Gauge installation help
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Gauge installation help
I just bought an autometer air/fuel ratio gauge for the balt and needed some help installing it. I have a red wire telling me to connect it to to a 12v ignition switch wich i can splice into my volt gauge with this one, a ground wire which i can also install into a bolt on my car, and a violet wire telling my to install an o2 sensor wire but i'm not to sure where does anybody know where i can put this violet wire?
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I'm assuming you bought one of those ricey narrowband gauges, splice into the green wire on the oxygen sensor right after where your exhaust manifold connects to the flexpipe under the hood.
You'll have to run it through the firewall, there's a hole right behind your brake pedal, wrap it around some coat hangar and push the wire through, use lots of zip ties to keep the wire from touching anything hot all the way over to the oxygen sensor.
More hassle than it's worth for something that only tells you if it's running rich or lean (and probably on a stock tune anyway), but hey that's gotta add some horsepower!
You'll have to run it through the firewall, there's a hole right behind your brake pedal, wrap it around some coat hangar and push the wire through, use lots of zip ties to keep the wire from touching anything hot all the way over to the oxygen sensor.
More hassle than it's worth for something that only tells you if it's running rich or lean (and probably on a stock tune anyway), but hey that's gotta add some horsepower!
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denlou it was the only gauge that i've seen at the local parts store so i decided to grab it and i'm comfortable with it lol I'm not to sure if the wire will run all the way to the o2 sensor. would it be easy to just have another wire and splice them to each other.
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Just trying to help you not get buyers remorse that you will get, however long it may take, in the future.
#13
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ya narrow band is useless..I had one in my balt b4 the bower went on and all it was,was a light show.It bounces back and forth unless you floor it then says rich.even if your lean lol.A wideband is more accurate and will be a lot more help when tuning your vehicle.I have the AEM wideband at it works really well.They usually go for around $200 but I did see a used one going for $80 if you look in the classifieds.Goodluck though.
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There is no easy way to install it man, you need the signal that the o2 sensor is creating, that's what makes your gauge work.
I would suggest that instead of hacking up factory wiring, and making holes in your dash to put this gauge in, and then realise the gauge tells you nothing, you should take it back and spend the money on a tank of gas or something.
If you just want to splice into a wire, there's other popular ricey lame gauges you could install like a voltage meter, in case you're really interested in that; Atleast you'll get a definite readout
Hell, I've been tuned with a proper wideband air fuel meter and I still couldn't care less what my ratio is. I have an interceptor to watch knock, but other than that I don't care; if it starts misfiring that means my tuner needs to hook his wideband back up and fix it haha.
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I already have the other wires hooked up it the damn signal wire i have 4 wires on my cobalt for the o2 sensor. The wires are white,black,blue and dark blue i dont know which one it is to splice into
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Well you've got a few methods of figuring that out...
1. Keep searching on this forum
2. Search Google
3. Ask somebody in a GM parts department
4. Get your voltage meter out, the signal wire should be the only one that has a reading of 5 volts or less and fluctuates a lot, the rest should read from 11-13 volts.
If I had to guess, I would assume it was this...
White - 12V battery power
Black - Ground
Blue - 5V signal wire
Dark Blue - 12V heater element
Do check, I'm just making this **** up, you could blow your sensor up if you hook a 12V source into a 5V circuit
1. Keep searching on this forum
2. Search Google
3. Ask somebody in a GM parts department
4. Get your voltage meter out, the signal wire should be the only one that has a reading of 5 volts or less and fluctuates a lot, the rest should read from 11-13 volts.
If I had to guess, I would assume it was this...
White - 12V battery power
Black - Ground
Blue - 5V signal wire
Dark Blue - 12V heater element
Do check, I'm just making this **** up, you could blow your sensor up if you hook a 12V source into a 5V circuit
#19
ya narrow band is useless..I had one in my balt b4 the bower went on and all it was,was a light show.It bounces back and forth unless you floor it then says rich.even if your lean lol.A wideband is more accurate and will be a lot more help when tuning your vehicle.I have the AEM wideband at it works really well.They usually go for around $200 but I did see a used one going for $80 if you look in the classifieds.Goodluck though.
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