Innovate Gauges - motoring|underground

MtyMous · #1 10-03-2011, 06:28 AM

Has anyone heard anything about Innovate gauges, or had any first hand experience with them? It's time for me to get a little more info about what my car is doing on a daily basis. I am installing a Wideband to help me with the constant tuning my carb requires with the constantly changing weather. I have the carb close, but knowing my AFR all the time and in real driving conditions will REALLY help out.

I'm going to go with a volt meter to keep an eye on my electrical system. Don't want Tink catching on fire anymore. Then I need another oil pressure gauge. An electric one that I can rely on to give me a constant reading.

My issue is that The Innovate website doesn't have all of these gauges. They have the WB, and the Oil Pressure, but no volt meter, no Oil Temp, and a few others I would be interested in.

So do you have experience with them? Can you recommend something I might be happier with without exploding my bank account?

Got Insulin? · #2 10-03-2011, 05:28 PM

My neighbor and his brother both have had an Innovative WB in their Cobalts forever and love it. I've never had any personal experience with that particular one, but I've used AEM's wideband in a few different cars and my original unit is probably over five years old with no problems so far. As far as other decent guage companies, I've had pretty good luck with Autometer in the past, too.

Chase · #3 10-03-2011, 07:01 PM

Innovate is one of the better gauges in my opinion. thats what im using for my wide band for my twincharge set up.

Lukifer · #4 10-03-2011, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chase

Innovate is one of the better gauges in my opinion. thats what im using for my wide band for my turbo only set up.

I dont have a wide band, but I was told by a friend that he likes his AEM.

MtyMous · #5 10-04-2011, 02:42 AM

I'm really thinking about going with the one Innovate Wideband for now and getting the matching other gauges another time. The thing is I REALLY want a matching set of gauges. I'm really tired of having my interior look like a hodgepodge of parts and gauges and crap. It's time I start in with the details.

Batrugger · #6 10-04-2011, 09:05 PM

In order to use innovate for all of the guages you are talking about you would have to go all digital. IIRC, you would need the LC-1, an LMA-3, and daisy chain an XD-16 guage for each thing you wanted to monitor or use a laptop. You would also need to buy all of the sensors. This would be a very costly setup

MtyMous · #7 10-05-2011, 02:35 AM

I don't care about data logging. I want real time monitoring. I want to be able to watch the systems I am monitoring WHILE I'm driving. As far as I know, the gauges themselves come with senders and everything I need to wire them in.

Let me know if you know something I don't. Because I don't know where I would get the senders if they don't come with the gauges.

Batrugger · #8 10-05-2011, 05:16 AM

I did a lot of research on this awhile back because I wanted to datalog on my Jetta with the bigger turbo and a planned water/meth install, but I just never threw down the cash for it all. I was just pointing out that to have all of the parameters you want measured with Innovate guages, you would need to use all XD-16's (now MTX-L's since the XD-16 has been discontinued) since they can be programmed to display multiple channels. Basically for what you want, Innovate, other than the AFR, is probably not the way you want to go.

MtyMous · #9 10-05-2011, 10:12 PM

Hmm. Why not for what I want? Sorry. I think I may be having a dense moment. If I don't want the data logging with all the bells and whistles.

The way I'm seeing it:

1) The gauges will match (Water temp and oil pressure) perfectly with my wideband and they are all electric gauges with stepper motors to boot.
2) They come with all the sensors and senders I'll need and will have the function I desire
3) They are actually a lot cheaper than a lot of the gauges I was thinking of getting in the first place
4) If I choose to do data logging in the future I can do so by simply buying the control module and re-wiring instead of buying all new gauges.

I could be seriously missing other options though, so please let me know. And if you have other gauge brand options I should be considering that are the same quality and performance and reputation with a lower price tag, then let me know.

Batrugger · #10 10-06-2011, 01:33 AM

It's okay, I was talking about this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by MtyMous

My issue is that The Innovate website doesn't have all of these gauges. They have the WB, and the Oil Pressure, but no volt meter, no Oil Temp, and a few others I would be interested in.

I was saying that it is possible to have all that you want from Innovate, just not with the gauges that you were talking about getting. You will need to get the other hardware and buy additional sensors. Innovate is top notch though. Personally I have used the Stri kit (was not happy with them) and Newsouth Performance which is really only for VW's. I do have two of the Innovate LC-1's with XD-16 gauges and they have been trouble free.

MtyMous · #11 10-06-2011, 02:23 AM

ah. gotcha.

Yeah, I wish I could get the gauges I want and the style I want, but I think for now (since I only have 3 gauges spots in the dash I made) I will get water temp, oil press, and AFR wideband. Those are the 3 I need to monitor daily anyway.

So I think the plan is to go with the 3 innovate gauges on the top row for now, Then I'll make either a single DIN for the "din kit" from DEFI or I'll make 3 more gauge holes and put the other 3 DEFI gauges I want in there. Oil Pressure, Volts, and 1 other to be decided. But those can wait, really.

Lukifer · #12 10-06-2011, 03:49 AM

I still think that you should use the Stri ones that I have :-)

MtyMous · #13 10-06-2011, 04:35 PM

I would use the STRI ones, but the background color wouldn't match the Innovate gauge, and they aren't stepper motors.

MINIAC · #14 11-18-2011, 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MtyMous

Can you recommend something I might be happier with without exploding my bank account?

This is most likely an account killer.
Recently started my study & don't want to end up with clutter in R53. Currently looking into MXL Pista.
The no data logging you can cut the price in half with the Strada.

MtyMous · #15 11-19-2011, 03:43 AM

I was actually going to go that route, but I decided to keep the original cluster for aesthetics and modernize the rest of it. I'm going to be making my own gauge faces.