Hi all,I'm considering getting some iDials for my Z. Having done a search on the forums and reading many, MANY threads, I have a few questions.For those of you that installed them yourselves, did you find it a complicated job? Would you recommend leaving it to a mechanic or some such professional?I know they look good at night, but how do you find them during the day?Aside from the 6 panels and inverter in the kit, are there any other components that should be supplied or are required for installation?Is there any other relevant information you offer?Thanks, M
Main problems... 1) They damage your cluster. A few of them are too thick and you will find the needles get stuck even with the thinnest of tape or none at all. Fitting them can be a pain also. My tacho was damaged trying to slide it over the needle and has never worked the same again. The dials were reviewed by a professional from memory and declared a bad idea to DIY.2) Problems with the clear covering. Many people found this didnt stick very well to the EL panel and made it very difficult to read the gagues during the day. 3) Problems with the suppliers. Very dishonest IMO, have promised on multiple occassions to fix their problem under warranty but never have.4) If you really want a pair Ive got a set I can sell you for minimal cost but you will need an inverter. Im sure plenty of other guys here would be willing to flog theirs off also.
They are not that hard to install It's probably about a half a day job including speedo calibration. I did it myself using just the faces (no adhesive) and they came up very well... no sticking needles or damaged cluster or anything like that.... I think Nathan was just a bit too brutal with his set .... =)
There seem to be two main types if iDials... .. that I've seen on this forum, but there may be others?I-Dials (Indiglo) by AutoIllusions, which are Silver by day, black by night with illuminated text:[image]http://www.300zx.com.au/Images1a/300ZX%20parts/zedindiglowdash5.jpg[/image]EL-Dials by etronicauto, which are white during the day, and fully illuminated by night (6 different colours):[image]http://www.etronicauto.com/etronicauto/el-dials/nissan/300ZX-Non-Turbo/web/300ZX-non-turbo-White.gif[/image]Lets hope you get a lot of responses, as I too am looking at white dials to match my white Z :-Z
yeah - mine are in the cabinet at B&R so we'll check them out Friday. They were a bugger to see when during the day and with sunnies on but at night they're great! I got them taken out for calibration.Click Here for a shot of them at nightCya MikeZ :-Z
Ack no! A friend has ElectronicAuto dials in his R32, they suck. They look kind of unprofessional, are really quite dim and are a green at even the bluest setting, would not recommend. He just put in some Apexi EL guages and the dash looks terrible in comparison.Ben
My 2 cents worth Dials are relatively easy to install but can be a little picky when it comes to powering them, there are a few options as discussed in the tech section and search that make it a lot easier. Just take extra care when putting the faces on (2 sets of hands helps).As for how they look. well, during the day they can be VERY reflective depending on the angle of the sunlight / ambient light etc. Most of the time I cant even see my fuel gauge At night however, they look awesome IMO. I have mine powered up to the dimmer panel so they are just BLUE.I would also be very wary of paying in full before you know they are DEFINITELY on their way to you. No need to go into detail about how most of us fared with them Cheers
Answers "Would you recommend leaving it to a mechanic or some such professional?" The majority of people have installed them on their own. However, the calibration part will need to be performed by either a professional or someone with the skills and appropriate test equipment. "I know they look good at night, but how do you find them during the day?" If you often driving around with the targas off during the day then you can forget it unless you're one of the few that were lucky enough to get a good set without the delaminating defect. "Aside from the 6 panels and inverter in the kit, are there any other components that should be supplied or are required for installation?" The other item included in the kit is the button(s) for changing the colour and brighness."Is there any other relevant information you offer? There is a lot more information available if you're willing to use the search function.
