab back into the trim piece and use a bit of glue so it doesn't fall out (you would need a big screwdriver to get mine off now)
It is basically out of the way, you can see it from the drivers position as it sits next to your left knee. I know it's not the racer look or anything, but it is a great spot if you only want to occassionally look at the gauge to see what boost your running or to make sure everything is working as it should.
Here's a pic of mine installed, bit hard to see in the photo but you get the idea.
Alternatively I would be getting one of those triple gauge holders from eBay like this one.
Getting it properly (that is professionally) covered in vinyl of a matching colour to your dash. Then removing the air vents and drilling a hole directly above them to feed the cables down, you can then find a way to get the cables behind the stereo and into the engine bay.
Then just mount the gauge holder to cover the neat hole that you made. You would need to investigate what would properly bond the holder to the dash, but I think that would look pretty good.
I would probably try to find a second hand dash cheap to make sure that you can actually drill a hole and mount it properly without looking crap or having big gaps between the bottom of the holder and your dash. May even need to shape the holder to fit the Soarer dash curve properly.
Whatever you do don't try to mount a gauge directly to the vinyl dash, the last owner of the first Soarer did that with a monster tacho, it was loose and left big holes when removed.
Julian Mazur Tinkerer New South Wales SC300 Twin Turbo
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 - 07:00 pm, by: Julian Mazur(Jules30)
Yours looks neat Alistair! Really cool. I don't particularly want massive visibility and as I'm only fitting one gauge I think I will try to find somewhere to mount it before I get a pod or anything and as it's 60mm not the usual 52mm it might be hard.
The gauge is all enclosed and has mounts similar to a monster tacho so my idea was to mount it in the area I mentioned and drill through the side of the binnacle and route all wires in there behind the cluster and into the loom. I think beside the dash would be ideal, but ill see how dicky it looks when I get it and take some photos from inside and out so I get an idea of dimensions etc and how much of a blind spot it creates, and how illegal it may or may not be.
It seems to have a substantial amout of surface area on the bottom clamp area so I should be able to get good contact and bonding if I get the right adhesive. I work in spare parts so I will look through my catalogues for some good bonding agents.
If that fails I may look at mounting it on top of the center console, just above the climate control panel in the centre.
Will post some photos when I complete it. Thanks guys
Wednesday, November 14, 2012 - 10:39 pm, by: Kaloy Szyd(Yumedake)
Whats wrong with pillar mount. correct me if im wrong but i think it is legal if it is below the level of the dash instrument cluster. that way your boost level is easily visible to you when driving without taking your eyes off the road
Julian Mazur Tinkerer New South Wales SC300 Twin Turbo
Thursday, November 15, 2012 - 11:43 am, by: Julian Mazur(Jules30)
I can't find a pillar mount to suit the soarer. If I could find a direct mount I would use that but there doesn't seem to be anyone who makes them.
Legal or not, I dunno. I've had a pillar mount with 2 gauges in my GQ patrol for at least 8 months. Some people have been defected with them but I don't see how they're more illegal than a GPS or such (or a radar gun) on the a pillar..
Friday, November 16, 2012 - 11:07 am, by: Alistair David(Aldmo87)
Yeah there are no pillar mounts for the Soarer, your only option is to get a cup mount with a stand and drill it into the pillar.
I would be removing the pillar and fibreglassing the back of the pillar where you want to mount it. Just because those plastics are probably brittle as and it may just crack.
Otherwise maybe buy a second hand pillar for $30 and have a go to see how it will turn out.
When I got my Soarer the guy had mounted his boost gauge on the pillar with bloody bluetack!
I think they are illegal if they obscure your view through the windshield, so as long as it's nice and low then it should be OK.
Friday, November 16, 2012 - 06:16 pm, by: Ryan McDonough(Ryan)
As above, the plastic on the pillar will break if its not helped to support the weight of the gauge over time.
I used a piece of thin sheet metal in behind the trim to spread the load across the trim, so the bolts wouldn't just snap right out. It has been there for 6 years now, solid with no problems.
The bolt goes through the cup holder, through the trim, and then through the metal, washer, then bolt.
This also enabled it to sit below the highest point on the dash, and made many a police officer happy.
Saturday, November 17, 2012 - 08:25 am, by: Peter Bullman(Pete)
I dont see any point in having the boost guage down next to your knee.. he guage is there for a reason, so you know what boost you are running. Not smart to be looking down when you are on full acceleration..
Tuesday, November 27, 2012 - 11:07 pm, by: Julian Mazur(Jules30)
Ok so it's all mounted up, I went with my original option of mounting it between the cluster and the A pillar, it's below the steering wheel and the binnacle so I believe it is legal.
I have used the supplied double sided tape and so far it's coped with a 40+ degree inside cabin temp so I'm happy enough to say it will stick, however I will be using a urethane if it starts to move. It has a metal base so it's moulded to the dash quite well.
My one regret is that I tore the dash leather when fitting it. I drilled through from the binnacle and unfortunately my drill bit was blunt and it's torn the leather. I'm fairly lucky as I work in spare parts, so I have leather swatches from seat covers on hand, so I will find one closest to the dash and cut it to suit and use contact adhesive to hold it. The split is only about an inch and a half long. Once I do that ill put spaghetti tube over the gauge loom, however it's pretty tidy now.
I think it's in an ideal spot, I can see it easily and it's legal.