InteriorDiscussion about interior modifications like dashboard swaps, seat replacements, or general interior repair.
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After collecting a full set of Autometer carbon fiber gauges, I was ready to start modifying the original plastic piece. I used a 5" speedo and tach, so I had to enlarge those holes using a 4-1/2" hole saw. The other five gauges are 2-1/16" and I cut holes in the panel to make an oval (like ghettocruiser did). Then, I used 1/8" abs plastic and a 2" hole saw to make the insert. Next, I glued it in and here's the result:
Next, came the wiring and I used 8 row terminal strips to organize sets of wires easily (power, ground, light).
Finally, the only thing left was to run the power/ground from the factory wiring harness and the sending unit wires to the gauges. I used about 2ft. of wire for each, which made connecting everything up before mounting the panel a breeze. Here is what it looks like:
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I have the red backlights, but I might change them to white. I figured I'd give it some time to see how I like them. I'll post a pic whenever I get one. I also haven't done anything with the turn signal/high beam indicators, so I'll have to figure out what to do there.
I finally got a decent pic of the gauges showing the red backlights. I'm loving the programmable speedo, since I've already changed rear end gearing once.
looks AWESOME! how hard was it to run the wiring? could you have used the stock harness and sender? i've been wanting to do something like this for a while.
LG4 305ci 4bbl motor, 2.5" Cherry Bomb Extreme muffler- side exit exhaust, Cragar 15x7 Black D Window wheels (4" backspacing), Cooper Cobra Radial GT tires (P235/60R15), 36mm hollow front sway bar with wonder bar, 24mm rear sway bar, Energy Suspension endlinks and Guldstrand bushings, Edelbrock Elite 4222 air cleaner with K&N filter, FF Dynamics 16" Cyclone electric fan, Flex-a-lite Variable Speed Fan Controller, custom fixed headlight conversion with 5000K HIDs and Silverstar Ultra H7 bulbs, Pilot PL-362W driving lights with Hella 100W H3 bulbs, Deka Intimidator 9A78DT AGM battery
Thanks all for the compliments. The wiring ended up being easier than I thought it would be. Using the terminal strips to group wires made it clean and simple. I don't think you can use a stock sender with an aftermarket gauge, and even if you could it would be a good idea to have new senders anyways.
I did use many wires from the factory harness including the power, ground, light, rpm, and fuel level. For the speedo I just had to run the sender wire down to the transmission, and wired the oil pressure and water temp. to the Autometer senders I already had in place (since those gauges in the factory panel didn't work).
This has been one of the coolest mods I've done and it's nice to have finally finished.
