NEEDED: how to install a boost gauge in a ms3

[Vermilion]

Which gauge are you getting? Or is it gonna be a surprise? (Right, like we would really leave it to a spouse/gf to make such an important decision.) I was looking at the Defi Blue Racer since the blue would match the background lighting on the rest of the gauges. But the amber in your picture looks more red than orange and might come close to the red on the faces of the gauges. I was thinking I'd wait until next year but seeing your pic has me fired up to do it now.

It looks like the gauge could be mounted a little to the left of where your gauge was. There it would block just the seatbelt and battery lights and part of the trip meter, but nothing else. Especially with the 52mm Blue Racers. Is that the stock pod or did you buy it separately?

Ah, i'm getting a 52mm Blue Racer Boost gauge. I love Defi's gauges and doubt I could ever own anything else. The only reason I wouldn't go with the BF Amber gauge is they are 200+ dollar AND you have to have the Control Unit II which is like another 120. Unless you PLAN on adding more gauges like EGT, Oil Temp, and Oil pressure.. I don't think its worth it. I had planned on and even bought the other 3 gauges but, never installed em. The Blue Racer doesn't require the control unit that the others do so its cheaper already.

Yeah i'm still not sure where I want to mount it. When I get the gauge in my hands and the mounting kit and all then I will have a better idea of where it would best be placed at. I honestly don't think the Blue Racer gauges will match as well as the BF Ambers but, I can live with it since i'm saving 150 bucks or so. I will be sure to start my own thread when I get the gauge and get time to hook it up.

 

[quiet desperado]

Ah, i'm getting a 52mm Blue Racer Boost gauge. I love Defi's gauges and doubt I could ever own anything else. ....

Yeah i'm still not sure where I want to mount it. When I get the gauge in my hands and the mounting kit and all then I will have a better idea of where it would best be placed at. I honestly don't think the Blue Racer gauges will match as well as the BF Ambers but, I can live with it since i'm saving 150 bucks or so. I will be sure to start my own thread when I get the gauge and get time to hook it up.

Great, I've decided my wife's getting me the Blues for Christmas also (hey, isn't there a Christmas song with that title?), so I'll look forward to seeing what you do. So, that's the stock mount for the AF Ambers? If so and it's the same for Blues, I'll be happy with it.

 

[Vermilion]

I ordered the Blue Racer Boost Gauge and Defi Mounting Kit for mine. The gauges afaik don't come with the mounting kit. Its only like 12 dollars more.

You CAN get the little sun visor like i had on the Subie.. but, I think i'm gonna try the Blue Racer without it. Plus I don't even think they make a 52mm sun visor.

 

[quiet desperado]

I ordered the Blue Racer Boost Gauge and Defi Mounting Kit for mine. The gauges afaik don't come with the mounting kit. Its only like 12 dollars more.

You CAN get the little sun visor like i had on the Subie.. but, I think i'm gonna try the Blue Racer without it. Plus I don't even think they make a 52mm sun visor.

Most of the product descriptions say a plastic pod is included which I think is this:

Not bad looking if it's in an inconspicuous location, but I'll probably look for something to upgrade to eventually.

 

[quiet desperado]

First look at install on Defi Blue Racer

So, took the plastic shield off the IC and the heat shield off at the back of the engine bay. I can't see any line to tap into except the one going to the BOV.

Looks thick so I'll have to get a tee that fits. Anybody know what the ID is on the BOV line?

As far as sending the wires through the firewall, it's really tight back there. The only holes I could see were the ones for the heating and cooling lines. Looking back the other way, I could see only the hole where the hood release cable goes through. Could see where it comes out into the engine compartment. I don't know where the wiring harness goes through and will have to take another look tomorrow. Got to go to Christmas dinner at the in-laws.

 

[redms3gt]

best way I could se was take out glove box and lower dash and run it through the main wireing harness. I looked a lot it seems to be the easiest. Plus you gotta run the wires through the dash to get to the gauges somehow. Only issue is the harness is on the passenger side of the car and the BOV is on the drivers side. I ran the line behind the heatsheild toward the brake booster and then towards the bov. A little more work but it hides everything nicely.

 

[quiet desperado]

best way I could se was take out glove box and lower dash and run it through the main wireing harness. I looked a lot it seems to be the easiest. Plus you gotta run the wires through the dash to get to the gauges somehow. Only issue is the harness is on the passenger side of the car and the BOV is on the drivers side. I ran the line behind the heatsheild toward the brake booster and then towards the bov. A little more work but it hides everything nicely.

Great, thanks! I'll take a look at doing it that way.

 

[quiet desperado]

Great, thanks! I'll take a look at doing it that way.

Finally got my boost gauge in. I post some pix later. Boy, the first time doing something sure takes a long time. Looks pretty good mounted right b/t the speedo and the right-hand nacelle with the trip meter, etc., still fully visible.

Anyhow, big ole fat newb question. Did I mis-wire something or does the boost gauge normally spend a lot of its time in negative territory? I get the expected boost readings under hard acceleration, but I was expecting the needle to typically be going up and down from zero to whatever the permitted boost is. I assume that it goes to -30 for a reason, but I'm just a little surprised to get such crappy gas mileage when I'm apparently not on boost nearly as much as I thought!

 

[Vermilion]

Your boost gauge runs in the "negatives" because the its pulling vacuum even while idle. If you sit at idle and tap the gas or even rev it to revline it should only pop up to ZERO because the turbo doesn't pull boost when the car isn't under way or under load.

 

[quiet desperado]

Your boost gauge runs in the "negatives" because the its pulling vacuum even while idle. If you sit at idle and tap the gas or even rev it to revline it should only pop up to ZERO because the turbo doesn't pull boost when the car isn't under way or under load.

Yeah, it does pop right under load. Plus there's a diagnostic cycle to tell you if it's mis-wired and it's not telling me that. I'm enjoying watching the show and finally seeing what's going in boost-wise.

How's your install going? Going on 3 weeks since Christmas now. Since you have a previous install under your belt, I had been hoping you'd get yours done first and post to save me some hassle.

 

[Vermilion]

Yeah, it does pop right under load. Plus there's a diagnostic cycle to tell you if it's mis-wired and it's not telling me that. I'm enjoying watching the show and finally seeing what's going in boost-wise.

How's your install going? Going on 3 weeks since Christmas now. Since you have a previous install under your belt, I had been hoping you'd get yours done first and post to save me some hassle.

LOL I haven't even started yet. I'm going to throw a aftermarket BOV on my car first and then do the boost gauge probably. Where did you tap into for ignition, illumination, power, and ground? (my subaru was easy as the dash clock had all 4 wires right there in one little harness)

 

[redms3gt]

I just got the boost/vacuum combo to work perfect. No pops. no flutter. no noise. Its mechanical also. I had to take a small piece of a plastic peg a little bigger than the size of the line. The silicon one. This basically block the signal to the gauge. Then I drilled about a 1/32" hole through it. I also have a section of 5/16 hose to add some volume to the line after this so without this larger hose for a buffer you might have to drill smaller. Its Super smooth now. Just a touch of lag. 1th or 2 of a second but rock steady. Still reacts fast enough to show the spikes. I have a separate vacuum and boost gauge and the transition between vacuum and boost on the vacuum would make a buzz on the metal peg. Gone now. I would suggest this to anyone having this issue with any boost gauge. I think some electric gauges might smooth this out though so it would not be nessassary. I was getten so fed up with the noise I was gonna sell them and get electric but problem solved. Only time you go notice the lag is going from full boost to full vacuum. as this is basically instant with the BOV. I cannot notice any lag under boost as boost pressure comes up slower.

 

[quiet desperado]

LOL I haven't even started yet. I'm going to throw a aftermarket BOV on my car first and then do the boost gauge probably. Where did you tap into for ignition, illumination, power, and ground? (my subaru was easy as the dash clock had all 4 wires right there in one little harness)

I tapped in at the fuse box using Add-a-Circuits from Autozone. Pretty cool. It's a fuse-type unit with two fuse slots and a line out with a crimp-on connector. You pull the fuse out of the circuit you want to use and plug it into one of the fuse slots on the unit. Then you put in a fuse for your new circuit, attach your wire with the connector, and plug the unit right back into the fuse slot.

I don't know if it's optimal but I used the cigarette lighter fuse for ignition, the brake light for power and the instrument panel for illumination. Ground went to an existing ground behind the plastic panel on the upright at the front of the driver's door opening. It works fine but you turn the gauge on twice every time: once when you turn on the ignition and again when you start the engine. Next step is finding a circuit that gets power from the battery even when the starter is turning over.

As far as going through the firewall, I went a little crazy and decided to feed the sensor line through the rubber boot that the hood release cable goes through. It wasn't easy b/c it's a very tight fit. Eventually I realized I needed to: 1) detach the cable at both ends, 2) pull it about one foot farther into the passenger compartment, and 3) pull the rubber boot out of the firewall. Then I was able pull the sensor wire coupling through the boot and the hole in the firewall with a coat hanger and reinstall the boot and cable.

Good luck with your install. It has to go more smoothly than mine. Of course, now I could do it about one hour.

 

[Vermilion]

I tapped in at the fuse box using Add-a-Circuits from Autozone. Pretty cool. it's a fuse-type unit with two fuse slots and a line out with a crimp-on connector. You pull the fuse out of the circuit you want to use and plug it into one of the fuse slots on the unit. Then you put in a fuse for your new circuit, attach your wire to the connector, and plug the unit right back into the fuse slot.

I don't know if it's optimal but I used the cigarette lighter fuse for ignition, the brake light for power and the instrument panel for illumination. Ground went to an existing ground behind the plastic panel on the upright that's at the front of the driver's door opening. It works fine but you turn the gauge on twice every time: once when you turn on the ignition and again when you start the engine. Next step is to find a circuit that gets power from the battery even when the starter is turning over.

As far as going through the firewall, I went a little crazy and fed the sensor line through the rubber boot that the hood release cable goes through. It wasn't easy. Eventually I realized I needed to: 1) detach the cable at both ends, 2) pull it about one foot farther into the passenger compartment, and 3) pull the rubber boot out of the firewall. Then I was able pull the sensor wire coupling through the boot with a coat hanger and reinstall the boot and cable.

Good luck with your install. It has to go more smoothly than mine. Of course, now I could do it about one hour.

Where'd you mount your sensor? Inside the car or inside the engine bay?

 

[quiet desperado]

Where'd you mount your sensor? Inside the car or inside the engine bay?

In the engine bay attached to the front side of battery box using the hole for a grey attachment thingy that secures a battery cable inside the box. The cable seems to hang fine without being attached.

In case you're thinking about tapping into wires instead of the fuse box, I got this from a thread on installing Defi BF gauges:

Blue/Red stripe = constant voltage, comes from battery

Orange = switched voltage, comes from ignition

Black/Yellow stripe = variable voltage, controlled by dimmer switch

Defi BF wires should be connected is this manner:

RED ----> Blue/Red stripe
Orange ---> Orange
White ---> Black Yellow stripe
Black ---> grounded to radio chassis, or other location of your choice.

 

[Vermilion]

In the engine bay attached to the front side of battery box using the hole for a grey attachment thingy that secures a battery cable inside the box. The cable seems to hang fine without being attached.

In case you're thinking about tapping into wires instead of the fuse box, I got this from a thread on installing Defi BF gauges:

Blue/Red stripe = constant voltage, comes from battery

Orange = switched voltage, comes from ignition

Black/Yellow stripe = variable voltage, controlled by dimmer switch

Defi BF wires should be connected is this manner:

RED ----> Blue/Red stripe
Orange ---> Orange
White ---> Black Yellow stripe
Black ---> grounded to radio chassis, or other location of your choice.

Thanks man. I can handle almost every mod but, I hate messing with wires and electronics lol. Not that i'm gonna shock myself to death (yes I know remove battery cables) its that i'm not gonna get a good connection or its kinda make the horn blow when I flip on my high beams LOL.

 

[Vermilion]

Wheres those pics at!

I need some motivation to get my ass out and do it

 

[redms3gt]

Here some action footage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ox3oQXLaaoA

 

[quiet desperado]

Wheres those pics at!

I need some motivation to get my ass out and do it

I'll get some up tomorrow. The sticky tape mount sucks and is already coming up. I think I'll try some velcro.

 

[desperado-c]

1st Time Ever Install How-to on a Defi BR Boost Gauge

Okay, I know I promised this awhile ago, but things have been a little crazy. FWIW, here's my step-by-step install of the Defi Blue Racer Electronic Boost Gauge.

A. Installing the Sensor Wire

The biggest issue is getting through the firewall. After looking around from the inside, I decided to go through the grommet that the hood release cable goes through. Since it's just a sensor wire and and not vacuum hose, the grommet is big enough. Here's the view from inside near the clutch pedal mount:

Here's the view from the engine bay, in behind the driver's side shock tower:

1. Space is very tight inside where the grommet is. So, to get better access to the grommet, I freed up both ends of the hood release cable. It's pretty easy to see how to do this if you just look at how they're attached. The end attached to the hood latch just pops right out, but then you have to manuever it around to get it free. There also two clips attaching it to the engine bay near the top of the radiator. You can just pop it out of those clips. Inside, it's just a matter of pulling the hood release handle and rotating the cable end up to where it will slide out. With the cable loose, you can now pull it into the cabin about 1 foot further than it is when installed. You can now pull the grommet out of the firewall and into the cabin, too. I think I ended up pushing it in from the engine side with big screwdriver (careful not to tear it).

2. Next I took the small blue coupling that attaches the sensor wire to the boost gauge and feed it through the firewall into the cabin. I attached it to a coat hanger since it's kind of far back and hard to reach.

3. The next part takes a little patience since the grommet opening is kind of tight. To get the coupling through, I took a philips head screw driver and stretched out the cabin-facing end, and then fed the blue coupling through the engine bay-facing end with a coat-hanger. I bent the coat-hanger around the front of the coupling so that the coat-hanger was the first thing pushing through the grommet. I still had to manuevered it through the accordian section of the grommet until I could grab it and pull it through. I then pulled the rest of the sensor wire through and left about 3 feet in engine bay, reinstalled the grommet in the firewall, and reconnected the hood release cable ends.

B. Installing the Boost Sensor Unit

1. I removed the TMIC cover to get easy access to the 1/4" BOV hose and attached it to one side of a 1/4" brass tee I got from NAPA. I then took two 4-5 inch sections of 1/4" vacuum hose and attached them to the tee. I attached one of the sections to the BOV and the other to a 1/4" to 1/8" reducer (also from NAPA). I then attached the reducer to the vacuum hose that goes to the sensor. Everything was secured with tiny zip ties.

Here's the end result:

2. Next I opened up the battery box and pulled out the grey clip that secures one of the battery wires inside to the front of the box. I then attached the sensor unit to the outside of the battery with small bolt and nut.

3. Then I coupled the sensor wire that comes out of the unit to the section that goes through the fire wall and secured the coupling to the body near the back end of the fuse box.

C. Attaching the Power/Ground/Illumination Wires

1. I removed the lefthand/righthand panels on the center console to allow me to run the power and illumination wires over to the inside fuse box under the glove compartment.

Lefthand panel removed:

Righthand panel removed:

2. The wires weren't long enough to run to the fuse box, so I attached about 3 feet of wire to each and attached them to fused lines using "Add-a-Circuits" from Autozone. We need 3 of the "mini" fuse versions, at $5-$6 each.

I used the brake light fuse for the red power wire, the cigarette lighter fuse for the orange "ignition-on" wire, and the "illumination" fuse for the white illumination wire. I used the 3 amp fuses for each since they draw a lot less than that. Ignore the color of the wires going to the fuse box since I used the same color wire for all the extensions.

3. Next I removed the plastic panel at the front of the driver's door and attached the black ground wire to the ground point there with a U-spade:

D. Attaching the Boost Gauge

I decided to attach the gauge to the righthand side of the steering column. This way I can still see the trip meter on the right of the gauge and all of the speedometer on the left, except maybe 0-5 mph. When I'm sitting normally, it does obscure one or two of the warning lights, but I can see them all if I lean forward and peer over the gauge. Also, I initially used the sticky tape provided with the pod, but it looks like crap and started to pull up after one day. I then tried velcro. Not much better. I decided to bite the bullet and use screws to attach the base. The screws aren't visible from most angles since they are attached to the part of the column that slopes down into the wide rubber piece.

1. I pulled the ends of the sensor and the power cluster up from underneath through the right side of the steering column. To do so, I uninstalled and lifted up the right side of wide rubber piece that covers the area where column pivots for adjustment. The rubber piece has a little channel that you can feed the wires into and then close up again.

2. I removed the front and side tabs of the base, leaving just the rear tab with the screw holes. I filed the nubs left by the missing tabs down a little and then touched up the bare metal up with a Sharpie. I then bent the rear tab down to match the angle of the plastic piece covering of the steering column where it meets the front of the wide rubber piece.

3. I then installed the gauge into the pod (wires attached) and positioned it so that it obscured as little of the speedo as possible while still allowing me to easily see the trip meter. Next, I marked the front and one side of the base with masking tape and, holding the pod firmly against the column, used an awl to make an indent in the center of the screw holes. Using a very stubby philips head screw driver, I inserted the screws where the indents were and secured the gauge.

Daytime view:

Nightime view:

4. Lastly, I pulled the remaining slack in the sensor/power wires, looped them, and attached them to the lip that runs along on the underside of dash.

That's it! Sorry, I didn't take pix as I worked, but I had my hands full just figuring things out. It took me several hours and a lot of trial-and-error which I have not bothered to relate, but hopefully it won't take anyone else anywhere near that long. Good luck!