OK guys / gals....
I installed the radio bezel that allows for three 2 1/16" guages underneath the radio. (Or flip it upside down and put the gauges on top.) I chose this bezel / setup over an A-pillar pod because I thought the installation would look a lot more clean and "stockish."
Things I needed for the project
First step is to spread out your stuff in the basement:
Next step is wiring everything up on the back of the gauges.
I wired the lighting in the terminal blocks so I would only have to make 1 wire hook ups later.
I also bridged the ground wires using the terminal blocks for a simplier installation. The ignition wires on the gauges were also wired for 1 wire hook ups. The sender wires were setup with quick disconnect connections.
The back of the bezel ends up looking like this:
Here are a few pictures of the original radio bezel:
To install the bezel simply remove the four screws holding in your current aftermarket bezel / radio and unhook your radio. Remove the cage / radio and set them aside. Discard the old bezel.
Hooking up the connections:
Having 1 wire connections really makes installation a breeze. If you have a aftermarket radio [wire] harness all of your connections will be clearly labeled. I tapped into the 12V IGN, GND and POWER DIMMER in the harness. So all of the gauges are now controlled by the OEM dimmer and the igntion switch like they should be.
Picture of installing the gauges in the car:
And as promised a ton of pictures of the bezel from the drivers seat
1st gear:
2nd gear:
3rd gear
4th gear:
5th gear:
Overview from the drivers seat:
No Dimmer:
High Dimmer:
Low Dimmer:
And for fun.... From the back window:
Overall, it was a very easy installation. I took about 2 hours to wire up the gauges and then about 30 minutes to install the bezel into the car. I am sure time will vary bewteen people based on skill level and tools on hand. Currently, I don't have the senders hooked up to the engine (I'll do that later this week.) I just wanted to show people what this setup actually looks like.
I installed the radio bezel that allows for three 2 1/16" guages underneath the radio. (Or flip it upside down and put the gauges on top.) I chose this bezel / setup over an A-pillar pod because I thought the installation would look a lot more clean and "stockish."
Things I needed for the project
- 1 radio bezel - purchased online from custom performance engineering $30.00
- 3 gauges - Oil Pressure, Oil Temperature and Water temperature $150.00
- Misc electrical connectors - purchased from radio shack $5.00
- 1 eight way terminal block - purchased from radio shack $5.00
- 1 mini fuse block - purchased from radio shack $4.00
- 3 colors 18 gauge wire - purchased from radio shack $7.00
- Wire Cutters
- Wire Crimper
- Electrical tape
- Needle nose pliers
- 7mm deep well socket
- Wire hook tool
- small flat blade screw driver
- electrical tape
- zip ties
- Multimeter - to check continuity of connections
First step is to spread out your stuff in the basement:
Next step is wiring everything up on the back of the gauges.
I wired the lighting in the terminal blocks so I would only have to make 1 wire hook ups later.
I also bridged the ground wires using the terminal blocks for a simplier installation. The ignition wires on the gauges were also wired for 1 wire hook ups. The sender wires were setup with quick disconnect connections.
The back of the bezel ends up looking like this:
Here are a few pictures of the original radio bezel:
To install the bezel simply remove the four screws holding in your current aftermarket bezel / radio and unhook your radio. Remove the cage / radio and set them aside. Discard the old bezel.
Hooking up the connections:
Having 1 wire connections really makes installation a breeze. If you have a aftermarket radio [wire] harness all of your connections will be clearly labeled. I tapped into the 12V IGN, GND and POWER DIMMER in the harness. So all of the gauges are now controlled by the OEM dimmer and the igntion switch like they should be.
Picture of installing the gauges in the car:
And as promised a ton of pictures of the bezel from the drivers seat
1st gear:
2nd gear:
3rd gear
4th gear:
5th gear:
Overview from the drivers seat:
No Dimmer:
High Dimmer:
Low Dimmer:
And for fun.... From the back window:
Overall, it was a very easy installation. I took about 2 hours to wire up the gauges and then about 30 minutes to install the bezel into the car. I am sure time will vary bewteen people based on skill level and tools on hand. Currently, I don't have the senders hooked up to the engine (I'll do that later this week.) I just wanted to show people what this setup actually looks like.