Stock boost gauge

[Pauln]

I recently purchased a JDM 1993 rev 2 turbo and have started sorting out the inevitable niggles that come with a "new" old car. I also have a n/a, but this my first turbo, so I'm on a bit of a learning curve at the moment.

The car has a 52mm after market stepper motor boost gauge fitted which works fine. This seems to be fed by a new vacuum pipe from the engine compartment to a sender which I think is behind the right hand panel in the driver's foot well.

The stock boost gauge however does not seem to work.

Whilst removing all the horrible scotch blocks that a previous owner used to wire up the rear fog light switch and electrical feed for the after market boost gauge, and installing a relay and warning lamp for the rear fogs (don't know how he got through the MOT without a warning light), I came across an old blanked off black rubber pipe marked "vac pipe" buried in amongst the cabling.

I thought I'd read somewhere that the stock boost gauge was electrically fed from the engine bay, rather than by a vac pipe. So just wanted to confirm that is the case before going any further.

I know the stock gauge isn't much cop, but I don't like having things that don't work unless it's a real pain to fix.

So is this old vac pipe likely to be in any way related, or is it just a case of taking the instrument panel off to check for loose connections.

Many thanks.

Paul

[Gullzter]

I havent done much investigating on stock boost gauge myself so someone else will know better, all i know is they were inconsistent on my old tubby and not so bad on the current.. Still doesnt give anything to read by though!

Is the vac pipe in the engine bay or down next to the fog swith?
If its in the bay im tempted to say its been chopped to fit a boost controller?

[Pauln]

It's down by the fog switch.

Paul

[Gullzter]

Is there a boost controller in the car?

[Pauln]

Not that I've found, and nothing listed in the advert.

Paul

[Gullzter]

Probably had one before and been removed, best way to find out is trace it back and find out exactly where it goes

[Ryan S]

this is the best answer, do away with unsightly dash clutter as well as getting rid of the stock gauge. the stock one really is a waste of time, the voltmeter from the non turbo would be more useful at telling you how much boost you were running

http://rspec.co.uk/performance-gauges/4 ... -gauge-psi

[Pauln]

Probably had one before and been removed, best way to find out is trace it back and find out exactly where it goes

I took all the panels off this evening to pull some cables through from the engine bay for oil pressure and temperature gauges I'm fitting, and took the opportunity to trace how the after market boost gauge is connected up.

A clear plastic vac hose is teed off the boost pressure sensor in the engine bay and then runs into the cabin and into what I first assumed to be some sort of one way valve in a clear plastic tube thing that looks a bit like one of those plastic in-line fuel filters. But thinking a bit more about this, it can't be a one way valve as the gauge of course positive and negative pressure, so it must be a filter of some sort.

The pipe then goes into another tee inside the car under the panel behind the drivers seat. From that tee one vac pipe feeds the sensor for the after market boost gauge and the other is the black vac pipe that ends up blanked off with a screw and cable tie behind the fog light switch panel.

So perhaps there was a boost control fitted inside the car at some point. Any way I now know where it is and what it's connected to.

I may have also found the source of an annoying rattle behind the driver seat as the after market boost gauge sensor wasn't bolted to anything and just floating around behind the panel.

Ran out of daylight, so that's a little job for tomorrow along with connecting up the new oil sensors - rain permitting.

I know the stock boost gauge is rubbish, but to be honest if I can't get it working I may at some point just try to change it for a N/a voltmeter rather than fit a second rspec boost gauge as that would be handy

Paul

[androo007]

this is the best answer, do away with unsightly dash clutter as well as getting rid of the stock gauge. the stock one really is a waste of time, the voltmeter from the non turbo would be more useful at telling you how much boost you were running

http://rspec.co.uk/performance-gauges/4 ... -gauge-psi

Does this use the stock setup? (Ie plug and play?)

[Ryan S]

Image Replaced With URL For Quote https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/ ... 5009_n.jpg

this is the best answer, do away with unsightly dash clutter as well as getting rid of the stock gauge. the stock one really is a waste of time, the voltmeter from the non turbo would be more useful at telling you how much boost you were running

http://rspec.co.uk/performance-gauges/4 ... -gauge-psi

Does this use the stock setup? (Ie plug and play?)

no mate, requires a little bit more work than fitting any aftermarket gauge, nowhere near as daunting a task as you might think though, i reckon i could do this in about 20 mins

[Draven]

or if you're feeling more digital



This is what i've got in mine.

[Race Idiot]

or if you're feeling more digital

Image Replaced With URL For Quote http://widebodymr2.com/images/Digital-b ... 28x410.jpg

This is what i've got in mine.

Also the ems gague is desgined to fit in the cluster, so install is a bit easier than using a 45mm gauge. Also it has some nifty features like, recall and peak boost etc.

[Draven]

or if you're feeling more digital

Image Replaced With URL For Quote http://widebodymr2.com/images/Digital-b ... 28x410.jpg

This is what i've got in mine.

Also the ems gague is desgined to fit in the cluster, so install is a bit easier than using a 45mm gauge. Also it has some nifty features like, recall and peak boost etc.

I've never managed to get mine to work properly. I'm pretty sure it's not wired in correctly.

It displays boost and thats correct but if you press the little black button it just zero's the gauge. doesn't display peak or recall

[Race Idiot]

If I tap mine once it shows me the current peak boost, if I hold it it resets. I forget what you have to do for the other features.

[Draven]

If I tap mine once it shows me the current peak boost, if I hold it it resets. I forget what you have to do for the other features.

I will have a look when I next drive .. you know after the engine is in and running..