ScanGauge and DashHawk?

[George in GA]

I've just become a Mazda owner - 3s, 5 door, Bose/sunroof 6 spd - and the lack of coolant temperature, oil pressure and amp/volt meters is distressing. I like to know when the temp is "off the peg" so I can get on it.

ScanGauge and DashHawk look like possible solutions, without the "agony" of running tubing, lines, etc through the firewall and all that work. Been there and done that on other cars. I can't tell for certain whether these gadgets will display all of the above. Anyone out there know for certain? DashHawk's web site doesn't seem to allow a straight forward email query.

Any other ideas for getting the gauges Mazda should have given us?

Thanks!!

 

[wingzero_]

The Scangauge will show those, I have one. It is just a simple hookup to the obd2 port.

 

[George in GA]

Good deal! I also emailed ScanGauge to see what they say. You can get oil pressure from ScanGauge?

 

[wingzero_]

Oops missed your mention of oil pressure. No it doesn't do that one. The Scangauge is pretty basic, I've had one forever. I am starting to think about a dashhawk.

 

[George in GA]

Oil Pressure?

So, I know DashHawk mentions oil pressure for some vehicles - do you know whether it will display it for the 2010 3? Their website doesn't make asking a question easy. Thanks!

 

[wingzero_]

I've yet to hear of anyone running one on a 2010. But my guess is if it will display it on a previous gen 3, it would work on ours. Maybe check with a previous gen 3 owner that has one.

I can understanding wanting to know temps and volts, but any real reason for wanting to know oil pressure? I can't remember the last car I had that actually had some type of oil gauge.

 

[coyfish]

I have a scanguage and I like it. I think it reads data better than the dashhawk (more fluidly) and looks better too. Has a nice "light" that you can set to alerts / etc. just like the dashhawk. I have mine set to blink when my knock goes over 1.0 or my boost goes over 20psi. You can also do 1/4 mile runs / 0-60 times / all that good stuff with the scan gauge. Only thing that is bad about it is that it doesn't read oil pressure or have the data logging feature like the dash. It doesn't plug into the computer. Oh and it reads A/F ratios right off the bat without having to DL or buy that extra part (not sure exactly) with the dashhawk.

Both are good products and thats my pro / con list of both.

 

[George in GA]

Oil Pressure? Same song, second verse!

Hey Wingzero and Coyfish -

Thanks for the info. I've sent this to Mazda, after realizing that an oil pressure sensor might be no more than a switch:

"I am thinking of buying either a ScanGauge or a DashHawk which will connect with the diagnositic plug and display coolant temperature, battery voltage, etc, the gauges Mazda left out. Does the 2.5 engine in my 2010 Mazda3 use a true oil pressure sensor which would deliver varying pressure messages, or merely a switch which closes at a preset pressure to light a warning light.

It would seem that the information panel in my vehicle would be an ideal place to display coolant temp, battery voltage, oil pressure/temp. How about a software update to do this??"

A change over time in oil pressure can indicate an engine problem. As I recall a drop in pressure normally seen suggests excessive bearing wear, and would show up before the knocks of a REALLY worn bearing. So, we have something else to obsess over!

 

[wingzero_]

Ah yes obsessive people. I am one too, but by them leaving out the gauges gives me less to think about.

 

[nguvanh]

I just looked at ScanGuage II manual and I don't see guage for oil pressure.
It only has Fuel and Manifold Pressure gauges. I have one for my Mazdas. However I only use when having long trips.

 

[ky3]

a little off topic, where is a good place for the display of Scangauge?

 

[coyfish]

Any place where you would mount any other type of gauge. You could do vent pods or do a steering wheel mount. Or a pillar mount / triple center mount.

 

[DailyDriver]

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[Stavesacre21]

For the money, you can't beat the dashhawk. It'll have your head spinning with all the different crap it reads. However, on my Speed6 I used to have, I just couldn't FOR THE LIFE OF ME, find a good place to put it. That ended up being the reason I got rid of it and just got a boost gauge.

I will stand with you there tho...not having a temperature gauge is slightly unsettling. I've had a few cars seem skimpy on gauges before, but I don't think I've EVER seen one that skipped temperature.

For us MS3 owners, kinda seems like a lateral move from temperature gauge to boost. Not sure i'm i'm quite as overjoyed as I initially was to see it in the display.

 

[coyfish]

Yeah I couldn't be happier with my scangauge. Has a ton of cool features like mpg calculator, 1/4 mile timer, 0-60 timer, warning lights, easy to read / mount. . .

2 Biggest Cons are that it doens't read fuel trims or log data to the computer. I have an AP now though so im covered .

 

[tunersteve]

Guys, Dashhawk doesn't do oil press/temp on our cars. It does read coolant temp though.

Scangauges are nice, but I like the datalogging feature of the DH. The setup on the computer is really user-friendly as well if you need to customize screens, and the alerts can be set up in a variety of different ways. If you shop around on the FS forums, you can usually find them for under $200.

I believe any CAN-bus equipped vehicle will work with the DH. I've ran it on several vehicles from 2005 and up and had no problems so far.

 

[Stavesacre21]

are you sure it doesn't do oil pressure/temp on the MS6? I was thinking it was one of the options I originally had setup.

Regaurdless, the boost gauge was the main reason I had it. Maybe I was looking at coolant temp, but I thought I had oil temp.

 

[tunersteve]

are you sure it doesn't do oil pressure/temp on the MS6? I was thinking it was one of the options I originally had setup.

Regaurdless, the boost gauge was the main reason I had it. Maybe I was looking at coolant temp, but I thought I had oil temp.

Nah, that was one of the first things I tried, no luck. I have ambient, coolant, intake, and boost air temp on one screen.

 

[George in GA]

Hey Wingzero and Coyfish -

Thanks for the info. I've sent this to Mazda, after realizing that an oil pressure sensor might be no more than a switch:

"I am thinking of buying either a ScanGauge or a DashHawk which will connect with the diagnositic plug and display coolant temperature, battery voltage, etc, the gauges Mazda left out. Does the 2.5 engine in my 2010 Mazda3 use a true oil pressure sensor which would deliver varying pressure messages, or merely a switch which closes at a preset pressure to light a warning light.

It would seem that the information panel in my vehicle would be an ideal place to display coolant temp, battery voltage, oil pressure/temp. How about a software update to do this??"

Well, I just heard back from Mazda. Below are the two replies:

Hi Mr. Hazelton,
Thank you for contacting Mazda. First, we do not recommend you install additional gauges to your vehicle. The current light is there to let a customer know if the pressure is too low or too high.
Sincerely,
Frank Brcak
Representative, Mazda Customer Assistance

Hi Mr. Hazelton,
Thanks again for your email. I have already responded to your email. Please let me confirm that we do not recommend that you install any additional gauges.
Sincerely,
Frank Brcak
Representative, Mazda Customer Assistance

In reply to these meaningless posts, I sent this:

Mr. Brcak -

Thank you for your quick response to my query. Please note that I AM NOT contemplating "installing" additional gauges. If you will parse my email you will note that I ask whether the oil pressure sensor would send to a device CONNECTED TO THE DIAGNOSTIC PORT a signal reporting the oil pressure, or merely an on or off condition for a low pressure sensor. This is a rather different matter from installing a gauge. Using a ScanGauge or a DashHawk is merely reading the sensor readings which are sent to a diagnostic computer at a properly equipped repair shop, or at a Mazda dealer.

It seems that Mazda either didn't read the whole email or feels, probably on the advice of their legal department, that any real information might incur some possible liability down the road.

Has anyone out there tried a ScanGuage or DashHawk on a 2010 2.5? If so, does it report oil pressure? I wonder if Mazda's answer would change if my 5door had 50,000 miles, rather than 1,300.

 

[DailyDriver]

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