Started a project to make an A-pillar gauge pod of three gauges. Here's the first few shots of what I got done today.

 

Pretty cool! Nice work! How are you planning on making it blend in with the interior?

 

Still have a lot of work to do on it. Need to sand it smooth then apply a bondo top coat and sand that. Then I will likely paint it the same color as the stock pillar.

 

Very neat!...bookmarked!

 

Man I wish I knew how to do that

 

Great use of PVC pipe to create guage shapes anf then overly the fiberglass mat with epoxy or poyester body resin...Smelly but durable.. Hope to see that finall picts..

 

Pretty cool, been considering a pillar kit myself, the cost of the behind the tach brackets is insane, Im not payin $300 just for mounting hardware and then start tacking on the guages n sensors. Thats just too much to reasonably expect, that money could be better spent elsewhere (like a tune ).

 

Got a bit more work done on it. Used some filler to level out the glass and allow me to sand it smooth. Layed down a thin layer of white primer so I can sand and find the low spots tomorrow.

 

Bravo !!!!

 

Lookin good there !!!!! Any plans for R56 parts?

 

Now take your finished product, ship it to china, and have 1000 of them made for sale on eBay!

The rest of us want it!

 

Looks cool but what about the airbag?

 

Also curious about airbags....if I remember correctly didnt the Fireball Tim Police MINI Concept had custom gauge pillars? The buliding of that car was on the discovery channel a few years back and he explained how his crew had to disconnect and remove airbag for it to work and the dangers involved with doing so ....but not sure what else he had to do beyond that. Im sure youd get failure lights if you remove it unless theres some wiring tricks

 

What gauges go in there?

 

i bought 5 gauges for my cms all4, all size 45mm (1-3/4"), oil temp, oil press, water temp, boost/vac and volts

i have been working on a mount that would put 3 across the top of the tach and 1 on each side of the tach at about 4 and 8 o'clock

but seeing this pillar mount, i may have to try my hand and put all 5 on the a pillar

scott

 

Not really an issue. The airbag only mounts under the upper portion of the a pillar, no bag actually comes out from behind it. Curtain airbag runs up above the side glass area. So it will have almost no impact on the deployment of the bag.

 

Five gauges could definately fit. Will be a heavy pod but should take the weight as long as you keep the tethers instead of cutting them.

 

Nah, I like having unique parts, I want something that other people don't have.

 

the gauges are small, only 1-3/4 inches, and all are electric gauges, very light weight

scott

 

Yeah you should be good to go. I was thinking about the added fiberglass and other materials. The a-pillar is only held on by three clips (well 2 in my case since I broke one).

Definitely go for it, fun project and its pretty simple to do. Just time consuming to sand and sand and sand.

 

or paint with "splatter" paint, also called "hammer" finish

scott

 

Considered something like that but I want to try and match it to the a pillar and b pillars. Don't want it to look like it doesn't completely not belong. I may end up covering them all in some nice suede if I do my dash as well.

 

Blaxin, very impressive, you did a nice job. Im considering something along that vein, I was eyeballing the big vent just above the speedo and considering a possible semi-recessed installation ala 1970s Datsun 240Z, wouldn't be too far out of the line of sight and if I go with the gauges that flash/switch red (alarm) for overrange conditions, might be a very nice project. I also like the idea that I should be able to source 1 (or 2) from a wreck(s) and experiment w/o butchering my car, in case it doesn't turn out quite like I expected (and we all know that that NEVER happens, stop exaggerating) ROFL

 

Thanks man. I was also thinking if doing a triple gauge dash mount pod just under the glass and double sided taped to the plastic portion of the dash. Still might do it for kicks. I got lucky and had a buddy putting a full cage in and gave me his a pillar to do this with so I can replace back to stock later.

 

Did some final sanding and final fitting to make sure gauges clear and fitment into the car was good. Should be ready for some paint.