Customs placement and order of gauges in dash

I've always thought just one large clock in the center of the dash with no other distractions would be cool.

 

I hate driving cars without a working gas gauge. Fine for a race car where gas gauge isn't needed. But driving a street car without a gas gauge drives me nuts. Constantly guesstimating how much gas I've used, and filling the tank much too soon to avoid running out, or stopping to stick the tank to see what's left. PITA!!

 

Simple insert & gauges. HRP

 

Simple and easy to read. HRP

 

In my 48 Willys


Oil Temp gauge monitors Gear boxes far right is Air pressure for my On Board Air system


Tach and Vacuum on the column Dixco 0-6000 and Autogage Vac,

 

I like to have the speedometer in the middle so that I can see it with out having to look to the side. The rest of the gauges would go to your own like.

 

If 100 years of car manufacturers couldn't figure out the answer, what makes you think that a hand full of shade tree car builders can do it?
Don't ax me. I still have to get out and check which way to pull up to the gas pumps.

 

Yeah like everyone else is saying. Do what you want and appeals to you. I went a whole different direction on my A dash just because I like designing and building stuff that is different. I wanted more of a cockpit feel so this is what I came up with. Started with cardboard mockups and ended up building the whole dash complete with a VW bug glovebox. Yep no rules here.

 

replaced my oil temp and vacuum gauges in the '23 with a clock

 

Mine

 

I put mine in the order in which I'll be walking home if I don't pay attention.

 

I've discovered over the years that life in the hot rod is much better when my wife can't see the speedo...

The speedo is the most important to me, then the oil pressure, temp and fuel gauge are about equal. The volt meter sort of balances the gauge cluster out. A tach is pretty useless, when the motor sounds like its turning pretty fast, I'll shift, or let off the gas pedal.

If I was drag racing, the tach would be on top of the dash, something I could see with a quick glance, but I'd probably still shift according to what I hear from the motor.

 

Don’t need a tach, I know how to shift.
Don’t need a oil pressure gauge, I know how to read a dip stick.
Do need a water temp gauge, I drive like a retarded Batman.....a lot....lol.
Don’t need a voltmeter gauge, idiot lite works fine.
Do need a gas gauge, somebody stole my stick.
Last but not least, I really only look at my speedometer when I see a cop.

 

Yeah, who needs an oil pressure gauge? Just listen for the knocking to let you know when the pressures too low.

 

Thanks for sharing all the choices you considered. I like the final picture. Did you make the oval surround too? HFH.

 

I laid mine out in 2005 and haven't changed it since.

 

Thanks HFH. Yep made the surround too. Bondo is my friend.

 

Little OT but I spent a bunch of time bhind the wheel to place them out, didn't care much for symmetry.

 

dad laid these out mid to late 50’s

 

Thanks, folks, for all the ideas and tips. Plus all the pics ! Lot of good points made. You guys are the best.

 

A principle I like — assuming the question is still relevant — is to choose and place at least the important gauges so that each has a unique, special place, size, shape, and configuration, i.e. not so that it is number n along a neat row of similar dials. That way, each of the important gauges is easy to spot in a hurry.

For instance: most important, a big, round tachometer, just right of centre so that it can be seen through a "+"-spoke steering wheel. Then, an oversize round oil pressure gauge, smaller than the tach, left of centre, and a vacuum/boost gauge a bit smaller than that below it. The speedometer is a period horizontal-sweep unit mounted in the middle of the dash, and it came in a cluster incorporating small rectangular water temperature and fuel gauges. Above it are less important gauges like a voltmeter, air-fuel mixture gauge, suspension air gauge, etc. in a row.

Gauges can also be repurposed. One line of thinking I've been pursuing for the Minor is to swap a tachometer movement into the central speedometer, and to install an ADO16 ribbon speedometer into the driver's-side glove box lid. The latter comes with a fuel gauge and temperature gauge, which means that I'd have a spare fuel gauge somewhere, whose movement could be swapped for a vacuum/boost or oil pressure gauge. Smiths bimetallic-type fuel, temperature, and oil pressure gauges have very similar movements, and many actually interchange. I'd ideally like to match the Minor's pale gold dial colour and font, so that's a lot of disassembly and messing-about anyway.

 

If you are going to paint it red and have it loud and nasty, the speedo should be easy to read in order to minimize tickets and the insurance increases. Temp and oil pressure seem important to me depending what engine you are using. If you don’t calibrate your gauges they are only indicators anyway. On some builds they are instruments of operation, on others part of a theme. Do what is important to you - don’t care what colour you paint it, but please make it loud and nasty.

 

I thought about gauge location quite a bit, then once I started driving the car I realized the steering wheel mostly blocks view of two of them. Typical.

John

 

Oil, Gas, Water
Speedo

 

In no particular order in my 35 Chevy and under dash rail in 64 Ford. New modern movements in 46 Olds however they retain OEM look.

 

same layout as my earlier '23 dash post but now with AF ratio and vacuum added below dash.

 

I run a set of 2 5/8" Summit gauges in a panel under my dash, easy to read. Just the basic 3 in this order: water temp, oil pressure and volts. And a tach on top of the steering column. The stock cars were just a tach, water and oil gauges.

 

1950s Studeebaker Hawks weren't/ain't bad.

https://live.staticflickr.com/4054/4434887520_31403fa2d1_b.jpg

 

As far as placement, I think all the various layouts are interesting.

I've always liked a lot of gauges.
But to me, a lot of gauges tends to indicate a later era build.

For something simpler and more understated, I've been looking at this 7"+ dia multi-gauge.
Put it right in the center of the dash with nothing else.

I like it.
It's expensive, though.

 

Modern cars generally have the fuel gauge on the same side as the gas cap/door.