If you were to install a carb'ed 911 6 in a 914, other than oil pressure and oil temperature what other engine gauges would you install? What would be important? CHT for each cylinder? Anything else? Thoughts?

an alternator warning light

loose a fan belt and the amount of time to shut it down before toasting the motor is about the same as lack of oil pressure.

Good point. I figured the car would have a voltmeter, tachometer, and aforementioned oil gauges. I like the idea of big lights or sound to get your attention when a major system fails.

I use these for my oil pressure light and alternator light:

Those would get my attention!

I just like gauges so I have the normal ones associated with 914 plus I added oil quantity, oil temperature, vacuum, amp gauges. I have the normal fuel quantity, volt, speedo, tach, clock. I did use 911 gauges and changed the instrument cluster to reflect these changes. I do run a center console with the appropriate stock gauges except for the vacuum one.

Just happen to like it but have never installed extra lights; could be another project.

Steve

What you doing Bill? Where are these -6 questions coming from?

All will be revealed in due time!

Nice, but holy crap!...$60 each for a frick'in light??!!??

Anyone have a nice bright alternative and maybe flush mount dash warning light?

Radio Shack has some simple, bright 12 volt indicator lights that you can easily mount on your dash plate that will serve the same purpose for just a few bucks. You can simply drill a couple of holes between the dash gauges and snap them into place.

Thanks George, I forgot about "Radio Shack", I think they call it "The Source" up here now.

Yep...

http://www.summitracing.com/search?keyword...ights&dds=1

I like 'em really bright

Stock(ish) has oil pressure and alternator lights:


Fuel Gauge in the radio delete location:

I like this gauge below. I just think that as expensive as these engines are you would want to monitor as many systems as possible,

Click to view attachment

Yep, that's the way to go, has the low fuel light, alternator light, and oil temp light....if only they were still making the kits....

Forgive me as I'm not familiar with this type of engine, why exactly is it imperative to have a warning light for the alternator?

if the fan belt throws... the engine cooling fan stops
the heads over heat, warp, and destroys the engines

I've heard some experts say that you have as little as 20-30 seconds to shut it off.

I personally saw one guy at the track with a 911 finish his lap and drive into the pits... the motor was smoking and spitting oil everywhere.. he got it to start again that day, but after going home found the motor to be destroyed.

Never liked the triple gauges I've seen because the face is stamped fairly crude. No beveled edges.

911 Combo gauge gives you all that except the fuel gauge.

$57 dollars for a VDO fuel gauge 2 1/16" 0-70 ohm (70 being empty) from North Hollywood Speedometer that fits right in the center console (if you have one). No modifying the oil gauge that replaces the /4 fuel/temp gauge.

And you can separate out the low fuel warning light and run it to another light somewhere on the dash. Like the unused light area (notionally for Sporto overtemp warning, I think!) in some versions of the two-way combo gauge. Or just drill a hole and use one of the 75-76 warning lights in the regular part of the dash.

That's what I was going to do before I finally went with the triple gauge.

--DD

Mine is similar to Eric's except with a different tach. I agree that the 911 combo gauge is great, but for a street car a fuel gauge might be useful. I'm adding one elsewhere on the dash. It's not one I pay attention to very often.

I had Palo Alto add a low fuel light to my VDO gauge. Cheap.

Yes, but if you put the fuel gauge where the radio was, or down in the center console, it is farther out of your range of vision. A nice light in the gauge panel is much closer to your regular scan of the instruments, and gives you a very quick read that you need gas NOW.

--DD

Click to view attachment

What about converting the boost pressure gauge on a 930 tach to be a fuel gauge? Or is that too expensive? I know these tachometers are not exactly common, but they are out there and we're not talking big numbers of them. The tach has to be changed anyway.

That sounds interesting.

I really like the idea of keeping everything in front of me. I don't like the idea of having to scan all over the car to read gauges. Lights that are bright enough to stand out in your peripheral vision are very useful for "engine death" scenarios (oil pressure, air flow)

Call Hartmut at Palo Alto and ask. You'd be surprised.

Maybe I'll have to contact to see if it's a surprise how much it costs or how little is costs
It is a cool look, I've seen it done before.

Brant, if the belt comes off the alternator stops spinning, but the fan keeps going.

However you are still right. If your fan comes completely off the crank (as we saw at the races last weekend,), the ALT light will tell you that there is something wrong immediately ;-)

That saved at least one engine in the last week.

Stu

I'm a big fan of using the 930 tach and having the boost gauge converted to a fuel gauge. I did this in my 1st coversion back in '95, and have had a few gauges done for customer cars. It makes for a very clean dash. For a street car I don't like pods under the dash, and I prefer the interior without the center console.

It's been done a number of times. Works pretty well, too. Might be more expensive than a dash-mounted fuel gauge to find an appropriate 930 tach, though.





Depends on the 911 engine. With most of them, it's a single belt for both, and if the belt comes off the drag of the alternator stops the fan quickly. Not what you want with an air-cooled motor.


I know of race cars that have a horn set up to trigger if either the oil or alt light go on, but not if both do. The horn stays quiet on start-up (except a bit of noise during start-up because the oil and alt lights usually don't go out exactly in sync) but lets you know right away if you have a problem while driving.

--DD

true for the 4cylinder
but on the 6cylinder the belt drives the fan

True up to and including the 3.2. But ISTR on my 964 there were 2 belts (assume no a/c), one drives the alternator, one drives the fan. There must have been a warning light in case the fan belt broke; but I can't remember that far back.

I know of 1 914/6 that used to race 20 years ago
the owner had installed some factory race part, air sensor?
I'm not familiar with how it worked, but he said it was something from a 908 or 917.... some kind of warning light on the dash lit up if the fan belt broke and the air speed for cooling dropped....

I think he ran no alternator, and assume those factory race cars may have developed this sensor for the same reason.

On the 993 (and likely the 964 as well) there's an idler pulley with a switch in the base that triggers the indicator light if it's belt disappears. When that engine is bolted into a 914 the double-row crank-pulley is replaced with a single pulley and the fan/alternator pulley hub is replaced with solid hub as well.

Sorry, forgot the topic was specific to 6 cyls.
I have 4 cyl on the brain since I am assembling my instrument cluster right now.
I decided on:
Stock Speedo & Tach.
VDO Oil press & temp
LC-1 AFR
Dual EGT
Voltmeter
Oil press warning light
Alt light
This is for a race car, not street, so I dont need fuel gauge.

Stu

I use an HVAC pressure switch connected to a hose on the shroud and a light on the dash to warn if my fan belt comes off of the flat fan cooling system.

I'm thinking of making this into a combo gauge, pretty sure the gas gauge would fit in the top and then I'll mount the idiot lights in the bottom.
I wish I could just get the printing decals, I can do the rest. I think I'll just make a blank face, use the temp/pressure numbers and make the gas gauge with basic markings.