View Poll Results: gauge option
equipped
61
29.61%
not equipped
145
70.39%
Voters: 206. You may not vote on this poll
factory gauge option
Originally posted by WildRice
The stock tach and speedo are enough junk for me. Why would a correctly installed set of gauges be an issue with your dealer?..ours cars have that near useless opening under the radio.. you know the one that everything spills out of.. I have seen it used as location for a real head unit. That set up allows room for a nice set of gauges in the stock radio's hole. we need a vendor to make a full set up panel that will accomodate standard size gauges so we can dump the cheesy factory set up altogether.. the tack is in the right place and is the only thing I use other than the really lousy gas gauge (the increments are useless, even full and empty are off a gallon or so). Oh well..with these cars I guess we don't really look at the gauges much any way. I hear that whistle turn into a whine and feel her spoolin.
The stock tach and speedo are enough junk for me. Why would a correctly installed set of gauges be an issue with your dealer?..ours cars have that near useless opening under the radio.. you know the one that everything spills out of.. I have seen it used as location for a real head unit. That set up allows room for a nice set of gauges in the stock radio's hole. we need a vendor to make a full set up panel that will accomodate standard size gauges so we can dump the cheesy factory set up altogether.. the tack is in the right place and is the only thing I use other than the really lousy gas gauge (the increments are useless, even full and empty are off a gallon or so). Oh well..with these cars I guess we don't really look at the gauges much any way. I hear that whistle turn into a whine and feel her spoolin.
I had the gauge pack on my WRX too and they worked fine, but I installed them myself so maybe someone screwed up your install.
Originally posted by Rob W.
Did anyone else notice that these gauges are EXACTLY the same ones used by Subaru, optional on the WRX? The only difference is that the Subaru ones have "JAMCO" (LAMCO? or something like that) printed on the center, and the Mitsu ones have their logo. Otherwise, they're the same junk.
I say junk because I had them on my WRX. The voltage gauge died (stuck floating around 9.5V until I replaced it). The oil temp gauge died twice -- the first time, it would stick at the bottom after startup, then tapping it hard would unstick it until I parked overnight again. The second time it just hovered in the low end of the range and wasn't reading right. When I sold the car, the third oil temp gauge was starting the sticking think again (THUMP!). I got the option thinking it'd be neat to see the oil temp, but was a total waste of money. I'd avoid these completely. You can get really nice aftermarket stuff for a lot less.
Did anyone else notice that these gauges are EXACTLY the same ones used by Subaru, optional on the WRX? The only difference is that the Subaru ones have "JAMCO" (LAMCO? or something like that) printed on the center, and the Mitsu ones have their logo. Otherwise, they're the same junk.
I say junk because I had them on my WRX. The voltage gauge died (stuck floating around 9.5V until I replaced it). The oil temp gauge died twice -- the first time, it would stick at the bottom after startup, then tapping it hard would unstick it until I parked overnight again. The second time it just hovered in the low end of the range and wasn't reading right. When I sold the car, the third oil temp gauge was starting the sticking think again (THUMP!). I got the option thinking it'd be neat to see the oil temp, but was a total waste of money. I'd avoid these completely. You can get really nice aftermarket stuff for a lot less.
Evolving Member
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 120
Likes: 0
From: Southern California
i got them to throw it in cheap, around $200...
at first I hated it, so small and hard to see...
but it's grown on me, and it's way better than nothing... and very stock looking, which is a huge plus, since I hate the topgun style cockpits.
at first I hated it, so small and hard to see...
but it's grown on me, and it's way better than nothing... and very stock looking, which is a huge plus, since I hate the topgun style cockpits.
I have it! I could take or leave it, I bought it for cost. Don't really like the location, would rather have on the pillar and will probably move there at some point. Also don't like the metric readout. Boost guage works great and the oil temp guage is awsome. Here is the pic on my car.
Originally Posted by ttiscio
I have it! I could take or leave it, I bought it for cost. Don't really like the location, would rather have on the pillar and will probably move there at some point. Also don't like the metric readout. Boost guage works great and the oil temp guage is awsome. Here is the pic on my car.
It looks like they have the same old problem that the WRX had too: the boost gauge lights up only about half as much as the other two.
I'm glad you've had good luck with yours, so far, but my very negative experiences were strong enough that I'll always recommend others not to spend their money on them.
I'm glad you've had good luck with yours, so far, but my very negative experiences were strong enough that I'll always recommend others not to spend their money on them.
Yea, if you have a head unit that can go below, go for it. With the one that I have that was not an option. I instaled the whole thing in about 2 hours. The boost tube took some time to route to dash. Then I hooked up the oil temp plug the next time I had the oil changed.
I paid around 265 if I remember correctly. I would think that most dealers would give it to you for cost since they are pretty much getting stuck with them. My local dealer had 4 of them in stock they could not unload.
As far as some guages being brighter than others, I do not notice any difference.
Whats kind of strange is I am the only one who doesn't care for them. Everyone who sees the car loves them and says they look great. Go figure.
I paid around 265 if I remember correctly. I would think that most dealers would give it to you for cost since they are pretty much getting stuck with them. My local dealer had 4 of them in stock they could not unload.
As far as some guages being brighter than others, I do not notice any difference.
Whats kind of strange is I am the only one who doesn't care for them. Everyone who sees the car loves them and says they look great. Go figure.
Evolving Member
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 337
Likes: 0
From: Forster, NSW Australia
Originally Posted by WildRice
The stock tach and speedo are enough junk for me. Why would a correctly installed set of gauges be an issue with your dealer?..ours cars have that near useless opening under the radio.. you know the one that everything spills out of.. I have seen it used as location for a real head unit. That set up allows room for a nice set of gauges in the stock radio's hole. we need a vendor to make a full set up panel that will accomodate standard size gauges so we can dump the cheesy factory set up altogether.. the tack is in the right place and is the only thing I use other than the really lousy gas gauge (the increments are useless, even full and empty are off a gallon or so). Oh well..with these cars I guess we don't really look at the gauges much any way. I hear that whistle turn into a whine and feel her spoolin.
Has anybody does this conversion? Is the part crap?
Evolving Member
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 136
Likes: 0
From: Montrose CA
I installed the 42 Draft 3 gauge kit. Works great, and comes with red LED backlighting that's not an exact match, but looks nice at night. It comes with boost, oil temp, and oil pressure. I'm working on an install story. Coming soon. It's amazing how hot that oil gets. I also used the radio relocation kit.