Dash tripple gauge pod used on ceiling

[Whitmore]

I just ordered this dash tripple pod



http://216.167.41.9/CoastalData/showdetl.cfm?&DID=30&Product_ID=657&CATID=1



I have an alternative location in mind , either on the ceiling in the center front since I dont have the convenience group.



Or I may put it in the center pocket hole as far to the floor as I can get it , stick shift will clear it and I think the user friendly and visibility will be OK.



I currently have the A piller tripple and the tweeter hole has a air pressure gauge in it and I also have the far right upper cubbiehole filled with my aux fuel level gauge but I am gauge crazy and want to add this to my cockpit to monitor the vitals.



What other alternative gauge mounting locations do you guys run??? pics or links for a visual would be nice.



Bomb on. Kevin

 

[jerryrigg]

Kevin-



Keep in mind the dash pod has the gauges angled towards the driver... if you flip it and mount it on the ceiling they will face the other way... .

Yesterday I also installed one of these on the dash for my main gauges and going to get other gauges for the pillar... IT IS NOT A 5 MINUTE JOB... I chose to make a hole in the dash to run the wires/lines through instead of along the windshield... it is not easy doing this... making the hole is a PIA... feeding the wires is a real PIA if you have large paws like mine... ... If you do go for the dash mount and choose to have wires come through the dash remove the radio... feed wires from accel pedal to radio opening then on from there with a snake of some sort... . mine is not complete yet as I have one new gauge backordered when it comes off to finish as the instructions say... may require some sanding etc to match contours. . but it is pretty close and does look real nice on the dash... . good luck



-Matt

 

[Dkevdog]

Matt- I have one sitting in the garage in the box, all painted and ready to go, I'd love to know how you managed to get that hole in the dash :{ . I am only using my pod for temp guages, so I don't have a ton of stuff to run. I'm still not sure I want to put a hole there yet either.



Kev

 

[tgbol]

Whitmore

You can buy one of those trays that go over the windshield and put a face panel on it. you should be able to get 20 gauges in it.

Back in the late 60's when I was still in high school one of my friends had a car that his dad had installed the dash of an airplane in. It had four rows of gauges in the dash and one above the windshield. The engine had a paxton blower so you had manifold pressure, brake pressure, all temps. It was fun!!!

 

[jerryrigg]

-kev



Getting the hole in the dash. . like I said PIA...

Cordless drill, shop vac and 3/8" x 24" drill bit, Sawz-all blade & utility knife.

you have to angle the drill into the "vertical little sides where the screw is fastened. Once your through just a little side pressure to widen the hole. Once it is wide enough use the sawz-all blade in a handle from there. A sharp utility knife to clean the edges.

But once again a real PIA



-Matt

 

[QRTRHRS]

If you want to take the time, drop the steering column and some other odds and ends, then remove all the screws in front of the dash where it meets the glass. The whole dash will roll back towards you. This will give you the correct angle to drill. I put a notch in the front of my dash but the wires kink when I have the dash back forward so it's still a pain. One of these days, I want to do some upgrades so I will be drill a big hole under the pod and when the truck gets sold, the pod goes with.



For anyone on the fence with the pod, be aware it will reflect on the windshield. You may not like living with it. The pod puts the guages way far away from you, hard to read for some of us.



I think that new dash pod is a better way to go. The one that mounts on the lip right up close to you. Maybe before I drill that big hole, I will switch to that mount myself.

 

[Un-Hemi]

Hey, QRTRHRS, how old are you? At MY advanced age (55), anything closer than 3 feet is starting to get pretty fuzzy any more. Gettin' ancient ain't fer wimps!



I have a dash-pod just for that reason. The top of the entire dash is an irritating source for reflection, and the best solution is either a dash pad, or, less expensively, a black towel.



Tom

 

[VietDoc]

Another Getting Ancient

I keep looking for a place to put the guages too My problem is I can't see close or far The bi-focals stopped working too. Getting an 03 so the pillar is out. Don't like the steering column as it blocks many of the indicators.



Now I 'm thinking I won't tow without a co-pilot, so maybe there is someplace on the passenger side or in the middle that will work But then the wife is so comfortable in her CTD she falls asleep when I drive so she won't know there's a problem.



Hmmm maybe it is time to get tri-focals or laser surgery so I can see the gauges. Getting old is tuff, especially when my younger brother told me I was a metal man . . . Silver hair, gold teeth and a lead d**k.



btw i'm 55 too

 

[Whitmore]

VietDoc, It must be heck to get old, But what I want to know is how your brother knows you have a lead d**k



Kevin

 

[Un-Hemi]

Time to train the Seeing Eye Labrador!

 

[VietDoc]

Originally posted by Whitmore

VietDoc, It must be heck to get old, But what I want to know is how your brother knows you have a lead d**k

Kevin, oh yes it is so horrible getting old you can't imagine. Obviously you are either too young to know that the first thing to go is memory and then “everything” sags or you are on Viagra or your memory is so far gone you can’t remember :{when you were young and nothing sagged. :{



I got my brother back when I gave him a “dicky-do” award. This award is when the belly sticks out farther than your dicky-do.



TommyTurbosaurus. . . . When you get soooo old you can't train anything except dogs.



On a more serious note, I wish all of you a very Happy Holidays and many thanks for the great information on all of the threads.



Warmest regards, Richard

 

[QRTRHRS]

52! Act like 20, feel like 80 sometimes.

It's not so much that I can't see, but it takes me too long to refocus. I can go between watching the road and the A pillar okay but the dash pod is tough. I have engine oil and transmission temps and my exhaust brake pressure guage there so I don't really have to spend much time looking there anyway.



I have been wearing no lines for nearly ten years. I gave up the contacts because I could not see close even with reading glasses. I wear safety glasses so often, I don't want to bother with alternatives.

 

[Shovelhead]

The way I drilled my holes was to use a 90* air powered cut-off wheel, chucked a drill bit in the tool(instead of the collet) and drilled away.

Even made elongated holes to push the wire harnesses through by drilling a series of holes around the perimiter then putting sideways pressure on the drill to cut from hole to hole and "clean-up" the edges.

Check "Toybox" link for results.

 

[Dkevdog]

Shovelhead- thanks for the tip, and nice looking setup . I'm thinking along the lines of a 1 inch hole, I can get a flush plastic plug, and paint it with the DC paint to plug it with if I ever take the gauges out or sell the truck. It's still hard to punch a hole through that dash though!!!



Kev

 

[rweis]

I do some commercial computer network wiring and was going to use some of the wall snap cover strips to cover the wire on top of the dash panel.



I have experimented with where to put the pod by driving with it with out gauges for a couple of weeks to see if it is obtrusive prior to permanent mounting.



To use more than pillar and pod mounts there are some pics of gauges in the hump facia (auto transmission). Generally 2 seem to fit well, but when I tried to simulate them ther they were HARD to read, too far down in the cockpit, had to take my eyes off the road for several seconds to find, focus, read. Not real safe, but might be a spot for a gauge that you do not have to read all the time.



I have thought of using the console at times. Literally change the console to a gauge pocket, or swing the console to the up position and put a gauge panel on the seat permanently. Would be removable when you sell (if ever). Then you could mount them on a slanted toward you verticle panel and probably cheaper in the long run than a pillar + dash + cubbyhole pods.