TACH FOR FORD V10

[RVN4US]

My 2000 Ford E450 chassis (V10) does not have a factory installed tach and I was wondering if any one has purchased one from Ford Motor Company or even a after market one. Thanks !

[whemme]

Check out this Scan Gauge II device. It has tachometer and many other readouts for only $169.95.

It has so many readouts that you won't ever look at all of them. You can display any four readouts at a time - I usually display RPM, MPH, MPG & GPH.

I have had the older model Scan Gauge for approximately 2 years and it is considerably larger in size compared to the new Scan Gauge II unit. I mounted mine on top of the dash right up against the left side windshield post using two sided velcro.

Installation is dirt simple - it just plugs into your OBD II connector directly below your steering wheel housing under your dash. You don't need to hookup any power connections - it gets its operating power directly via the OBD II connector. It turns itself on when you start your engine and it shuts itself off again approximately 5 seconds after you shut your engine off.

http://www.scangauge.com/

[bcope01]

Check out this Scan Gauge II device. It has tachometer and many other readouts for only $169.95.

If you want to save a few dollars, here it is on eBay for $155 plus $5 shipping:

http://tinyurl.com/y3gpw3

Bill

[Brent]

You know, I think I would like this - provides good info and easy to set up.

[whemme]

If you are an accuracy freak like me, the Scan Gauge system provides a means to enter calibration factors to make the following readouts more accurate in an individual vehicle like your E350/E450:

Speed (MPH)
Odometer (Miles)
Fuel Used (Gallons)

Speed and odometer accuracy can be corrected to within + or - 0.5%. However the fuel used accuracy is dependant on the OBD II fuel rate sensor used in the vehicle. Fuel injections systems like used in most modern cars and trucks don't use accurate fuel flow transducers like used in most aircraft fuel systems. They evidently try to determine fuel flow from injection system fuel pressure, injector size, and the time interval that the fuel injectors are open for fuel delivery. There are probably other factors used that I don't even know about.

Even though the default setting on my Scan Gauge resulted in fuel used errors in the area of 20%, applying a correction factor determined each time by comparing the actual fuel used during a tank fillup to what the Scan Gauge thought would be the fuel used for that fillup resulted in generally getting the fuel used accuracy down to the area of around + or - 5% after many fillups. So don't expect great fuel used accuracy from your Scan Gauge - the OBD II fuel rate sensor is just not that accurate and repeatable from tank fillup to tank fillup.

And even getting fuel used accuracy of your Scan Gauge down to within 5%, you will need to make sure you fill your tank to the same exact level on each subsequent fillup - which in itself is a challenge.

[bcope01]

Another handy instrument that absolutely nails down the first two items (Speed and Odometer) in Bill's discussion above is a good GPS. My Lowrance iWay 500C GPS also functions, in addition to its obvious mapping capabilities, as a trip odometer, an altimeter and a voltmeter. Additionally, it gives distance and time to next waypoint or final destination, and provides a lot of other valuable info that is user selectable.

Bill

[whemme]

Bill,

I agree with you completely. I use a Garmin 2610 StreetPilot GPS and it is the extremely accurate speed and odometer measurements provided by the GPS that I used to calibrate the Scan Gauge readouts of those same measurements. Unfortunately however, the GPS can't do anything for us on accurate fuel used measurements.

The top of my E450 dash equipped with the Scan Gauge, Garmin GPS, Doran Pressure-Pro, and Roady II XM Radio Converter makes it look like an aircraft instrument panel. My wife suggests that the only reason I have this Born Free is to watch over all the instrumentation, not the motorhoming itself!

[bcope01]

The top of my E450 dash ... look like an aircraft instrument panel.

As an ex-chopper pilot myself, I'm familiar with the "addiction".

Bill

[RVN4US]

The Scan Gauge II sounds good to me! I would have thought the E450 chassis would have had factory tach, but if so what would we have to do. Thanks for the information.