just ordered my programmer

[NDsuperduty]

Ok, if I decide to do gauges now is this something I can do myself. I am pretty mechanically inclined and can do alot of stuff if given decent instructions. I just dont want to be drilling into the engine block or anything that could cause serious issues, rather pay a trained professional for stuff like that.

My Uncle-in-law who runs a diesel shop said if I ran gauges I should start with the EGT and maybe a boost gauge, but I do not need a tranny temp gauge. He said the they run very cool and should not be an issue. Is there a better gauge to run instead of boost, or one I should run in a 3 gauge pod?

 

[F350DRW1]

Not to second guess your uncle in law, but a temp gauge for the trans. is a good idea, the factory unit is almost useless, like most of the factory gauges.

 

[NDsuperduty]

Not to second guess your uncle in law, but a temp gauge for the trans. is a good idea, the factory unit is almost useless, like most of the factory gauges.

Since I am not a big fan of the single gauge pods, I will probably do a tran gauge just to fill the second hole on a 2-pod pillar.

I know everyone bases their opinions on personal experience so its not a big deal to me if he thinks I dont need one and other people swear I should have one. Just like everything else in this world, different variables create different problems. The fact that he lives in colorado and not "hot" texas could be another reason he has never had issues with his superduty. He told me that in the summer he pulls like a 30' camper and then a boat behind that and his tranny gauge never really budges, but once again that is in colorado.

 

[F350DRW1]

The fact that the gauge never moves speaks volumes about the "Quality" of the gauges. IMHO a trans temp gauge, boost gauge and egt gauge are the minimum. I'm only speaking from personal experience. A volt gauge is nice, too, because from the factory the diesels don't have it.

 

[NDsuperduty]

Is there a particular brand or model that is pretty good, maybe middle of the road. I do not feel I need the top of the line, but I dont like to get the bottom of the barrel either.

 

[F350DRW1]

I'm running Banks pyrometer and boost gauge, Autometer seems to have a large selection. Not sure of the pricing structure. If you go to the search feature on this board and type "gauge" there are alot of threads about gauges.

 

[NDsuperduty]

I just talked to diesel innovations and they said it would be around $550 for 2 gauges installed on a-pillar pod, and almost $700 for 3 gauges. If im not mistaken it would cost $250-$500 on 3 gauges, which makes the install fee about $300. The guy said its about a 3 hour install.

My question is it that much of a hastle. I have no problem paying some to install a pain in the ass part, but if its pretty simple I would rather save the cash.

 

[Kleetus]

Might be a bit of a PIA, but for $300 I can put up with a lot of irritation. Probably the worst part would be running the lines and wires to make it look neat.

 

[Sleeper Diesel]

it took my buddy and i about 3 hours to do a 3 gauge a pillar. it was our first time doing gauges. not really difficult just time consuming. but they are a great security to have. i have not installed gauges on a 6.0 just 7.3's but i dont think it is much different

 

[NDsuperduty]

Turns out my uncle-in-law misqouted me the price. Got my bill in the mail today and it only cost me $260 with shipping for the programmer. Its nice to have connections.