Hooniverse Asks- Dials, Digital, or a Strip Tease, What’s Your Favorite Speedo Design?
We all like fast cars, don’t we? And in fact, what we like about fast cars is that we get to go fast in them. Going fast is a hoot, especially if you are a dog because then you can stick your nose out the car window and the sensation of all those smells hitting it all at once is akin to doing anal poppers while free falling through the Van Allen Belt. Or so I am led to believe.
But the problem with both fast cars and using them for that singular purpose is the chance that – at least on public roads, which we pay for, dammit! – you’re likely to draw the attention of John Law, whom we also pay for. The police don’t take kindly to speeders around these parts, and that’s why it’s important to keep track of exactly how fast your fast car is going at all times. That’s why we have speedos in all are cars. Oh sure, you could calculate your speed by converting engine RPM and gear, rear-end ratios and tire diameter, but that takes time, even if you have a brain so big it requires an aircraft alert beacon atop your head.
That’s why speedos are so handy. Handy and fashionable, and in fact over the years there have been many different styles of speedo each delivering their core function in a unique manner. There have been rolling drums, thermometer strips, needle-swept dials, luminescent digital displays, and for all I know some sort of Matrix-like cerebral plug-in (which would have to have been developed by Mercedes) and each one has its champions. Which kind of person are you? Are you a dial dude? Or, do you consider digital to be number one? What kind of speedo do you like the best?
Image source: [Mustang Monthly Forums]
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Early T-bird, with a skylight.
<img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-swDB7OyY4xg/Th9CpSEWBfI/AAAAAAAAAoA/w9G63sDCi3Y/s1600/279291_10150258410329519_507649518_7301331_6898691_o.jpg" width=500>
Full-size Fords had those for a few years, too. Way cool.
I like the heads up display from the ZR1:
<img src="http://static.automanager.com/c/012359/efffd437d7dd714e99405b6aa211aeef/4004411c13_640.jpg" width=500>
Anything where the needle is stationary and the numbers move is cool.
<img src="http://image.automobilemag.com/f/9744506+w750+st0/0806_03_z+1966-1967_oldsmobile_toronado+rolling_drum_speedometer.jpg" width=500>
The lead picture brings back memories of years looking at the dash and steering wheel of my '65 Mustang convertible (though I didn't have the Rally-Pac gauges). As for favorite speedo, how about the '66 Toronado?
<img src="http://automotivemileposts.com/toronado/images/toro1966instrumentpanel.jpg" width=600>
I love that style of instrument panel. Passenger wants it warmer/colder or wants to play with the radio? Too bad.
<img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1013/1395643482_3323ac5b6b.jpg">
BTW, looking for some advice. Anyone care to recommend a web host for a small business site? Heavy on activeX but limited user interactivity. No e-commerce initially but want to leave the door open to it.
Is that an older Volvo? Where is the reading accurate? At the very point or when the point becomes full-width? By the way, I don't like strip speedos in any form.
It's from a Volvo Amazon. The funny thing is that in my owner's manual I could not find a place where it stated where to read the speed from exactly, but there is about half a page going on about how the ribbon is a safety feature, the more red you see with a quick glance lets you know there is more danger! Ha, those silly Swedes
Anyway online someone once told me that it's at the tip you read the speed, but in practice I don't know. See it's very hard to get 82 profile tires at reasonable prices anymore so I have 65. So the speed is completely wrong. The funny thing is that when I changed the gear box to one that came from a PV it stayed wrong but got better o_O
Yeah I don't get it either, they are supposed to be the same M40 gearbox, who knows maybe the cable to the speedo that goes to the gearbox was not seated properly on the old one or some gear where was worn out in the old one? But still I did the calculations to account for the tire size and it was not quite right. I noticed it when I drove by a 'your speed is' style radar sign near a parking lot. So one day I drove with my wife's GPS for about 45 minutes each way and yes the figures were not what I expected.
But strangely the odometer had changed about what I had expected. I did some googling and someone wrote that the speedo is about 3% fast. It had to do with a law in Germany. There is a number on my speedo 1.03, maybe that's what it refers to?
Anyway, I guess my answer is, dunno really.
I thought all consumer speedometers indicated slightly faster than actual speed. I assumed it was because they're inexact and it's less lawsuitable to be told you're going faster than you are.
I've been with Omnis web hosting for over a decade. They are not the cheapest or most feature-rich, but they are dead reliable.
http://www.omnis.com/features/
Wife uses Weebly and GoDaddy… she seems to like it pretty well.
See my comment on the '91 Silverado below. Used the same perceptual concept.
<img src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/260070_690672369900_2912893_35189394_5854685_n.jpg" width="500"> Hey that looks familiar… I wonder if you can make-out the thing dangling from the mirror? Why yes I am 6 years old.
What? Those sunglasses?
I wonder how many Amazon owners there are here. You presumably, Mike, Mr. mzs zsm etc, me… We also have a 544 though. But the Amazon is our baby. Dad bought it 29 years ago, and hasn't been off the road for any length of time since.
Well, looks like my Toro pic got scooped by a couple of minutes. So I'll throw in a '66 Riviera which not only has a tidier panel but also has an oil pressure gauge.
<img src="http://i41.tinypic.com/6zxc1v.jpg" width=600>
for me it has to be round, white numbers on black, with a needle (if it has some italian words even better)… no lcd screen, thanks, just something with real movement.
something link this
<img src="http://www.shorey.net/Auto/Italian/Alfa%20Romeo/Giulia/Super/1969%20alfa%20romeo%20giulia%20super%20=lf=2%20(dash).jpg" width=500>
I love that steering wheel!
They feel even better.
<img src="http://www.heckflosse.nl/history/tacho2.gif">
Always a fan of this one from Mercedes. Quirky, calculated, awesome.
*Anti-dearthair insult suit on*
I think it's a childhood thing, but I love the C4 'Vette layout.
<img src="http://www.gregterzian.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/corvette_dash.jpg">
Despite it being whatever it is, I still want one of those. Doesn't hurt that Dad always had one.
When I would drive my dad's, I would pay most attention to the temp dial. That dial skyrocketed faster than any other dial, especially the speedo.
<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3527/3240480330_922df8e76e.jpg">
I like the blue faced gauges in the Biturbo. I'm biased though.
That thing is oozing with leather. Mamma mia!
After long consideration, I decided upon the Ford GT. The speedo that fits.
<img src="http://www.seriouswheels.com/pics-2008/ghij/2008-GeigerCars-Ford-GT-Dashboard-1600×1200.jpg"width="500"/>
If your long considerations take 1 second, your short considerations must travel at the speed of light…
Wee, wee, monsewer!
Nice to see you!
Frankly, I'm shocked.
Ms. Obvious……..forever.
I have to admit, I'm a fan of dials, only, and as many as possible.
This works for me.
And switches……….I love switches!
Continental Mark II – a complete set of big, round, satin-finished gauges. Lovely.
<img src="http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4092/4985342216_2455080440_z.jpg" width=640>
<img src="http://www.az-zbum.com/images/84ae.digdash.jpg" width=500>
The answer to the question no one asked. How can we incorporate bell curves?
What the heck's that from? I love it. Car recognition fail….
Z31 300ZX
Bah! Of course. JDM spec? We only got it in vanilla analogue, if memory serves.
No, we got it in the US too. Note the "MPH". I think they were available in Europe. Europe got all the goodies for the Z31 including a performance cam that had it making 241 horse from the factory.
Interesting. I know we had the Turbo here, and I remember the slight restyle at the end of the '80s, but mostly I remember it for how much better everybody thought the Z32 was!
I'm off to eBay to find a brochure.
Edit:- now bidding on an '88 one.
I love the z31 for some reason. Maybe because they had rb engines from the factory in Japan.That's not to say I don't love the z32 also…
During long trips when I use it, I've become all too accustomed to using the speedometer on my GPS. Why? Because it doesn't just tell me my speed, but how much I'm speeding.
<img src="http://garmin265tgps.info/Garmin-265T-Photo/Buy-Garmin-265T-e4ef7.jpg">
That said, I like dials for the quick-glance ballpark, and digital for accurate cruise control dial-in. Bonus points if the speedometer is not the primary gauge.
<img src="http://www.cartype.com/pics/3665/full/porsche_911-997_turbo_speedo.jpg">
<img src="http://autoforcar.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/2012-Chevrolet-Sonic-sedan-dashboard.jpg" width=500>
I am starting to like this one a bit, just for the simplicity.
I wonder what that's like at night. I used to have a stereo with a very similar display, and it was like staring into a supernova at night. I'd cover it with a tissue, but that doesn't work with a speedo.
It does for how I drive…
Ah, so you don't have to travel through the land of the overzealous traffic officers (also known as the town where my sister lives.)
Nope, they got better things to do.
Ok, so they don't have better things to do, there is no crime here, but they don't seem to bother people who aren't in four 2 lanes at once doing 110.
I can't speak for the Sonic, but my Civic's got a brightness adjuster that has different settings with and without the headlights on (I tend to have it set full brightness without headlights, and about 75% with the headlights), and it works fine for me.
It looks like it belongs on a superbike. I wouldn't expect to find it in a car, but it's kinda cool.
It's definitely going for the touring car/rally car dash look.
Citroens Cyclops Dials… they just look cool!
<img src="http://www.blenheimgang.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/100807-Citroen_GSA-2.jpg">
That is so freaking awesome! And it stopped reminding me of goats.. man the moment I saw the trilobite.
So many choices…
Spyker is one.
<img src="http://image.europeancarweb.com/f/9350769+w750+st0/0608_EC_09Z+Spyker_C8_Spyder+Interior_Dash.jpg"width=500/>
Packard 12:
<img src="http://www.cartype.com/pics/7608/full/packard-12_cluster_34.jpg"width=500/>
TVR:
<img src="http://www.smithathome.com/albums/tuscan/Dash_700.jpg"width=500/>
I don't like Paganis but the Zonda R is my favorite now:
<img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_M-3py6aE6pY/TG3O4tLHFyI/AAAAAAAACV0/ZKcQGqD4ZUw/s1600/zondar-Dash.jpg"width=500/>
I'm going to be really boring and just pick the gauges I see every morning.
<img src="http://image.automotive.com/f/2010_toyota_matrix/2308474974164430989+w500/gauges.jpg">
Nice clean font, crisp white lighting, simple layout, temperature gauge to let you know how depressed you need to be in a Saskatchewan winter, the tunneled look gives a little bit of pizazz.
Those aren't my specific gauges, since those are from an automatic and mine isn't one of those.
<img src="http://www.tanshanomi.com/temp/simulated-bar-gauges-91chev.jpg" width="560">
'91 Chevy truck.
I always thought it was cool how Chevy a simulated bar graph with an analog mechanism by replacing the needle with a rotating disk. And there is a legit benefit to the gimmick — the white/black ratio makes it easier to perceve the state of the gauges with a quick glance.
… you let me down…
<img src="http://www.hydroponicsonline.com/store/img-hydroponics/vintage-60s-bultaco-metralla-mk2-motorcycle-speedometer-vdo-avis-1-100-mph_270827680233.jpg" width=500>
Nah, that's just a typical, boring VDO. Now, old Honda gauges, they had some style!
<img src="http://www.classicjapanesemotorcycles.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/680×400/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/f/i/file_61_11.jpg" width="580">
Also, because shift ranges.
The shift ranges are awesome. The VDO does say Bultaco on it though, so I assumed, you know…
True, the thumbs up logo does make anything a little more special…
The S10 of the same year also had a fairly bizarre speedo — part curved, part straight.
<img src="http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/4149/4481/22872240009_large.jpg">
Oh, and whoever would stick an accent light to his instrument cluster should be banned from ever driving or owning vehicles.
The GMC version was a bit different that year, presuming you got the trim level that came with a turbo.
<img src="http://lincoln.wheelsforyou.com/vimages/200100/1GDCT14Z6M8801103(2).jpg" width=500>
Didn't the syclone use the cluster from the Astro, or something? Anyway, badass! Love the turbo gauge.
AWD system is from an Astro. For some reason, the Bravada used a different system than SyTy.
Instrument cluster is from a Turbo Sunbird.
I like that A LOT.
<img src="http://0.tqn.com/d/cars/1/0/T/T/1/ag_09ctsv_tachsptrails.jpg" width=500>
It might be gimmicky as hell, but I dig it.
Not so gimmicky, must help to read without looking down.
What I learned about the CTSV in my short experience in the passenger seat is that if your foot is on the gas pedal, you are speeding.
No need to know how much, you already know you are.
Didn't we do this one yesterday?
<img src="http://hooniverse.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/img20101206090241-340×254.jpg" width="500">
<img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_BDCqpuwRnf4/TUktTeZHrGI/AAAAAAAAG9I/rYD-_TFYe7Q/s1600/learn+to+drive+vintage+toy.png" width="500">
Yea, but the speedo part is just digits.
Even the simplest gifts can be made special with the right packaging.
<img src="http://dumbdump.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/my-dick-in-a-box.png" width="500">
Let's go with two that I disliked but had quirks that made them humorous to me:
1. '86 Chevy Celebrity. Mandated 85-mph speedo, and when you traveled at highly illegal speeds, you can actually get the needle to drop out of sight below the bottom of the bezel (or so I've heard!).
<img src="http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/1395/3181/3486590151_large.jpg" width=500>
2. '86 Lincoln Mark VII with digital gauges. The digital speedo would not go any higher than 85, but the car computer above the radio had an "average speed" feature. So the only way to see your true speed above 85 was to reset average speed on the computer, and then you'd see the speed you were doing at that time. I think 100 is the fastest I ever tested this.
<img src="http://i361.photobucket.com/albums/oo59/4speedk/IMG_0184.jpg" width=500>
My Cherokee went to 85 and the needle just kind of hung around there. Apparently I was doing 105 in a 220k mile 91 Cherokee when my brother caught up to me. Shortly before I launched some already been hit roadkill (I couldn't dodge at, what I thought was, 85 in a lifted Cherokee) 15 feet into the air over his car.
I had a '94 Corvette that had the half digital half analog (but non-liner gauges, that's another story). It had a similar LED/LCD type speedometer. I was curious to see if Chevy spent the money to make the third digit display anything other than blank or one. It had a button you could push to change the speedo to KM. Sure enough it would display 200kph.
Ferrari's solution to the 85MPH mandate was outstanding.
<img src="http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/4705/441/24260220084_large.jpg">
So was Ford's apparently, since that is from a Mustang SVO
oops! I meant to post this…
<img src="http://multiply.com/mu/ferrari308gtsi/image/227/photos/2/600×600/60/AAA.jpg?et=hwcSbbX5ldzKfj1q8jQtCw&nmid=123733232">
My 1985 GT had the traditional one. I never tired of replying "Trip Reset" when a someone asked how fast it was.
<img src="http://image.automotive.com/f/images/9789745+pheader/mump_0411_03_z+1985_mustang_gt_2003_mustang_gt+dash_gauges.jpg" width="400">
On more than one occasion I've had a
discussionargument with people who insist that the top speed on the speedometer is also the top speed of the car.Sure, every car built in the 1980s can go no faster than 85.
Given that logic, from the evidence I posted above a Honda SS125 can hit the ton.
Whoohoo! Astrid can hit 120 then!
And my '76 Camaro with the 250 L6, 1bbl carb and slushbox would hit 130. Not even if you pushed it out of a plane.
When I got my Mustang, my father sold his 1975 Corvette. The speedometer in that slug went up to 160 or something wildly optimistic. Realistically, an 85 MPH speedometer would have suited that car just fine.
So my Supra would have done 299? Or 999, I don't expect there would have been much savings in getting a two character only display.
I should have put it on jackstands to find out. I projected it would run out of revs at around 270, but overdrive was looooong, so it could have gone to 3.
58 Plymouth.
Because 200.
<img src="http://www.logic2.com/200speedo.jpg" width="500/">
Only for nostalgia- End of the run MGB.
Clear, concise and didn't get you too wrapped up in data since the clock and fuel gauge ceased to function in 1981.
The IGNITION light always gave a warm glow and brightened with the revs of the engine.
<img src="http://images.gtcarlot.com/pictures/14672829.jpg" width="400">
Saab's "Nightpanel" seems gimmicky, until you use it, and wonder why other cars don't have that. It's awesome. Here is nightpanel engaged.
<img src="http://0.tqn.com/d/cars/1/0/F/j/ag_07saab93_nightpnlon.jpg">
The Night Panel is awesome, although it is nice to have a tach at times in a manual.
The tach will light up above a certain RPM. 5k or so I think. At least it did in my NG900 V6.
I will need to flog my friend's '03 sedan again and see if that's the case. Curious now. It's also fun to freak the passengers out by hitting it. OH NO I BLEW A RELAY!
Yep. I've always maintained that the Matrix is way better than anyone expects it to be, to the point where I actually spent money to put one in my driveway.
I have an '09 Vibe GT. Fantastic car. And I agree with the gauges. They are ridiculously easy on the eyes.
I almost bought a Vibe (What a stupid name choice!) when I ended-up buy the Golf instead. I really liked it, but on the test drive the mini little door thing near the center console kept opening and one time I shut it and it broke. I decided the Golf was going to be more reliable, and I think I was probably wrong on that considering I got so fed-up with the only new car I ever bought and stopped driving it for months while I looked for a reliable old car, did not find one, fixed it, sold it 30 minutes later, kept looking, my wife found a '67 Volvo, and I couldn't be happier.
Whoops, sorry. Anyway the gauges were in fact very nice, though my peripheral vision for red seems not the best in the dark.
and here it is off. Sorry about the huge image above.
<img src="http://z.about.com/d/cars/1/7/E/j/ag_07saab93_nightpnloff.jpg">
If something needs attention (temp gauge, warnings, etc) it'll light up. Also, if you go faster than 90, the rest of the speedo lights up. I can attest that it's fun to watch the second half of the 9-3SS's speedo light up on the highway at night
"…if you go faster than 90, the rest of the speedo lights up."
Until, of course, it breaks. (The fastest I've ever driven any car, incidentally, was 'forty-five degrees past 90' in a friend's former 2001 9-3. I won't mention where, as it was a two-lane road.)
<img src="http://www.familycar.com/RoadTests/Saab9-3/Images/ClusterNightPartial.jpg">
<img src="http://www.familycar.com/RoadTests/Saab9-3/Images/ClusterNightFull.jpg">
At least 'Growlithe's' Night Panel wasn't completely shot – the tach would still light up if you broke a certain RPM, maybe 5k from memory.
I had a broken speedo cable on a Challenger for a while, so I used the tach. Multiply the thousands digit of the tach by 20, and that's pretty close to the speed in fourth gear (4.10 Dana).
<img src="http://ll.speedhunters.com/u/f/eagames/NFS/speedhunters.com/Images/Mike%20Garrett/001July/autocross/ac13.jpg" width=500>
I had a Big Daddy tach in the car. It's a fairly rare piece of vintage instrumentation. Oddly enough, when I went to google a picture of one, the only picture I found with one installed was of a Challenger.
I've got a substantially less collectible Mario Andretti tach in one of the SAABs, lashed into place under the dash with metal strapping tape:
<img src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6020/5994072753_b3daa2ec54.jpg" width="500">
There's also an Aifab Gemini (i.e. the poor man's Halda Twinmaster), a combination thermometer/humidity gauge (with pink plastic housing), a compass, and an altimeter. Because race car.
A lot of love here for the 1966 Toronado that I came to post. Instead, here's the Edsel.
<img src="http://www.edsel.net/Image35.jpg" width="600">
The Oldsmobile Safety Spectrum speedo. From 0-35 it's green, from 35-65 it's orange, and 65 and up it's red. I knew someone with a '59 Ninety-Eight, and it was the coolest thing.
<img src="IMAGE%20URL" width="600">
<img src="http://www.kingoftheroad.net/59olds/album/image/59Olds201.jpg">
The page even has a QuickTime video of it in action!
http://www.kingoftheroad.net/59olds/album/source/…
With Autronic Eye as a bonus.
I had heard of that, my boss's boss's boss had one and I always wanted to see this in action, thanks! It's not how I imagined it, I thought the left would always remain green, etc.
I just learned the best part, with a 390 and S button (OD) when you passed 120MPH, it goes back to green!
Not sure what "Anal" poppers are, or how they increase driving pleasure, but some people have used Amyl Poppers for recreational drug use… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppers
Ha! That's about the most awkward autocorrect fail I have ever personally had. Apparently my system – OS X 10.7- doesn't like 'Amyl' but does like anal. Stupid computer for that, stupid me for not catching it.
I. Blame. Charles…
I'm happy with the readout for my Civic – it's simple, works well (as a virtual heads up display with slightly less to go wrong), and feels a little special compared to the average compact.
<img src="http://wongjasonh.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/honda-dash.jpg?w=600" width=500 /img>
As an added bonus, it works as a speedometer for people driving beside you also.
I agree. I was impressed with the dash in my bro-in-law's Civic.
Digital readout for speed and an analog sweep needle for revs is a very nice combination.
<img src="http://www.sportmotorcycles.info/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Aprilia-Dorsoduro-750-Digital-Speedometer.jpg">
For driving I prefer a speedometer that is big, with a black background, white numbers, and a red or orange dial. Sort of like my old 77 Corvette.
<img src="http://www.ecklersclassifieds.com/carphotos/3/13090/16370/vf_speedometer1.jpg"width=500>
My favorite bypass of the 85mph speedometer law was the Mustang SVO
<img src="http://www.allfordmustangs.com/forums/attachments/5-0l-tech/55773d1227410489-what-cluster-will-work-1988-mustang-84-86-svo-speedometer.jpg"width=500>
The Merkur XR4Ti was similar.
<img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-psd8B7dvdeE/TeBUNwuqKYI/AAAAAAAANl8/4DOUXdTdoG4/s1600/4563709857_bd45bde2f6_b.jpg" width=500>
Ah, I see I posted the Ferrari speedo in the wrong place.
<img src="http://www.dempseybowling.com/sheldodg/86ovrlay.jpg">
86 GLHS. Just because the feds mandated a top indication of 85 MPH didn't mean the fun had to stop there.
87 GLHS was similar, but only went to 125.
<img src="http://www.dempseybowling.com/sheldodg/87ovrlay.jpg">
I had the bottom one in my '86 GLH which had the whole powertrain and suspension from a rolled '87 GLH-S. I actually managed to fully wrap the speedo back up to 5.
Actually, the 85 mph speedo law was already dead by 1985. It's more of just a case of Chrysler being too lazy to tool up a completely new speedo for the GLHS.
Not so much lazy as cheap. The GLHS Omnis were the last 500 Omni performance cars; they were built at the conclusion of GLH production. MSRP was under $11,000. The two-door body was going away after the following year, so there wasn't much time to amortize the project out, and there was a low number of vehicles that could have benefitted from it.
Contrast the cost and effort to retool a speedometer face, incorporate it into a speedometer housing and burn down old inventory against the cost and effort to make a run of 500 stickers and then another run of 1000 stickers.
Modern bikes have some pretty wicked displays. Here is the RC8's:
<img src="http://bikes.indiandrives.com/bikes/wp-content/themes/bikes.indiandrives/images/photo_gallery/ktm-rc8/146_10112011_ktm_rc8_r-speedometer.jpg" width=550>
Nothin' beats the original Katana 1000's counter-rotating tach and speedo. Mesmerizing to watch in action.
<img src="http://www.tanshanomi.com/temp/katana1000gauges.jpg">
Indeed. Just looking at it makes me dizzy.
The Fiat X1/9's tach was obscured from about 4500rpm past redline. Until the later cars that is. They fixed the issue with a anti-clockwise tach:
<img src="http://images.auctionworks.com/hi/67/67274/fiat-speed-140-ccw-tach.jpg">
I'm driving a '77 X1/9 now and dearly miss the anti-clockwise tach of my old '81
Both of the Katana's actually run clockwise. They're just positioned so that they rotate out from the center in opposite directions in a…what would you call that — a pseudo-spiral?
I loves me as much information as I can have at a quick glance, so dials work for me.
<img src="http://www.uatparts.com/images/BCU%20Dash.jpg" src="400">
As much as I dig on analogue, I am quite happy to see 'virtual' needles-n-numbers becoming, if not common, at least used. They're even more appealing if I can change what it is I'm monitoring.
<img src="http://i720.photobucket.com/albums/ww202/Embling/Koenigsegg-Agera_10.jpg" width="400">
In this case, I'd love to have the speedo needle indicate MPH while the digital indicates KPH. I'm doing my best to move to metric, but when you're in the US, it ain't easy.
Better yet, because they're not restricted by physical needles, the two bottom 'pods' could have three needles, each. The speedo could have two, on MPH, the other KPH. Gimme transmission/diff/engine oil temp!!!!
<img src="http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o173/jeheh/WP_000082.jpg" width=600>
On a serious note, I've always had a thing for early-240 R-Sport optional gauges…
<img src="http://www.volvere.fi/images/245%20Turbo/245-syys-9.jpg" width=600>
Excellent!!! I love the top image!
LEAST. FAVORITE. SPEEDO.
<img src="http://cache1.asset-cache.net/xc/75481187.jpg?v=1&c=IWSAsset&k=2&d=77BFBA49EF878921A343B2C87A49D8F533DBFDE1E19464EF456E50CDB6AD54EFDFA25E5187A53538">
Hardly. You've never seen a middle-aged Quebecois fellow at the beach, have you?
I meant the design, not the particular installation shown.
I'll have to go with this one:
<img src="http://www.wired.com/magazine/wp-content/images/18-07/ff_cockpitsb_f.jpg" style="border:2px solid black;" alt=" " width="400" border="2">
I like dials…lots and lots of dials, oh, and pedals too, and buttons, lots of buttons…
<img src="http://www.ddywing.com/Bell222/images/InstrPanel1.JPG" width="600">
It seems like there is a lot of space lost to redundancy on that one.
And there need to be overhead buttons too. Because space shuttle.
<img src="http://vision.arc.nasa.gov/personnel/mccand/shuttleorig.jpg" width="500"/>
This is a classic Speedo:
<img src="http://www.sportsauthority.com/graphics/product_images/p9890877reg.jpg">
As for indicating devices, I prefer dial gauges with a moving pointer. I have always liked the Porsche layout.
The concept behind that kind of speedo is to restrict the pointer from moving too much.
<img src="http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/1647/1681/4115840015_large.jpg" width=500 /img>
Can't believe I forgot the speedo off some 3rd gen Camaros -it's sort of an oddball way around incorporating metric, but hell, who doesn't want two speedometers?
It's an interesting way to get around the 85 mph rule if it works like I imagine it to. Hooray for addition!
You know, I'm not totally sure – I've basically only seen it stationary (and I suspect Iron Duke Camaros would struggle to peg that anyhow). I'd think the trip odometer reset would present a problem though.
Judging by where the 140 is positioned I think the orange needle might be just short enough. Not that it matters in the Iron Dukes, since getting into the orange is a challenge for those things.
It warms my heart to know that people are making their own. The one shown is on an acquaintance's Volvo 244 – the image links to the page of another acquaintance who sells meme-face gauge faces for later 240s. (I need to order a set over the winter for Violet, or perhaps simply make my own. It's easy with any older car with forward-lit gauges, harder on modern backlit clusters such as my 740's.)
You're right, it's a different photo than what I've seen before. I thought it was a one off, but apparently not.
I would like to see his (?) cluster, though – more inspiration is always a good thing.
(I've just realised that the car you meant very well may be a Volvo 240. For whatever reason I mentally went 'hurrr'.)
Actually, while typing that sentence – I'm going to guess that the car is a dark blue 245? If so, Nick's a hell of a guy; I know him from TB/BrickSpeed. In that case I have seen the cluster in question:
<img src="http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/376037_10150467606310535_512105534_10685843_1854615441_n.jpg" width=600>
Yup, it's Nick, and that's the photo I was thinking of. Nick, my co-worker, and several of their friends are all Volvo junkies.
I've loved the fish bowl speedo in the 1960 Chrysler since I saw it new.
<img src="http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c290/wisemanhousehold/cars/1960saratoga18.jpg" width="600">
I prefer the standard BMW cluster. Simple red-amber color that is easiest on the eyes. [img