I just purchased a used boost gauge that was described as working flawlessly prior to being taken out of the car. When i received it in the mail, there was only one thing that made me worry. Is it normal for a boost gauge that is in no way hooked up to anything (just the gauge sitting there) to be pegged down at 30 mmHg? Every picture of a boost gauge i see that is not hooked up yet is sitting at 0. This makes me wonder if the gauge even works. Aside from this, the gauge looks pretty good to me. Its just that it worries me that it is sitting at 30 mmHg and not 0.

I dont know of any way to test it to see if it does work other than hooking it up (which would be a pain in the ass if it didnt work). Do you guys have any suggestions as to what to do? Try to get a refund? Hook it to a bike pump (tried, but the threading is different, needle didnt move off of the 30 mmHg)? What would you do?

Thanks

umm is it electronic or mechanical? it sounds like it's mechanical if you're just hooking it up to a bike pump... or did you power it up and everything? if it's mechanical i would assume it'd sit at 0 (gauge pressure). if it's electronic it should go to 0 when you power it up and the sender is expose to atmospheric pressure. i think. :shrug

Should be at 0. Hook it up to your car quick. Don't run anything through the firewall just do a quick T and see if it works. Should take 5 minutes tops.

If it doesn't work and you paid with your CC through PayPal then you shouldn't be worried at all. Getting money back is my specialty. Obviously first talk to the seller and see if you can settle.

Its mechanical, item number 4303. I payed with paypal. The only thing is that i need the sealing nut, ferrule and nylon 1/8" tubing to hook it up (i think, maybe more maybe less hardware...). I'd have to order that. But if it was not working that would be a waste of my money and time. Thanks guys, ill keep you updated...

if its a mechanical gauge it should stay at 0 when not in use.

So from all the input, the gauge is broken? I dont want to have to order all the parts to hook up a broken gauge. I hope getting my money back isnt going to be an arduous process.

blow into the feed and see if the needle moves

Originally posted by 97whitESi
blow into the feed and see if the needle moves

Thats exactly what I was gonna say, lol. Either have someone help you or watch the gauge in a mirrior and blow into it. Im guessn you got a bad guage. Every single one Ive seen sits at zero. Plus you dont need all that stuff just to test it. All you need is some rubber hose big enough to fit over the threads on the guage, then just hook up to one of the nipples on your intake mani.

If it's mechanical it should be at 0 when no vacuum or boost is put into it, period. If it's not it's broken, think about it. Get your money back.

Originally posted by WickedESi
If it's mechanical it should be at 0 when no vacuum or boost is put into it, period. If it's not it's broken, think about it. Get your money back.

or do the right thing and stay away from autometer shit to begin with.



Jon

1997 Eclipse RS
1998 Dodge Dakota Sport
12.671 @ 111.660 1.586 60' 5/28/04

www.haiokuracing.com

shaun> i'm sayin', bro!

Ok here's some of what i asked him and his responses:

Technically when not hooked up it should be sitting at 0 because it is neither in a boost or vaccum state (correct?). - me

As I stated before NO!!!!!NO! The gauge will not sit at zero when there is nothing going through it. The gauge reads pressure, and therefore only works when there is pressure. For it to be at ZERO it must have zero pressure to it…for example the VERY small interval of time from when a car is leaving vacuum and entering boost - him

idk, i blew a little into the opening in the back and looked in a mirror. Besides looking rediculous, the needle didnt move at all. I think i may just try to get a refund. It just doesnt seem right.

This isn't complicated, and the guy who sold it to you is either a) trying to rip you off or b) a dumbass.

A boost gauge reads 0 psi at atmospheric pressure (actually 14.7 psi at sea level). The gauge is at atmospheric pressure when the vacuum line isn't hooked to anything, it should read 0!

Does anyone know what I can replace the hard vacuum line on a boost gauge with. Someone mentioned some tubing that matches it exactly that you can commonly find (but I searched, couldn't find it, and forgot what it was). I also got a used boost gauge and it just had the line cut on it.

Originally posted by cool_g_83
Ok here's some of what i asked him and his responses: Technically when not hooked up it should be sitting at 0 because it is neither in a boost or vaccum state (correct?). - me As I stated before NO!!!!!NO! The gauge will not sit at zero when there is nothing going through it. The gauge reads pressure, and therefore only works when there is pressure. For it to be at ZERO it must have zero pressure to it…for example the VERY small interval of time from when a car is leaving vacuum and entering boost - him idk, i blew a little into the opening in the back and looked in a mirror. Besides looking rediculous, the needle didnt move at all. I think i may just try to get a refund. It just doesnt seem right.

its broken, i know i acn generate at least 2 psi into a guage

It's a $35 gauge. Tell him it's broke and you want a refund. If he doesn't refund you then go file a complaint with paypal and have your card issue a chargeback. Then go buy a new one. Not hard.

True true, i am just waiting to hear back from him. I asked for a refund. Now i am still looking for gauges and i want a somewhat stock interior look. I have a 99 gs-t with silver stock gauges. Any suggestions on brands of gauges with a silver face that lights up close to the stock color? I know greddy makes some (warning series) but they are around 200 / gauge, which i think is a little too much.

i had a boost gague that broke, sent it into automeeter and they send me a brand new one back. it was awesome!

link him to this post if he still thinks it should be at 0 he is retarded. the gauge you are saying is mechanical, meaning there is nothing electronic inside the gauge that would cause it to read 30 vacuum unless it had a damn tube hooked into it that was pulling air from inside the gauge. therefore if it's at 30 and the gauge is not connected...the gauge is broken. i have an old boost gauge that does the same thing...when i hooked it up to the car i had a functional boost gauge hooked up as well....when i hit 5psi boost on the good gauge, the bad gauge read vacuum 12. (it sat at vacuum 17 when the car was off, so it read boost correctly, it just didnt display boost correctly). so theoretically you could still use your gauge, just remember when the gauge says 25 vacuum, youre boosting 5 psi. and when the gauge reads 0 your engine just blew up.

Ok, i've been looking in to gauges that aren't 200 dollars that would match my stock interior (black and tan w/ silver faced gauges). I figured i'd either have a choice between autometer ultra-lites and greddy's warning series (have silver face and light up amber. But the more I look into the Defi D series the more I am tempted to go that way (about $100 for a gauge). Anyone heard anything good or bad about these? From the looks they appear that they would match my stock interior, minus the silver face, but im willing to let that go }(


day

night


What do you guys think cause imo they are sick :love

defi's are nice...but if youre going to get good gauges and yuo like def, you might as well spend the extra bucks and get the d-links. if you plan on having your car for a long time you will be glad you did. i wish i had done that years ago now that im stuck with mismatching autometers.

Yeah i know, but i dont think i can justify spending 700-900 dollars for 3 gauges and a control unit when its the first aftermarket part i put into my car :shrug