I occasionally read that a few of you have installed a vacuum gauge to assist you to control fuel consumption. Having one does make sense, which brings up my questions here.
I have a 2007 Ford E350 chassis RV with the V10 engine. It's nearly brand new, so I don't want to jury-rig a vacuum gauge on the dash board. I want something that looks cleanly mounted. Not looking "Out of Place". So my questions......
- What brand vacuum gauge do you have?
- Where did you buy it?
- What did it cost?
- Does it have a back-lit light inside for night driving?
- What year & chassis vehicle did you mount it on?
- Where & how did you mount it on or in your dash, and can you see it at a glance?
- When installing it, do you simply identify any vacuum line and "T" into it to get vacuum, or is one vacuum line more applicable for best monitering?
- Do you have a picture of the gauge you can post here or email me directly?
Ideally, I would like to mount a back-lit vacuum gauge "IN" the dash where it is easily seen at a glance, but I don't want to mess up the beautiful wood grain dash board. If the installation and appearance is very clean and fitting, I may consider doing that.
I would appreciate all input & comments.
Bought new in June 2007, Phoenix Cruiser-2350
Fits inside our garage.
Dingy towing a red Toyota MR2 Spyder
See The Inside by clicking on "View Profile" and scroll down
Why don't you buy a Scangauge II? It hooks up to the OBD under the dash and you can attach the gauge with velcro almost anywhere. I mounted mine just below the dash gauges to the left of the steering wheel. It will give you the current mpg plus loads of other info. I had the older model and upgraded to the newest one that has the add-a-gauge and added the tranny temp. http://www.scangauge.com/products/
* This post was
edited 07/22/08 07:40am by DAS26miles *
Yeah, Scan Gauge is cool, if you want to drop a "few hunert bux" on it.
A vacuum gauge is about $30.00, and is easy to install. Computer control, EFI, etc has NOTHING to do with seeing how you drive.
A vacuum gauge (Autometer, Summit, Stewart-Werner, etc.) simply measures the vacuum your engine makes. If you are turbo or supercharged, you'll need a boost/vacuum gauge, but that will already be installed.
Install the gauge to any rubber vacuum (via a "T" you can pick up at any parts store), and the source MUST be manifold vacuum (not ported, timed, temperature regulated, etc.). Mount the gauge anywhere you like, you'll run a hose (typically included with the gauge itself) to it, and maybe a night lamp to hook up, but it's that easy.
Now, start your engine and let it idle. What does the needle read? Somewhere around 15-20"hg and steady? Good!
Now, gun the engine. The needle will spike up briefly, than fall quickly (to near zero), than spike again, then back to original place, because you're back at idle, right?
You with me so far?
Go for a drive, even a short trip through the nieghborhood. As you start from a stop, notice how low the needle reads. As you decelerate, notice how high the needle reads. As you cruise at a steady pace, notice how much the needle moves around.
What have you learned from this little experiment?
A) You get the best possible mileage at the highest reading you can muster from the gauge.
B) You get the worst mileage from the lowest reading you can muster.
C) While you were cruising along at a steady pace, you noticed how the gauge didn't remain steady, even though you thought you were going steady. Why is this? Because even the SMALLEST change in your go-fast pedal makes a BIG change on the gauge.
The trick here is to "relearn" how to drive so you keep the highest reading you can. Acceleration from a stop, climbing a hill, and other near WOT (wide open throttle) will cause readings near zero, the more impatient you are, the worse it gets. Get what I mean? Also, while cruising down the road, TRY to learn to keep the needle steady, regardless of what your brain is telling your foot.
This learned acceleration and cruising will yield you maximum mileage from your rig. The gauge also will immediately tell you if you have a mechanical or tuning problem, but that's for another post.
A simple observation I made driving my Power Wagon with a gauge- There are many hills by me. One in particular is kind of steep, but not steep enough for the tranny to downshift. The gauge would read about 4"hg of vacuum climbing it. For kicks, I tried it in 2nd gear. I climbed the hill the same speed, the engine rpms were MUCH higher, but the vacuum gauge showed 17"hg of vacuum! That means the engine was working far less, using way less fuel to accomplish the same thing (engine was operating in it's most efficient mode at that point, not lugging).
Have fun with it! It'll be the best $30.00 you'll spend on the RV!
I just purchased a scangauge II w/ X-gauge feature. And you can get it all day long for $ 160.00 (delivered) off of E-bay. If you are a member of other automotive forums, they may be running a group buy usually $ 140.00 - 150.00
It is worth every penny of what I paid for it in the multiple features it can do. In place of a vacuum gauge, the scan gauge has Throttle position sensor (TPS) this will tell you how hard your steping on the peddle. There is also Gallons per hour (GPH) this will tell you how much fuel your pumping in. There is also the instant fuel millage.
other features: Intake air temperature, transmission fluid temperature, Engine coolant temperature. Knock sensor gauge, Timing advance, Engine torque, Engine horsepower, Speedometer (adjustable for gear, tire size change) Tachometer, Long and short fuel trims, O2 sensors gauge.
It even has a OBDI II code scanner and can clear codes (not fix them, but remove the code and display the code number)
I more than likely left out a few, With the X-gauge feature you can program up to 24 gauges depending on the vehicle you have. Plus you can move it from vehicle to vehicle since it does not marry to your PCM
Go to Scangauge.com and read more, you can download a PDF file of the owners manual and the X-gauge codes to program for the extra gauges.
Personally, I don't feel that a Vacuum gauge is as good of a tool on a Fuel Injected engine as it was on a carb. engine.
I made the first reply with scangauge's website. As you can see there are a great many of us RVer's tahat are sold on it. I think it pays for itself in fuel savings.
Ron:
I also bought the Scangauge. It took all of 15 seconds to hook-up! The plug is just under the steering wheel below the dash panel. It comes with velco strips that you can mount it anywhere you want. I set mine on the rear view mirror, since it's easy to check (while driving), and I don't use it much anyway....it's not as if I can look out the rear window.
I also have the option of moving it, or taking it and using it in my other vehicles, which you wouldn't be doing if you installed a vacuum gauge in your RV.
If you have your heart set on a vacuum gauge, you can do as mentioned...get a plastic "T" at an auto parts store, and run a rubber hose through the firewall or doghouse, into the cab. You can mount it low (at the bottom of the dash) if you want, or maybe on the side of the doghouse....they usually come with a mounting bracket. You will only have to glance at it, to see how things are going.
Personally, the Scangauge II seems to be a better value....it offers a lot more than the vacuum gauge will.
JMHO
DH Bill / DW Claudia / DD Jenn / DS Chris The Paps! Sophie, Abby, Brandy, Kahlie and Annie
2000 Winnebago "Minnie" 31C, Ford V-10
Purchased April Fools Day, 2008 The Pets
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