Installing VDO gauges

While the E30 was without doubt the best performance vehicle of the Eighties, its Instruments were lacking some of the features of other manufacturers, especially those of the Volkswagen-Audi Group. To remedy that situation, here's how to add extra gauges to your engine.

Overview

The standard dash cluster will give you an indication of engine temperature, and this is taken from a basic sensor in the Cooling system. This is great for making sure you don't overheat, but it's useless for telling you the condition of your Oil, which is far more important when it comes to racing or other spirited driving sessions. Neither does it tell you the status of your electrical system or the boost flow of your turbo. All of this information is available in the form of additional gauges that you can fit to your car.

The gauges are driven by sender units. which are the measuring sensors that you fit to the engine; you can't use any of the existing sensors in your BMW engine. No matter what gauges you use, it is essential to pair the gauge with the appropriate sender, so if your oil pressure gauge runs from 0 - 5bar, you will need a 5-bar sender; a 10-bar sender will give completely false readings, and vice versa.

The standard set of gauges fitted to similar-period Audis offered Oil Temperature, Oil Pressure and Volts, all manufactured by VDO. Gauges from slightly earlier vehicles such as the VW Golf II can also be fitted, and differ only in the data range presented.

Gauges

Oil Temperature

Cold oil dramatically increases engine wear, so thrashing the engine before the lubrication is ready will do serious damage to your car's internals.

Fitting

Dash

There are three standard locations for placing your gauges. Tuning companies such as Hartge offered