How do i make it possible to know my fuel pressure from inside my car?

95CobraMike

Active Member
Apr 12, 2004
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Lima OH
I have a fuel rail gauge, but that doesnt help me much when trying to see if i am raising 1 psi of Fuel pressure for every 1 psi of boost..... or if i ever want to watch my fuel pressure while driving...

how do i do it?

right now i have a kirban AFPR and a rail mounted gauge...

does anyone know if a kirban is even a 1:1 regulator?
 
95CobraMike said:
I have a fuel rail gauge, but that doesnt help me much when trying to see if i am raising 1 psi of Fuel pressure for every 1 psi of boost..... or if i ever want to watch my fuel pressure while driving...

how do i do it?

right now i have a kirban AFPR and a rail mounted gauge...

does anyone know if a kirban is even a 1:1 regulator?


Well you have two choices. The first is what I have and it's not cheap. Get a autometer electric fuel pressure gauge to mount inside. The other is a little cheaper but not by much. That route is a autometer mechanical gauge that usually needs to be mounted on the outside of the car since you dont want fuel being inside the car should the line rupture or the fittings leak. Both will show you the pressure as it increases.
 
95CobraMike said:
how much are we talking for an electric one?

how do you get a mechanical one to extend up to where you can see it?

I think my autometer electric was about $250,and another $30 for the two gauge pod that goes in place of the dash clock. Looks sweet. As mentioned,you dont want to go with mechanical inside the car :nono: It's worth the 250 bucks for the peace of mind the inside gauge gives me.
 
You can run a mech. guage in the cabin but to do it right you need a high press. isolator it has a diaphram that goes between two lines, and one end is fuel the other you fill with like antifreeze, so you now have antifreeze running into your cabin and not fuel. The high press. isolators are not cheap though.

The mech. guage is mounted on the cowl by running a length of braided steel fuel line from the shrader valve to the guage mounted on the cowl.

For the best mech. guage get a liquid filled one, the liquid keeps the needle from "bouncing" from the surge of fuel. It is MUCH nicer and easier to read and read in a hurry/glance than the non-liquid filled guages. I run a autometer pro comp liquid filled on my cowl and its great.
 
If you want cheap, you're gonna have to go with the cowl mount. The high-pressure isolator is about a hundred bucks itself, plus the 40-50 for the guage, and you're looking at 150 bucks or more. The electrics are about right at 200 bucks now if you shop around, they are easier to install (you have to bleed the isolator to get it to work right) so the extra 50 bucks isn't that big a deal if you want it in the dash.
 
personally i would spend the money and get it in the dash. I never was a fan of gauges on the cowl. the purpose of a guage is for it to be right in your line of sight so you can see and read it at a glance. not saying cowl ones aren't but anything in the dash area usually is alot closer and easier to read.
 
Good point ProKiller about line of sight.

That is the reason I had someone hold and move the guage on the cowl until it was in my line of sight. The biggie PITA was getting in that line of sight with the wipers still out of the way dur. there travel.

I actually think it takes longer to look at the dash guages/A-pill. guages than the cowl, but it is a very good point if you dont take the time to set it up for your needs.
 
so it looks like an electric one would be the way to go...

how exactly do they work? meaning how does the gauge inside your car know what your fuel pressure is under the hood?

so the down side to having a mech one inside the cabin is fuel getting in there and doing what? smelling bad or blowing up or what?
 
Basically the electrical guage has the fuel pressure sensor located in the engine bay area and sends the information via wire to the gauge, so no fluids are in the cabin.

Most folks put the sensor where the schrader valve is on your fuel rail, but some aftermarket fuel pressure regulators have a port where you can install the sensor as well.