Oil pressure gauge

[Octoparrot]

I fitted one to my previous car, non VW, and as pudding says it wasn't really worth it but like you I mainly did it to fill a space. Do you really think you'll spot low oil pressure before the dash light comes on? I'd say oil temp maybe more useful if you've not already got a gauge for that. Also be aware that there are 2 types of oil pressure gauges, one type is electrical that converts the oil pressure from the pressure sender to an electrical signal that gives a reading on the gauge (pretty much how the oil pressure light works now) and the second has oil travel up a hard tube into the gauge which the gives the reading. I didn't fancy having oil coming into the interior of the car so went for the purely electrical one but found the readings weren't particularly accurate, it used to register zero pressure at hot idle even though the engine was in perfect health.

[r5gtt]

Cheers @Octoparrot looks like I'll be scrapping that idea and thinking of what else I could put there. Got boost got voltage and you're right probably won't spot the pressure drop anyway. Was going to go oil fed one but that's out the window then   

[pudding]

Octoparrot is spot on.  I rarely looked at my oil pressure gauge after the novelty had worn off, and as he says, by the time the oil light buzzer comes on, it's too late!  The buzzer/pressure sensor is instantaneous.  The gauge relies on you monitoring it.

There is such a thing as too much information in cars.  It's why I sold my Polar FIS.  Too much to look at and paranoia if anything looked a little strange.  It's why car makers keep things simple.  They don't want paranoid customers ringing the dealer about temps and pressures, hence why the temp gauge is deliberately engineered to always be in the middle.  People are comfortable with 'in the middle' 

I was focusing so much on sensor readings that I forgot to just enjoying the car for what it is.  Now I don't look at anything.  Just check the oil once a week and that's it 

[r5gtt]

Yes also took the constant paranoia into consideration too as who reply looks at the oil pressure constantly as when it fails it will fail!! You're both correct and I'm just going to have to find something else to fill the void now 

Thanks guys

[Dan_FR]

AFR gauge would be useful - more useful than a volt meter anyway

Oil pressure is useful to see changes to oil pressure, symptoms of a clogged strainer or dying oil pump are usually gradual changes to oil pressure, resulting in damage over time as pressure decreases. Oil pressure has to be pretty much non-existent for the oil warning on the dash.

I like seeing everything that goes on with my car, I have the Torque app open on my phone whenever I go out for a spirited drive

[pudding]

Wideband is definitely one of the more useful ones.  EGT is useful too. It changes instantly, so any sudden increase or drop in temperature spells trouble, such as a clogged injector on it's way out.....but then again that manifests itself as misfiring.

I had waaaaaay too much info in my VR6 turbo.  EGT, wideband, oil pressure, Volts, Amps, boost, oil temp, injector duty, coolant temp, water injection flow rate, chargecooler flow rate......everything.  I spent too much watching this stuff and not really focusing on the road, or focusing on driving enjoyment.  Plus the wiring was a pain.  Ripped it all out apart from wideband and EGT and enjoyed the car much more.

[Dan_FR]

Standard EGT is modelled on these (so useless) and adding a sensor in the exhaust side of the standard turbo is a no go. Standard wideband can be tapped in to for a signal if needed, at least it could on older cars anyway

I tend to only check peak values and rely heavily on the alarms I've setup to alert me to any boost or temperature issues. Don't look at it when driving unless an alarm is triggered.

Bet the VR6 looked like a spaceship with that many gauges inside..... 

[pudding]

Yeah I'm not bothering with any of that on my Eddy.  It's not going to be anywhere near as extreme as the VR6 was 

Alarms is a good idea.  Have you got a Polar FIS?  I had it for a while but found I was constantly scrolling through the screens and the refresh rate of the MFD cluster isn't great either, so kind of blurry a lot of the time!

Just found a pic of it.  Not as busy as I remember actually!  EGT in the clocks pod, fuel pressure in the middle, a custom display showing everything the ECU can output (a standalone at the time) and the other gauges below!  Too much!

[r5gtt]

Not sure about the egt as I recall it needing a bung welded onto the dp so that's a no no!!! Voltage was another one just to cover the void so boost is left  and two holes to fill  although battery one is still a possibility as it does point to a failing alternator or weak battery from the cockpit  also three gauses the same colour and style would look neater as I've seen eBay ones selling gold blue face with red lit needles