|
David,
Below is a repost of my lessons learned as I was installing mine on my 98 V70 T5M. I hope it is helpful:
Fellow Brickers,
Now that I have completed my installation, I thought I might share my lessons learned and my solutions with the Board. I apologize for the length, but it was written for those who do not yet have the gauge/pod kit and, thus, have not seen the components. So, here goes:
Here are some things I learned as I was thinking through the installation.
First, I had previously removed my upper dash fascia in order to replace a bulb in the instrument cluster, so I was already thinking about future removals vis-à-vis the pod installation on the A-Pillar. I quickly discarded any permanent method and ultimately chose to use one Phillips head screw which I found at my hardware store with a black painted head that would blend nicely with the pod and the deep blue A-Pillar trim piece. I selected one with a small diameter, but deep threads to get a good bite into the plastic of the pod and A-Pillar trim.
But, I am jumping ahead. Let's begin with passing the 1/8" tubing through the fire wall by use of the pass-thru. You can see that there is a rubber cap on each end of the pass-thru, and each has four rubber nipples of different lengths.
At first, I wondered if this meant that there were 4 separate tubes in the pass-thru and that the different lengths of the nipples was a means of locating the correct entry/exit of each tube. I found that this was not true when I removed the entire cap from the pass-thru in the engine compartment and looked down the pass-thru. Knowing this, I could see that the Volvospeed directions to merely snip the end off the nipple on each end and pass the tubing would never work; going "in" would be easy enough, but finding the correct "out" on the other end would be impossible, even with a straight piece of 1/8" vacuum tubing, let alone the actual coiled tubing which would resist a straight pass. So, I removed the cap from the engine side, snipped one nipple on the driver's footwell side, and threaded the tubing into the nipple, hoping to push it through to the other end on the engine side, then thread it through the engine side nipple, then reinstall the cap on the pass-thru. Sounded great, but the coiled tubing would not cooperate. One set of instructions warned of this and advised twisting the tubing while feeding it into the tube. I tried that, but working in that small area of the footwell with sweaty hands trying to twist such a tiny tube was almost impossible. Adding to the problem was the fact that the pass-thru was ribbed internally, so the tubing tended to curl and hang up on the ribs. I could see that I was going nowhere, so I devised a solution. I found some flexible plastic tubing in my garage with smooth walls. The OD of this tubing was just smaller than the ID of the pass-thru, so I fed that tubing down the pass-thru from the engine side until it bottomed out on the footwell side. I fed the 1/8" tubing into the cap in the footwell and felt that it was now inside the smooth plastic tubing as well. The natural coil of the 1/8" tubing would still be a problem, so I placed some ... (ahem) ... personal lubricant ... "AstroGlide" (available in most drug stores) ... into the smooth tube from the engine side. Then, it was relatively easy to push the 1/8" tubing thru to the engine side, slide out the smooth tubing liner, and refit the rubber cap.
I chose to use some vinyl wire loom to protect the 1/8" tubing in the engine compartment from heat and chafing. It comes split longitudinally, so it was not so tough put it on. I bought some long 3/8" diameter vacuum caps (Auto Zone), selected as small a drill bit as possible and made a hole in the end. It is important that the hole be as small as possible so it will seal around the tubing and prevent vacuum leaks. After passing the tubing thru the new vacuum
cap, I flared the end a bit, as recommended, to prevent it popping out under boost. I removed the existing cap from one post on the vacuum tree, slid on the new cap and secured it with a zip tie.
When I test-fitted the gauge into the pod, it fit very snugly. I decided that there was no need to fit the bracket and nut to the threaded studs; the gauge would remain in place quite nicely without it, and it would permit me to run the vacuum and electrical connections through the A-Pillar trim, through the pod opening and make the connections to the gauge, then push it into the opening in the pod. Also, it would then be a simple matter of pulling the gauge out of the pod to replace a burned out bulb rather than removing the entire pod to get at the bulb.
I looked at the pod and decided where I wanted to locate the one screw I would use to secure it to the trim. I began with a smaller drill bit than the screw diameter and tested the screw. I increased the drill size several times until I had a hole just large enough to permit a good bite by the screw threads. Then I took the pod to the car and put it in its final position, and, using the same drill bit, carefully drilled thru the existing pod hole into the trim piece. This way, I knew I would have a perfect alignment for final installation. Incidentally, I had previously pulled the trim away from the A-Pillar to ensure the there were no wires or anything else on that side which might be damaged by the drill bit coming through. There ARE some wires and retaining clips behind the trim piece, so you MUST pull it out to see just where the interferences are located.
Then I again dry fitted the pod, looked down the gauge opening and marked on the trim where I would drill the hole for the vacuum tube and wires. I wanted to make the hole as far away (forward) of the gauge as possible to prevent any bending of the vacuum line once it was made up to the gauge fitting. Having marked that location, I began with a small drill bit to prevent any cracking of the trim piece and to prevent a larger bit from "dancing" around the plastic before it finally bit in and made the hole. I pulled the trim piece away from the pillar, and held it while I drilled the pilot hole. I then increased bit sizes several times until I had the necessary 3/8" hole. I took the recommendation of the instructions and fitted a rubber grommet into the hole to preclude any chafing, especially as I might disturb the tube and wires if I later removed the gauge and/or pod in order to remove the upper fascia.
Then I removed the headlight switch, located the black and pink wires and installed the wire taps. I then fed the wires and the tubing through the grommet; then put the spade connectors on the wire for the light. I didn't do this, but this is a good time to put your key in, turn on your headlights and check for 12v across the spade connectors with a meter. After I was done, my light didn't work, and I found that one of the wire taps had not penetrated the black ground wire on the headlight switch. That ground wire is very small diameter and is easy for the wire tap to miss. That is why I suggest a voltage test before you seal everything up.
So, then it is just a matter of fitting the connectors to the light. I bent the spades on the light fitting about 45 degrees away from the near pod wall to keep the wires from being crimped by the curve of the pod. I also used Teflon tape on
the threaded joints of the vacuum fittings as more insurance against leaks.
With the exception of the minor electrical problem, it looks great, works great, and it is fascinating to see just what is happening in your intake manifold as you throttle up and down.
--
--
Dave in Virginia; 98 V70 T5(M); 98 V70; 88 245 DL; 67 MGB
|
