I really like the idea behind the ScanGauge but I really do not like the way it looks in the MINI. If I do get the SC I will end up getting the CraveSpeed mount for it even though its a bit on the $$ side.

So anyone have other options for getting mainly boost and coolant temp info, weather it be two normal gauges etc? Also if you could include pics that would be great!

 

I've done it with my Garmin and the ecoroute HD dongle. Like you, I really wanted to see water temperature and boost. I also look at timing advance as well. Here's a pic of the setup--definitely not cheaper than a SCII, but more aesthetically pleasing to my eye and provides much more functionality to boot (like, um, navigation). By the way, this is on a cravenspeed mount (it's just hidden behind the steering wheel at this angle)

 

I bought an Auterra DashDyno SPD ProPack, and I absolutely adore it.

 

Boost and Coolant are available through OBDII port using an Aeroforce Interceptor gauge. I had a Scangauge II but prefer the Aeroforce. I think it looks better but it also updates in milliseconds instead of every couple seconds like a Scangauge II. The display isn't as clear as the Scangauge but it's still easily readable. I moved it from the right side like this picture below shows to the left side to reduce some glare I was getting from the rear sunroof. It doesn't quite have all the features of the Scanguage but most of them.

www.aeroforcetech.com/products_interceptor.html

Fits in a Cravenspeed gauge pod.

 

mmh the ecoroute HD dongle has my attention!!
Can it be programmed to read boost?
If so thats a total win, so long as you have a compatible garmin already...

 

Yes, in my screenshot it's in the lower left hand corner. Most of the time (idle and steady throttle) it's at -2 inHg, then shows PSI when the turbo kicks in. Always seemed odd to me that it switches units of measure, but PSI's easy to understand and seems like the most useful measure of comparison when people talk about boost.

The timing advance is also interesting--I think the pop and burble of the 2011's may come from retarding the timing as you lift off the accelerator, at least that's my guess based on what I observe on the Garmin. It swings in the extreme through different modes of acceleration, coast, and idle--I'm sure I'll get curious enough to understand why soon.

I only wish there were an easy way to log all of this data for some good analysis--I'm sure there ought to be a way to pull out with the hardware I have, but it's probably beyond what they were designed to do out of the box.

Oh, and I bad-mouthed MINI for not putting more gauges on the car, but I understand a bit better now why water temp wasn't on there: as discussed in other threads, the computer changes the target temperature dramatically under different driving conditions, so it might be 220 most of the time, but drop down into the high 100's at others. That might scare casual drivers into thinking they had a problem when they didn't.

 

That was one of my worries. I want something that will update like a normal gauge and have no lag. It really defeats the purpose for using it for reading boost if it cant update very fast.

How does that gauge install?

 

dodgy, do you leave your gps on the bracket while you're out? I wonder if theft of the gps's are still as bad as before. They're pretty cheap now-a-days.

I don't think a scanguage would stick out as a sore thump for theifs, but this might. I'd primarily use it as the gauge and not so much for the GPS, as I find my droid better for that now... so i'd like to have it semi-permanantly mounted, like my 8500 x50 escort.

 

Depends on the neighborhood--I'm parked in a garage both at home and work, so it usually stays on 24/7. If I'm in a questionable area or parking long-term I'll pop it off and stow it in the secret compartment. Sometimes I just throw a black hat on it short-term (someone here mentioned that--it actually works rather well). When popped off it's not obviously a GPS mount--I've been asked twice "what's that lever by the steering for?" when it's been off. There's nothing in the cigarette adapter (thanks to Craven's included splice), and the cable's only visible right behind the tachometer.

If I didn't have a garage at home and at work, I might be very tempted to have just gotten the MINI Navigation solution to avoid the constant hassle of popping it on and off. 'Course I would've then gone with a scangauge II or something else to read health stats like water temp.

 

Good stuff, thanks!

 

The Aeroforce Interceptor plugs into the OBDII port. You have to run a wire from a switched 12v source to the gauge to have it turn on/off properly. So 2 connections. You can use an Add-a-Fuse. I tapped into the cig lighter wiring for the switched power source. The person who recommended this gauge to me ran a mechanical boost gauge simultaneously next to the Aeroforce and the Aeroforce updated at least as fast.

Boost is available on the Scangauge II using an X-Gauge function but the update rate made it useless for me. I mounted the Scangauge down by the toggle switches near the cup holders so it wasn't a target for thieves.

 

Yep thats what I thought. Well looks like one more item for my tax return to go to hehe.

 

I don't think Aeroforce lists the Mini on their website so you'll have to email them and ask about it. They'll probably offer it to you at a discount. Still more than a Scangauge II costs though.

 

Its listing two different types.

Mini ISOi and MINI CNE...

Im going to email them to check.


Also it looks like you mounted with the Craven Speed pod stuff. There seems to be quite a few different brackets. Which one did you use?

 

I went with the dual pod Cravenspeed setup. I use another round gauge for my V1 radar detector. I think the dual pod uses the A bracket from Cravenspeed.

 

looks good with the Cravenspeed pod