Adding oil/water gauges to an E36

I'm considering adding a set of gauges to my 1999 M3 and have a couple
questions.

1) The three in one sets that I've seen are all oil pressure, water
temperature and volts. I'd prefer (and would think would be more
important) oil pressure and temperature and water temperature. Why do
these kits have the volt meters instead?

2) VDO and Autometer seem to be the two big names. Any good reason to
pick one over the other? Reliability, accuracy, ease of installation,
etc. would be primary motivations here.

Thanks!

Bob
Ontario, CA

I believe that VDO gauges are what come in our BMW's, so you might be able
to maintain the style and color of the backlight to OEM. There are lot's of
gauge makers, do a google search, that might be smaller companies but make a
really great product.
My 2 cent's,
Chris

"Bob" > wrote in message
om...
> I'm considering adding a set of gauges to my 1999 M3 and have a couple
> questions.
>
> 1) The three in one sets that I've seen are all oil pressure, water
> temperature and volts. I'd prefer (and would think would be more
> important) oil pressure and temperature and water temperature. Why do
> these kits have the volt meters instead?
>
> 2) VDO and Autometer seem to be the two big names. Any good reason to
> pick one over the other? Reliability, accuracy, ease of installation,
> etc. would be primary motivations here.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Bob
> Ontario, CA

mrpacsun said the following on 10/28/2004 3:18 PM:
> I believe that VDO gauges are what come in our BMW's, so you might be
> able to maintain the style and color of the backlight to OEM. There
> are lot's of gauge makers, do a google search, that might be smaller
> companies but make a really great product. My 2 cent's, Chris
>
Chris...you don't use apostrophes to make plurals. BMW's...BMWs;
lot's...lots; cent's...cents. You got it right on "gauges", "makers"
and "companies". Let's try to do better next post, okay?


--
Apostrophe, spelling and grammar police.

Doug Main > wrote in message news:<l9hgd.46568$nl.5892@pd7tw3no>...
> mrpacsun said the following on 10/28/2004 3:18 PM:
> > I believe that VDO gauges are what come in our BMW's, so you might be
> > able to maintain the style and color of the backlight to OEM. There
> > are lot's of gauge makers, do a google search, that might be smaller
> > companies but make a really great product. My 2 cent's, Chris
> >
> Chris...you don't use apostrophes to make plurals.

Yes he does.

"Bob" > wrote in message
om...
> I'm considering adding a set of gauges to my 1999 M3 and have a couple
> questions.
>
> 1) The three in one sets that I've seen are all oil pressure, water
> temperature and volts. I'd prefer (and would think would be more
> important) oil pressure and temperature and water temperature. Why do
> these kits have the volt meters instead?
>
> 2) VDO and Autometer seem to be the two big names. Any good reason to
> pick one over the other? Reliability, accuracy, ease of installation,
> etc. would be primary motivations here.

Most good cars have a water temperature gauge, I'm rather surprised yours
doesn't. Anyway a volt meter is an invaluable tool for diagnosing several
different types of issues. It gives you advanced warning when your
alternator is getting weak, or your battery is nearing end of life. By
noticing the effect of various accessories you can eventually spot if one of
them is drawing more than it should, indicating an impending service
requirement. It gives you an idea of how badly you're stressing your
battery on a cold morning when it won't start, or how it's doing when you
run powered accessories for an extended period when the car is off. A
voltmeter is a very useful tool to have in a car, I wish all of them came
with one.

I'm looking at picking up a Sunpro Mini Gauge set, because they're only 1.5"
across and I think I can fit them in where my ashtray goes on my E30 -- not
a lot of extra real estate for stuff in there. I'm looking forward to volts
first, oil pressure second, and oil temperature third, since my car already
has a temperature gauge for water.

I'm not sure that there is a lot of difference in reliability or accuracy
that would matter to the casual user. Ease of installation comes down to
having the correct set of adaptor / interface bits available for your car.
The vendor of each should be able to answer those questions for you. Sunpro
in particular I called and their adaptor kit for my car was pretty
expensive, I was thinking of rigging them up myelf from various industrial
bits and peices my Dad can get his hands on.

-Russ.

In article >,
Bob > wrote:
> 1) The three in one sets that I've seen are all oil pressure, water
> temperature and volts. I'd prefer (and would think would be more
> important) oil pressure and temperature and water temperature. Why do
> these kits have the volt meters instead?

In practice, a volt meter is more useful. Electrical problems with the
alternator and battery are just about the most common on any car.

I'm surprised the M3 doesn't have a temperature gauge - every BMW I've
owned has had one. Does it swap it for an oil temperature one?

Oil pressure gauges are also of little practical use. Low oil pressure is
usually the result of a worn engine. So you'd have other clues. Low oil
pressure through overheating would be shown by the oil temperature gauge.
Low oil level is better shown by a level sensor. That's why few makers
have fitted them for some time.

--
*The most common name in the world is Mohammed *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

"Dave Plowman (News)" > wrote in message >...
> In article >,
> Bob > wrote:
> > 1) The three in one sets that I've seen are all oil pressure, water
> > temperature and volts. I'd prefer (and would think would be more
> > important) oil pressure and temperature and water temperature. Why do
> > these kits have the volt meters instead?
>
> In practice, a volt meter is more useful. Electrical problems with the
> alternator and battery are just about the most common on any car.
>
> I'm surprised the M3 doesn't have a temperature gauge - every BMW I've
> owned has had one. Does it swap it for an oil temperature one?
>
> Oil pressure gauges are also of little practical use. Low oil pressure is
> usually the result of a worn engine. So you'd have other clues. Low oil
> pressure through overheating would be shown by the oil temperature gauge.
> Low oil level is better shown by a level sensor. That's why few makers
> have fitted them for some time.

My bad on the water temperature gauge; I should have been more clear.
The car, of course, has one, but not one that actually shows
temperature. It just shows temperature in a relative sense, though
relative to what I don't know. Just demarcations & a needle, but no
numbers.

I've never seen a car with an oil level sensor, though I think it's a
great idea. I wouldn't be surprised if running the engine low on oil
is one of the leading causes of engine damage.

The volt meter might not be a bad idea after I install the amps for
the stereo. Both have 100 watt fuses. I expect I'll have to play
with the charging system soon enough....

Bob
Ontario, California

In article >,
Bob > wrote:
> My bad on the water temperature gauge; I should have been more clear.
> The car, of course, has one, but not one that actually shows
> temperature. It just shows temperature in a relative sense, though
> relative to what I don't know. Just demarcations & a needle, but no
> numbers.

I still admit to being curious why you'd need to know the actual
temperature. For a start, most 'ordinary' temperature gauges aren't that
accurate anyway - and they only measure the temperature at one point in
the engine anyway, so by nature give a form of average.

> I've never seen a car with an oil level sensor, though I think it's a
> great idea. I wouldn't be surprised if running the engine low on oil
> is one of the leading causes of engine damage.

I'm surprised an M3 doesn't have one. Both my current and last 6 cylinder
5 Series do. And an M3, by the nature of its high specific output engine -
and the way it's likely to be driven - is likely to consume more oil than
a 'cooking' 5 Series.

> The volt meter might not be a bad idea after I install the amps for
> the stereo. Both have 100 watt fuses. I expect I'll have to play
> with the charging system soon enough....

I built a current sensor for my 'other' car. It measures current flow in
and out of the battery. An LED shows red if overall discharge, green if
charging, and yellow when balanced. So pretty well the same as a volt
meter, but takes up less space.

--
*I want it all and I want it delivered

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.