AFR gauge questions

[Prophetic]

So I recently purchased an a/m boost gauge from eBay (swoosh) after reading the gauge thread. I also grabbed an a/f gauge while I was at it for no particular reason aside from I thought it couldn't hurt.

My question is: what else would be needed for the af gauge to work
Best? Since it does not say I imagine the gauge just connects to the oem narrowband (if even?) or that I don't need extra components. But since obviously wideband is more desirable is it possible to just get a wideband sensor and have it work with my eBay gauge?

Also, will the boost gauge need anything special to work? I figured that one would essentially be plug and play kind of deal out of the box (professionally installed of course).

Is there any other parts I should be grabbing to make those two work? How long does it generally take to install these two gauges (try to figure out price total)?
Thanks for the help!

[frankiman]

if the boost gauge is mechanical, which most are, and since its ebay it probly is, it takes about 30 minutes to install

if the afr gauge is narrowband, throw it in the garbage its useless
and no you can't have a wideband sensor work on a narrowband gauge

[nelsonmxmarc]

Exactly what Frank said.. A proper AFR gauge is wideband. Narrowband doesn't really give a proper reading, if any. It simply detects lean (off throttle, O2 reads no fuel, no or little air is flowing) or rich (on throttle, opposite of lean).

Sell it, if you can, and buy an AEM UEGO (simplest) or Innovate, which is very nice. It's a good idea to spend the money on a proper wideband gauge. A LOT of engine failures could have been prevented on here with the use of one.

[M13]

honestly, I think they made a narrowband to make cash of ppl that didn't read into **** much.

Wideband is the only way to know the proper (at least to the sensor's accuracy) AFR.

Narrow band is useless.

[Prophetic]

Figured, I'll try and resell it for whatever and just grab a proper one.

It had digits on it so I assumed it wasn't narrowband! Then I read up on it after and realized the mistake. Oh well, no big deal.

[NismoS-tune]

Ebay is a great marketplace for sellers than want to make money off that kind of person sadly.

honestly, I think they made a narrowband to make cash of ppl that didn't read into **** much.

Wideband is the only way to know the proper (at least to the sensor's accuracy) AFR.

Narrow band is useless.

[Skym]

Stock Narrowband o2 sensor is 0-1V (0V = lean, 1V = rich). Good for stock engine, stock cams. Once you fit cams and have to run engine rich it becomes useless (turned off).

Wideband o2 sensor is 0-5V.

Be aware some cheap widebands can be off by 0.6 in AFR. It's due to the wideband controller, not the o2 sensor itself.

[Prophetic]

Just messaged the ebay seller and asked if I could cancel the AFR gauge, if not whatever. Live and learn. I'll just try and resell it on craigslist for a little bit of a dent in my pocket. For the amount it cost originally I should have really clued in. Alas I hit buy now before reading the description.

<3 impulsive shopping on ebay

EDIT: Alright, seller only wants to do an exchange for a different gauge apparently. Due to price restriction my options are

Oil Pressure Gauge
Oil Temp Gauge
Water Temp Gauge


For a lightly modified car what would be the best option? I was intending on buying these gauges sooner or later but not until the car had been modded to the point that they became necessary. As I cannot get a refund I figure I'll just grab one of these to make up for it, since even if I don't use it I'll have an easier time reselling it then a pos narrowband AFR gauge.

[DarkCaporaL]

If I had to chose between those 3 I would go with oil pressure first.

To answer your original question, if you do eventually get a proper narrowband, it will come with the sensor which is placed in the downpipe right before the cat.

All gauges should come with their respective sensors for that matter.

[Skym]

I think you mean wideband.

Oilpressure, oiltemp are needed to choose correct oil to run in engine. Running correct oil makes a noticeable difference to performance of engine. Also affects cooling of engine.

Coolant temp gauge is not needed unless your using car on racetrack.

Exhaust temp gauge is needed when tuning car (AFR, igniton timing can affect exhaust temps), but apart from that it's not needed.

[Prophetic]

He actually refunded my whole purchase and changed my gauge pod free of charge.

+1 for swoosh gauges !

I'll probably be getting oil pressure/temp/exhaust soon but i wanted those three in a separate pod as my boost+afr so I want to get a center vent pod first.

Does anyone know the size of the right side vent? The single round one down from the headlight switch? Was thinking about just putting the afr gauge there in the end

[needavdub]

You can use that narrow band gauge with a wideband controller from innovate. A Innovate LC-1 has a 0-1V output off the controller box that you can use any "ebay" o2 gauge with and still be accurate. I prefer using the Innovate gauge because it has a reset button built into it.

[Prophetic]

I just cancelled that gauge entirely. Rather just spend the money and get something better for peace of mind. I did some reading up on it now and am a little more informed so I'll probably go with the AEM one in the end. Just trying to figure out the size of the vent before I order a new gauge

[nelsonmxmarc]

It fits the vent perfectly. I think a new AEM UEGO comes with a rubber band that slips over the gauge pod to make a snug fit in whichever hole you decide to stick it in (that's what she said) so it should be okay. Having said that, i'd assume the hole is in the area of 52-53 mm diam.

[Prophetic]

Alright cool, I'll just measure it when I get home anyway. Was just gonna order it while at work but the hour difference won't matter now anyway!

EDIT:

Lookingon the AEM website just had a quick question:

digital vs analog?

They are the same price so just curious if one is more accurate than the other or is just a user-preference kind of thing? Is one harder to install than the other?

I figure I'd rather have the digital since it's easier for glancing at to see the AFR in big letters but if the analog is more accurate I'll just grab that one instead. Both say accurate within .1 AFR but thats also from their website (See; biased) so I dunno how true that is concerning the two types.