05MAXIJJ

i have bought this like 3 months ago and never got around to getting it installed..anyone isntall these themself?if so, how hard would it be?
i can really find anyone who would install this for me in north jersey..anybody knows a good place to get his installed?

GHOSTRIDER 3.5

I dont know you should just drive down to new york and get 212motoring to do it everybody said they do great work

05MAXIJJ

do you know about how much it is?

GHOSTRIDER 3.5

nope i guess talk to warren he would no he gets all his stuff done there

viguera

iTrader: (1)

That's where I got mine done... they do good work, but they're expensive as hell.

Expect to be quoted at least $100 for it on the first round... you can haggle and see where it goes, but it's all up to whether or not they wanna play ball. You can probably talk to Warren and see what he says... maybe he gets a discount for getting so much work done. When I got mine done Harry was out (he was recommended to me by Tom @ the art of tint) so I ended up dealing with the other guys and they wanted like $200 to do the gauges and hard-wire the radar detector.

05MAXIJJ

where exactly is this place in NY??can someone give me number for them??i live right by the george washington bridge ..so i hope im near it.

viguera

iTrader: (1)

Not even close...

They're at the beginning of Neptune Ave down in Brooklyn, near Ocean Pkwy.

blakstarz

How far is Elizabeth,NJ for you? I can introduce you to my installer the name of his shop is Attention to Details....he does all the work on my car. And he is very good....has a big show and he does upholstery work to cars......TV's, systems.....motorcycles.....

GHOSTRIDER 3.5

Where this at Im not far from elizabeth nj then again I like to drive alot

luigi'smax

well....i was just about to start a new thread about this...you guys are lucky...and i am lucky i saw this one before i started the thread...i know nismo would have chewed my azz for starting a new thread when this one was already going on !! well...so here i go....

luigi'smax

i dunno if nismo would like to make this a sticky in the how-to section...as i am going to go into as much detail as possible...dont even know if i have the permission to post pictures just yet but ill find out...

1. tools required...
-- phillips scredriver...you can have two or just one very long. trust me you need one long enough to get to the screws that hold the instrument panel in place...
-- magnetic retracter...those that look like and antenna with a magnet at the end... you dont really need it but it may save you some work if you drop the screws in a tight space ..
-- upholstry remover...try to get the one that is the smalest and flatest on the end...you will use this to remove the needles from its place...
-- a small flat screwdriver or something else to pop the gauges trim out of place.
-- electrical tape
-- knife or cable stripper
-- circuit tester ...to find power and ground.
-- pen and paper...even better...a camera...to record the position of the needles before you mess with them...
-- double sided tape..not the foamy one...the one that looks just like regular transparent tape...

ok...first step is to go for a drive...long enough so you car will be warn and nice...and the engine at a stable temperature...ok...park somewhere nad let the engine running...take a pic of the fuel level...it is better if it is not full...i will tell you why later...take a pic of the temp needle...speed should be at zero so i think you can remember that...but just in case take a pic of that too...take a pic of the rpm while the engine is running and in park...

2. ready...set...go...easy now...put your steering column all the way up so you can easily access the 3 screws that hold the cover in place ( the plastic cover where the contlos are in the steering column...)after this 3 screws come off, just pop the top off...really easy so far huh...ok...put the steering column all the way down and all the way out so you can see everything else ...now you are going to use the very long phillips screwdriver to reach two 2 screws that are behind the black rubber covering the gap between the steering column and the gauges...use the magnetic retarter to hold the screws to prevent them from falling...once you see it you will know what i mean...

well, for what i see, the only way to post the pics is to link them to here...but i dont think i will be able to do so since i dont have my pics posted anywhere just in my hard drive... could use some help here...

3. once this two 2 screws are gone, easily lift the gauges towards the windshield...not to remove...it is not completely loose yet...as you lift it up, the covers on top of the gauges and the dash rise a little bit, it is actually 3 covers, the middle one is just to be poped out of place...so pop it out stating from the end that is closest to the windshield, lift that end and then pull towards the front of the car...it is being held by two pillars that come from the gauges trim...after you pop the middle one off you can remove the ones from the sides...the same way...pull the end by the windshield up and then torwards the front of the car...

4. there is a screw right on top of the dash...you can see it from the outside of the car thru the windshiled...remove it...

5. pull the gauges torwards you just a little bit, just enough so you can reach the plug that is on the right side ( by your right hand...) unplugged it and there it is...

ok...i am going to look around to find out how to post the pics and ill come back...let me know what you think so far...

luigi'smax

ok...still cant post the pics so i ll just finish writing this up and then post the pics later...

6. you have the gauges in your hand...go to a nice, clean and well lit space so you can take it apart.

7. the whole unit is made out of 3 parts. the silver trim that you see everytime right in fron of your face while you drive, this is holding the plastic covers in place. then there is a black part that is there just to give the distance from the actual gauges to the plastic cover you can touch...and then the part where the needles are. for now, you need to remove the black part only...but to put it toghether you will have to take all 3 parts apart so you might as well just do it now... ( too bad i cant post the pics just yet...but as soon as i figure it out...)

8. now, with the upholstery remover...or if you have very strong fingers and strong grip..( still dont recomend to use your fingers..) remove the needles...put the upholstery remover between the needle and the gauges and apply just enough force...firmly and slowly...they will come off...

9. the new gauges (mine at least) are to be put on top of the stock ones...so...witht he double sided tape, apply it to the back of the new gauges...how much?? your call...IMO i rather too much than not enough and then have the gauges raise and interfere with the needles movement and then have to go do all this all over just to put some more tape ...

10. the hard part is coming now...the calibration of the needles...Put the needles lightly, not pressing them all the way down...you want to be able to easily remove them to make ajustments...oh you will make adjustments !! dont put the plastic covers or anything else just yet...go to your car, plug the dash and put it in place, hold it by one or two or all 3 screws...turn the power on in your car without starting it...the car is to be on a level surface...remember how much fuel you had in your tank ?? well, remove the needle and put it in that position...as close as you can, remember not to press it all the way down...you might need some more adjustment...temperature...the car is probably cold by now so just leave it ...youll adjust it later...the speed needle should be by zero...

11. start your engines !! yes do so...start your car...lets go for a drive...well, i went to a back road where there is no much traffic and very slim chances of kids playing on the streets and very few lights and the few light that are there are timed...so if you start in a green light and pretty much keep it to the speed limit you got many more greens to go...well, to see how off you are in the speed...try to go up or down the speed ...just to 25mph...turn the cruise control on...and at 25 try to set it on...FYI the cruise control can only be set at or after 25mph..so if the needle reads 25 and you can set your cc, press the brake ..lightly...just t stop the cc, go down few miles and try to set the cruise control again...you get the idea...go down just enough so the cc wont set...now go up the speed just a lil bit...try again...up some more...try again...set ?? good...what speed does the needle reads ?? 40 ?? umm ok...i told you i went to a back road right...well what i did...was to remove the needle while the car was still moving and the cruise control was still at 25...and put it back on just so it will read so...25mph...yeah i know you guys are calling me irresponsible for doing this while i was driving but trust me i wouldnt have done it if i didnt think it was safe enough....

luigi'smax

ok...so you think you got it at 25 huh ?? ok...go up to 30mph, set the cruise control, and just when you have the car at a steady 30mph...get your stopwatch ready ( i used my nav system, the screen that keeps track of your trip...ill go into this ahead...) ok you should know how to set the trip miles on your gauges ( not the one on the nav system, but the one that goes underneath the car mileage...) to zero...just when you get it to zero get start your stopwatch and see how long does it take you to go for a mile...it should be very close two 2 minutes if your speedometer is reading right...well, do the adjustments that you need to do until you think you got really close to be driving at 30mph and the needle to read 30mph...when you are confortable in your 30mph runs...go to the highway...set the cc to 60mph and do the same thing but this time, one mile should take you just a minute...ok while in the hgwy, it is easier to use the nav system for this...i dunno what options are on the info screen for the non-nav cars but i am sure you can get something out of this and apply it to you...with the car still at 60mph put your hazards on...i did so noone will get behind me and try to make me move...go to the trip screen, select either trip...(trip 1 or trip 2) as you can see this screen keeps track of the time, distance and average speed...just what we need...ok...the only bad part of this is that it is average speed...if it is windy...the wind resistance may slow the car down just a little bit for just a little bit of time one second or so...but this will affect the "average" speed...keep that in mind...also ...as it is average speed...you might wanna drive for a good while to get a better average...just my opinion...welll, i drove for 7 miles and my average speed was 59.4mph with my needle being right on 60 by the time i was 8 miles my average changed to 59.5mph i drove 10 miles and my average speed was still 59.5mph...i decided to go fo 15 miles and see what ...as you look at your screen, keep in mind that if you are going at 60mph, one mile would take you one minute to travel...this is why is better to do this at 60 than it is at 80 but if you wanna do the math go for it...the faster you go the more accurate it will be...so if you can do at 120mph would be great and very precise...ok...by the time i got to 15 miles...my time was 15:06 and my average speed was 59.6mph not too much off ...what do you think ?? i think it was close enough so i left it like that...well, after the 30 miles i traveled...(about 10 while i did the 25 and 30mph ajustments and about 20 in the hgwy) i took the very next exit and parkd in a gas station..leaving my car running...my car by then was warm enough...i removed the temp needle and put it where it was last time before i took it apart...then while the car was in park i removed the rpm needle and then put it where the last reading was before i tooked it apart...reved it up a little and let if go to see if it would go back donw to where i wanted it...yeah so it was good....so far...the temp needle was good (for now), the speed needle was good enough...at least it didnt read 20mph when i was doing 80...the rpm needle was good... so i went to put some gas...filled it up...wanted to see if it would read full or what...filled up it was reading pretty much...i would say very close to what it was supposed to...it was...this is why i dont recomend to have a full tank of gas before you do this...so you have two points of reference...your picture of where the needle was before you took it apart and the lecture of the needle when you fill up...ok...by the time i did this was about 930 pm last night ( 04jun05) so i decided to go to bed and leave it like that...i wanted to let it cool off to verify the temp reading...but if you do this during the day you can just go eat lunch and let the car cool off to see if the needle would give you a good reading...you pretty much should know how long it would take to your car to get warm...ok after you are happy with all the readings...put the gauges case together...first the black part and then the silver trim...make sure the plastic covers ( the transparent ones) are clean you dont want to leave finger print on them...specially on he inside !!

luigi'smax

12. run power to the transformer, place the switch where you want it and put everything togheter...this whole this is really easy...the only hard part is the calibration of the needles...it is not even hard just time comsuming specially if you want to get them right...i wouldnt pay to get this done unless i am assured that the lectures will be precise and i honestly dont think you will find anyone who will give you warranty of accurate reading...so why pay if you are going to get the same results ??

well...as soon asi figure out how to post the pics i will do so...but i got some nice pics...

please if i missed anything let me know and i will edit and/or answer any qaustions you guys have...

i got two words to describe the looks of this mod.... freaking kewl !! feel free to email me at luigixx@gmail.com

would appreciate it if someone helps me out with the howto post pics...

Jayzmax04

Luigi, can you go into more detail please?

Post pics...do this....

[img]putinternetlinkpichere[/img]

Note, you MUST have your pic off an internet link (photobucket, cardomain, etc..) for this to work. It cannot be off your hard drive.

Theres a TEST section in the main forum....try it out....

ramberg

iTrader: (29)

Call Mark at 718 743-3200. Tell him Warren with the '04 Max said to call. Maybe he will give you a break. Later Warren

blakstarz

Send me a PM....

luigi'smax

well, i got tears in my eyes...my damn gauges just went off while i was on the road...it just blink and then poof...it when black...it is not a power problem because i checked it...i guess the damn thing is just bad quality and burt out on me...does anyone know where i could buy i new one ?? i really need it...one thing i tell you...looks mad mad mad nice !! i got to get my hands on a new (better)one soon !! helpppppp !!

about the pics...yeah i know they got to be on the intenet but that is the problem...i got to look for a page where i can post them and then i can link them to here...sorry...ill take a look in cardomain see if i can buld me one ...will do if it is free...dont wanna pay for this!! help me find a new source to get me my gauges...now that i've seen the light...i am lost without it !!

by the way...what did you guys think about my whole write up ??

help meeee a new some new gauges !! bua bua bua ( me crying...) bua bua bua

viguera

iTrader: (1)

Well today is gauge problem day then... I've had mine installed since last year, and today they decide they're gonna stick -- speedo and tach are sticking. I followed your write-up and sure enough, it looks like the guys that mounted them just "put them there", so now they're kind of bulging (because of the heat?) and they make the needles stick.

No big deal... I'll grab some thin double-sided tape or crazy glue tomorrow and stick them in place. It just pisses me off that I paid to have them installed and they did such a shoddy job of it.

The write-up was really helpful... as always, the Nissan directions weren't even close to what you had to do. I took the steering column cover off and you need a LONG *** screwdriver to get to the two under the gauges, but after that it was no big deal.

A couple of details that I might have missed or you didn't mention: you have to move the wheel not only down, but all the way out too to get in there. And the fact that the covers come out in sequence... the center pod cover holds the other two in place, so you have to start on the sides then remove the center. And to put them together, do it backwards... put the center in first then the two sides.

I did take some pictures... I'm uploading them now so give me a minute to clean them up too... they're dark as hell, so I know some of them won't be helpful at all...

ramberg

iTrader: (29)

[QUOTE=luigi'smax]

about the pics...yeah i know they got to be on the intenet but that is the problem...i got to look for a page where i can post them and then i can link them to here...sorry...ill take a look in cardomain see if i can buld me one ...will do if it is free...dont wanna pay for this!! help me find a new source to get me my gauges...now that i've seen the light...i am lost without it !! QUOTE]

Cardomain and photobucket are free. Sorry about your gauges. Later Warren

luigi'smax

well, good morning everyone...so here i am, about to start looking for some new gauges ( not on ebay ...i learned my lesson...i never liked ebay, just now i do have a true point !! ) if i find something i might ask you guys to see if you guys recomend the source...first thing i will do though...is go to ebay and try to find the vendors information to ask him for a refund and to post a review about the product (and the seller) on ebay...when i got it..he had a 98% positive review...yeah yeah ...all his friends got paid to say something nice bout him...well, i am kinda happy kinda hostile this morning...i really liked the look of the gauges and now i dont have them ... oh yeah...i got to go check car domain and the other page mentioned above to post my pics and then put them here so i can get your opinion guys on my ride...see you have a good day !!

by the way...i mentioned those few details about the removal and installation but i guess they were easily overlooked due to the lenght of the instructuion...but they r there !! lol... but it is easy to do ot..isnt it ??

luigi'smax

[QUOTE=ramberg

Cardomain and photobucket are free. Sorry about your gauges. Later Warren[/QUOTE]

thanks man ...

viguera

iTrader: (1)

Well YMMV, but I got mine off ebay as well and the power issue never came up. Now that I looked at them installed in the pod, they do look like they're a couple of millimeters too big, which is why they seem to bulge and make the needle stick.

Ebay is funky though, as you know. I got mine from "makotoautotrends", and they have 45k positive feedback, but 50 negatives in the last month. Seems like it's hit & miss, and thankfully other than the size issue mine work fine.

I'm still pissed at the guys at 212 for just popping them there... the least they could have done is taped them. I also noticed that they broke one of the tabs holding the casing together in order to run the power wire to the gauges. Seems like this was the first time they were doing it or something...

Yeah it's not that it's lengthy, because details are good... it's just that it's REALLY long, and not a whole lot of illustrations... If you look at chrisaust's, you'll see it's detailed and long, but the pictures make it better...

Speaking of which, I'll post my pictures now...

viguera

iTrader: (1)

Cover off:



Stupid Nissan with the wrong instructions to remove the cover...



Another shot of the carnage:

viguera

iTrader: (1)

The plastic pieces on top of the gauges... you need to remove these to get to the top screw:



Said screw...

viguera

iTrader: (1)

The plastic tabs that hold everything together... One set holds the plastic trim to the gauges, the other holds the gauges together. If all you need is to get to the needles for some reason, you can remove the plastic trim and remove the "glass" in front of the gauge itself.







There are 3 individual gauges, each with its own cover. They come off really easily (you'll see once you get to them).

Be careful with the clips though... they're the typical Nissan flimsy crap and they'll break off easily. IIRC there are 2 UNDER the center gauge, covered by a piece of black rubber that keeps you from seeing inside the steering column from the top. If you pull without taking those off too, you'll break something.

Remember, if you pull and it resists, you're not doing it right.

jcberb

Hey are the bulbs to the factory gauges able to be accessed by the above procedures? I really like the factory gauges, but am not into the amber lighting. Looking at changing them to a cool blue or something.

05MAXIJJ

damn that **** looks like a dangerous install..i decided to just sell my euro gauges..

viguera

iTrader: (1)

Well I don't see why not, but I frankly didn't check. I looked into my "stuck needle" business and figured I'd fix it tonight after getting some double-sided tape, and put them right back together without looking into anything else. The whole thing comes off after removing the connector in the back -- but not in my case since there's power running to the reverse gauges from the fuse box -- so you should be able to take the whole thing apart and go to town.

I was looking at the turn signals though, and there are a couple of LEDs at the bottom of the plastic white tubes (look at this picture) so I'm thinking I can remove those and replace them with blue or white to match the gauges.

My guess is that the bulbs to the gauges are back there somewhere and you might be able to get to them and swap them... I'll check around tonight when I take mine apart again and check for bulbs and let you know.

viguera

iTrader: (1)

It's really not that hard though... and just like the info screen stuff, as long as you're willing to take your time and follow instructions, it's really easy to do. I think that write-up is intimidating though, but breaking it up and adding some pictures in there might make it more manageable...

It's really only a couple of steps:

* remove 3 screws to remove the steering column cover
* remove the plastic cover over the pods
* remove 3 screws (2 under and 1 over the gauge pod)
* disconnect 1 cable and take the whole thing inside to work on it

And that's it... if you don't mess with the needles or you mark down their position, you shouldn't have any problems putting it back together. The only issues are running power to the new gauges (and the fuse box is right there) and the needles. If it wasn't for the long-*** screwdriver that you need, I'd say this is actually easier than getting to the info screen.

And you don't really have to worry about screws falling off or anything... the underside of the area where you're working is open, so any screws that fall in there end up by the pedals. If they get stuck (around the OBD-II connector or something) you can still get to them fairly easily.

jcberb

Thanks I would appreciate that man. I am getting tired of the orange look yah know.

luigi'smax

nope...the amber coloured light you see, comes from LEDs soldered into the circuit board...i think it would be way easier to just changed the cauges cover than to remove the LEDs and then replace them with new ones of a diferent color...just my two cents...

well, sorry my instructions were so long and with no pics...about the lenght i was just trying to be as detailed as possible so it would take the fear out of people to do this since it is really easy !! way to easy i would say, just time comsuming specially if you want the readings to be close to accurate...no pics...yeah i know...i have them though i just got to post them somewhere so i can link them to here...after i look around for some new gauges i will go to car domain and create a new page...

viguera thanks for helping with the pics !! u da man !!

chrisaust

Jcberg and Luigi, the actual led bulbs ARE changeable, just look at my sticky on replacing the info screen bulbs to blue. It looks great when finished, but I 100% recommend you have someone with a strong background in electrical engineering or at least a professional electrician do the soldiering of the bulbs, since they are very tiny and if you make a mistake, you're screwed...

luigi'smax

i know, i didnt mean to say it was not possible, by the way i love your screen...blue LED...sweet man !! i just meant to say it was harder than just replacing the gauges...lot easier..in my opinion...this is a pic of where the LED are... the little squares in the little holes are the LEDs that light up the back of the stock gauges...

by the way...my page in car domain is up and running...please all of you are welcome to visit it as i would love to hear what do you think...

luigi'smax

luigi'smax

well, i now could post my pics but since viguera was nice enugh to help with this, i see no need, however you can see them in my new car domain page...please sign my guest book...please please please !! lol oh and rate it to...but be nice !! lol

my cardomain.com page !!

luigi'smax

ok...need advise...which one looks better ??

http://store1.yimg.com/I/procarparts_1842_256002756

or

http://store1.yimg.com/I/procarparts_1842_255843430

help !!

jcberb

Well i personally like the one with the glowing donut in the center. But I think that one comes with an option that allows you to adjust coloring...?

pae1215

iTrader: (3)

go with the first one. that looks hott

looks like the one that burned out was the second one.

jcberb

Thanks for the pics and explanations...needless to say...those are many LED's, and each going from anywhere between 3-5 dollars. Seems like it would cost a perty penny to change out. I just love the factory gauges. I guess i will have to deal with the amber...for now at least.

jcberb

Oh damn, one more question. the turn signal lights...let me guess...LED's as well right?