the question i have is where is the best location for the thermocouple i and heard both before turbo and after and where is the location to hook boost gauge thnx guys

 

There are pro's and con's for each location. I put mine before because it gives me a more accurate reading. Some don't like the idea of putting it before because of the possibility of it breaking off or melting and getting sucked up into the turbo. I don't personally know of that happening to anyone, but I'm sure it is possible. As for the location, I put mine in the 3 pod A pillar. They look great and are easy to see yet not in the way.

 

I work with thermocouples on a near daily basis. IMO the possibility of that happening are so remote they shouldn't even be considered.

Type K thermocouples (in both military aircraft, and our trucks) are calibrated to 2300*F, well above what a Powerstroke is capable of producing, and even if the tip did break off, it would likely pass by the turbine wheel and go out the exhaust with minimal (or no) damage. And like rvfiver said, it is much more accurate pre-turbo.

The boost gauge can be tapped a couple of ways. It can be spliced into the hose to the MAP sensor, or you can drill and tap the Y-manifold that's hooked to the turbo's compressor outlet. The Y-manifold will give higher readings as it measures boost before the intercooler, and ducting. The MAP sensor line will show the amount of boost that is actually entering the engine.

 

if the MAP sensor has a hose what do you use to tap into it with

 

Getnzb, There should have been a tee fitting included with your guage hardware. Cut into line three inches down from sensor, install tee and plug boost line onto the third opening of fitting. Carroll Allison

 

I purchasd the Autometer Lunar gauges and the Boost gauge came with the hardware to tap into the "Y". There was not a "T" adapter to splice into the MAP line.
I had to purchase a separate kit, I beleive it was a Banks, Part #63033 that had the "T" connector and fitting to install in the MAP line.

 

If people understood what it is they are trying to measure, there would be no question about the location. Your EGT gauge measures Exhaust Gas Temperature. Why? So that you don't subject your ENGINE to excessive temperatures. Exhaust gases are at their hotest inside the cylinders. The moment they start to expand out through the exhaust valve, they lose heat. The further down the exhaust stream they go, the more heat they lose. All of a sudden they hit the turbo and the turbo extracts work from this moving stream of hot gas and lowers the temperature even further, the exact amount of this loss depending on gas temperature, boost pressure (if you have a chip which raises boost pressure, that commonly used 300 degree drop goes out the window), outside temperature, etc, etc.

So, you can put your thermocouple at the tail pipe, subtract out a fudge factor for the exterior temperature drawing heat away from the piping, multiply by a decimal factor related to the amount of work that the turbo is doing at that moment, subtract out another factor for throttle position and pray like crazy that you are somewhere in the ball park. Or you can put it where it belongs - as close to the exhaust valve as possible.

Remember, you are trying to keep those aluminum pistons inside the cylinder from melting. You should not be concerned about your steel turbo starting to get a little warm.

Turbo temperature at shutdown, is a different, and in my ever so humble opinion, a lesser consideration. I can buy a whole lot of turbos for what it would cost me to repair an engine after piston meltdown. But with an EGT gauge, properly placed in the exhaust manifold, I always know what sort of temperatures my turbo has been subjected to, and have a pretty good idea of how long I should idle that engine before turning that key off. Beyond this, the use of full synthetic oil which will not coke until around 450 degrees offers me quite a cushion in this area as well.

I'd like to take this opportunity to put this question to bed once and for all. Do you drive a PowerStroke engine, or or do you drive an 18cm turbo? Which one do you really want to protect?

 

Actually you are protecting both. If the EGT guage is pre turbo where it is most accurate you can see what your turbo is being subjected to more so than post turbo.

 

I want to hook up my Trans Temp and PRE-turbo temp gauge and need to get to the headlight switch wiring so I can hook up the lights to the dimmer. I have a 2001 F350 and I have tried several suggestions for getting out the headlight/dimmer switch assembly with no luck. I tried the screwdriver in the bottom slot but couldn't get it to release. There must be a trick to this. Any suggestions??????

Thanks in advance

 

the way the switch is designed sucks. that little slot messed me up to. the whole assembly actually pulls strait out. i actually kinda cracked the outside of my switch messing with it too much. my sugestion would be to try and push it out from the back if you got real skinny arms. if thats a no go I would just ask the dealership for the special tool that slips in there. I am only assuming there is a special tool.

 

donnoel

Pull the dash out on the left side and slide your hand in there and push the switch out from the back side. Skinny arms are not neccessary.

 

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.

I finally gave up on trying to get the headlight switch out and found the light blue wire with the red tracer, thanks to whoever told me what to look for, and tied into it. My gauges are installed and are working great.

 

IF PUTTING THE PYRO PRE IS BETTER , WHY THEN DOES BANKS AND OTHERS TAP THE DOWN PIPE FOR THE PYRO? ALSO ON THE BOOST , WHAT DOES THE MAP SENSOR LOOK LIKE, AND WHERE IS IT LOCATED? I WAS TOLD TO PLACE IT IN THE LINE TO THE BOOST SENSOR ON THE FIREWALL? NOT STUPID, JUST NEW. THANKS

 

The following is a direct quote from this site (gale banks):

http://www.galebanks.com/Tech_whyegt.cfm

 

thanks for all the info.