Finding a spot to run the loom and boost line inside the cockpit proved easier than I expected. I found this crusty grommet ready to be retired. The hole is was plugging happened to feed directly into the drivers side foot well.
Using a drill I massaged the opening a bit and was able to easily snake both the wire loom and boost hose through. Some sticky-icky silicone sealed up any exposed areas of the hole and would keep the pristine floor of the Porsche from watering itself on rainy days.
From the footwell, I ran the loom and tubing up and through another grommet that entered the backside of the dash.
Then all that was left to do was plug everything in and pop the gauge back into place.
Power on the ignition and hope that the gauge turns on. Otherwise, you screwed up son. Take a time out and ponder where you could’ve gone wrong on such a simple install. Then go fix it.
If the unit is working correctly, start ‘er up! I knew all was right when I saw the idle reading a fat 12.0 AFR. Most modified Turbo Porsches tend to run rich at idle, mine probably more so than others. 13 to 13.5 AFR is usually where you’d want it to idle at.
Before you go assembling everything back together. Take a moment and admire your work because we all need a little self gratification at times.
But wait! There’s one more minor detail to attend to. Grab a laptop, install the AEM Failsafe software, plug the gauge’s USB cable in and prepare for some gauge tuning! You can adjust brightness, color, display options and LED zones. It’s refreshing to be able to do this through a laptop and not have to fiddle with buttons on the gauge. Chalk up another win for the AEM Failsafe gauge.
Here it is in all its glory, both during the day and at night. Aside from having a digital readout which doesn’t exactly match up with the rest of the analog gauges, the Failsafe integrates quite nicely thanks to the factory housing and mounting location. I’ll sacrifice a little continuity any day for the sake of being able to having an accurate idea how well or poorly the engine is running.
As for other impressions. The readout is in a great line of sight and very easy to read no matter how bright or dark it is. Initially, I was a bit worried the LEDs and screen would be a bit too distracting but being able to adjust the brightness settings alleviated that concern.
Monitoring boost and air/fuel ratio readings has been such a great resource in helping me figure out the state of engine’s tune. It’s rich during cruising and under full boost, it’s pretty much pegging the AFR at 9:1 so there’s a lot of work that needs to be done in the near future.
I highly recommend anyone with a modified Porsche or heck anyone with a turbocharged car to add this to your mod list because it’s by far one of the best 2-in-1 gauge and tuning tools to have. Or it’s a great replacement for a ridiculously big clock.
