Ok, I have an xB, not a tC but figured there would be a lot more boosted people here with gauges. I want to know what's good, bad, etc. Has any brand worked well for you or one been complete crap. The color scheme I'm looking for is black, silver or white face with a silver (painted) bezel.

I had a supercharger and since it can't overboost and had no oil feed line, I just went with a Glowshift boost gauge. It seems to do the job, but the tinted glass is hard to see in the day.

I'm now looking at the Glowshift Grey 7 series or ProSport Blue for my low end gauge choice or the Autometer Sport-Comp as a higher cost alternative. (Auto meter will be $30-35 mre for the set). I know Stewart Warner is good as well but it doesn't fit my interior style and I don't really need dustproof gauges. The Auto Meter also uses regular bulbs instead of LED's, so I'm worried about brightness and even light distribution at night. They do at least make bulb covers so I can go blue or red.

I'm looking to run vac / boost, oil pressure and water temp in addition to an AEM UEGO wideband O2. I'd love to go all digital AEM but don't nave that kind of money to spend on gauges, I still need my pistons coated after all.

Glowshift Grey 7


ProSport Blue


Auto Meter Sport Comp


AEM UEGO for reference, looking to somewhat match it (also has white face):

 

You get what you pay for.. IMO Dont cheap out FI Get the aem

 

go prosport for boost and oil pressure...but get aem afr gauge!
i hope this helps!

 

I've already bought the AEM UEGO, I just need a boost, oil press. and water temp. to go along with it. Why do I need to pay for digital if analog electric will get me the same information with near the same accuracy? I don't need data logging and since I'm running eManage blue, I don't need the sensors compatible with the computer.

AEM cost (boost, water temp, oil press.) - $630
Auto Meter cost (boost, water temp, oil press.) - $149.97
Glowshift cost (boost, water temp, oil press.) - $126.97
ProSport cost (boost, water temp, oil press.) - $118.97

 

I would advise against Prosport. My boost gauge has never been accurate. When I got my car tuned, my tuner told me that all seen alot of inaccurate prosport gauges.

 

that's odd...bec. i see people who were happy w/ prosport guages.

 

AEM FTW...

 

I've read the same, which is why I originally purchased them.

But when I could not get mine to work right, I asked my tuner (while my car was being tuned) whom said that they had problems with other ones that they saw. So idk, maybe it's just mine........

With that said, I love the look of the gauges (got them set up to turn orange with I turn the lights on to match the stock instrument panel).

 

***watching***

 

Defi

 

blue digital gauges FTW!

 

Thanks for the responses so far.

Right now I'm leaning toward the ProSport.

Let me repeat, I'm not looking to spend more on gauges than the intercooler, so AEM is definately out, and unless someone can find a decent price on Defi, so are they. I'm not a brand ***** who needs to see a company logo all over my interior or plaster stickers all over the outside.

I will be running a mechanical boost, electric oil pressure and water temp. If you're having trouble with boost accuracy, please list if it's electrical or mechanical, the cost difference isn't that much for ProSport so I may switch that to electric.

Also, if you post FTMFW, can you tell me why it's so much better than what I've listed? I'm not as big of a fan of digital because you need to read and interpret numbers instead of just looking at needle position, so head down time is increased. Also, digital may not pick up variances and flutter like an analog needle can.

FYI, Dezod has the AEM UEGO cheaper than the ProSport one!

 

I would say go with the glowshifts. they work acceptably, and arent crazy expensive to replace when they go ****-up.

for most guages, absolutely precise accuracy is not as critical as knowing when something goes beyond normal operating specs - you need to be able to identify trends for instance with water temps and oil pressures, spikes or creep with boost. if the guage starts reading out of the ordinary, you seriously need to check stuff out.

the only guage that really needs a high degree of precision is the AFR.

 

how about stri? they perform similar to defi at a fraction of the cost. They were designed and built by a former defi employee so ive heard. I dont know if thats fact tho.

I can get you a good deal on them if you decide to go with them tho, shoot me a pm if you are interested.

 

PM sent on STRI. hadn't heard of them before but they look nice and digging through some forums the Bimmer guys seem to like them, apparently the lighting matches.

Here's a pic for anyone else wondering:

 

i've had the autometer for over a year with no issues, and i had them on my old car. They're great gauges as long as you don't get the mechanical ones.

 

defi gauges FTMFW

 

Man, try and get honest feedback and I get information-deprived text message speech.

I decided to try out the ProSport gauges and ordered a set of the blue with mechanical boost, electric oil pressure and water temp. I'm waiting to see if it includes a t-adapter I can use with the stock water temp sensor bung or if I'll need a hose adapter. I will probably need an oil filter plate adapter for the oil pressure because I'm already using a t adapter on the stock oil pressure sensor for the turbo oil feed line.

I found this little tidbit for mounting options. 2" stainless steel muffler clamp from Autozone for aproximately $4 and paint it flat black.

I can't link the picture but it's on page 2 of this thread about halfway down.
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...=107134&page=2

 

why wouldint you buy an A pillar mount or the mount that goes above the waterfall?



But ill wait n see were you put them and how they look...

 

I have a 2 gauge pillar already, boost and AF/R are going there. I'm figuring oil pressure and water temp don't need as much constant supervision so I'm putting them on the passenger side for an occasional glance.

BTW, I have a painted composite wood / fiberglass shelf there already for a Mac Mini. I'll be putting the turbo timer next to the Mac as an insert and then mounting the gauges on top. Here's the shelf: