TrickTT Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Couldn't find anyone who sells a 3 gauge A pillar pod specific for the mkiv so I had a go at making one. It was quite easy to do and the results are pretty good so heres a quick guide. All you need is a Dremel and a bit of time. First of all i brought a universal fit 3 gauge pod from ebay. This one cost £9.00 and is made of a similar plastic to the stock A pillar. It also has a similar leather grain effect and is precut for 60mm gauges. The seller also supplies them precut for 52mm gauges. Using a circular saw attachment on the dremmel, i removed the 3 pods from the trim. Leave plenty around the edges, its easier to take more off later than put it back on. The next bit is the only hard part. Using the stock A pillar, mark the rough shape of the pods using a pen. I used my old 2 gauge pod to get the angles right. Then cut out the holes. In this photo i've only cut out the first one, but you can see the pen marks for the other two. Get this wrong and you'll wreck your stock A pillar so be careful The pods need to fit through from the back. Again, i've only done the first one here. Just take a bit of time with the dremmel taking away material a bit at a time until you're happy with the fit. The lower one is the easiest. For the middle and top pods, i cut around the existing mounting points so they can still be used to mount the A pillar in the car. Once all the pods fit, I secured them to the stock A pillar using 2 part epoxy. Use quick drying stuff as you'll have to hold the pods in place while it drys. Next photo is from the back. You can see how i've cut round the stock mounting. Its not pretty, but it is strong and once it's in the car it will never be seen. Once the epoxy had dried, I used Isopon flexible bumper filler around the join to blend the pods to the A pillar. Try not to apply too much filler, as you lose the leather grain effect on the trim. I forgot to take any photos at this point, but just apply the filler and once its dry, sand back to a smooth finish, first with a rotary sander in the dremel, then 180grit wet/dry paper . Final step is paint. I got some dark grey flexible paint from the local model shop. Its designed for painting R/C car bodies, but it is a near perfect match for the stock dash colour. I applied 2 thin coats, don't put too much on or you'll lose the grain effect. Paint is still wet in this photo, it dries to a satin finish. Once the paint is dry, fit to car. As long as you've left the stock mounts in place this is a 2 second job. I've fitted my two existing gauges in this shot, my oil pressure gauge is still on its way from Japan,, but it is just a push fit in the pod when it arrives. Total cost for the pod, paint and epoxy was about £15.00. Add a couple of quid if you need filler, but I had some lying around in the garage. I'm very pleased with the results, and its a cheap alternative, if like me, you dont like the glovebox gauge holders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Brilliant write up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ric Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 group buy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Nice, Although you can find sellers: http://store.titanmotorsports.com/duandtrapofo.html 30secs on google, I'm sure you could find UK sellers if you spent five minutes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Nice job, well done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrickTT Posted February 6, 2007 Author Share Posted February 6, 2007 Nice, Although you can find sellers: http://store.titanmotorsports.com/duandtrapofo.html 30secs on google, I'm sure you could find UK sellers if you spent five minutes Shame mine is right hand drive:p , I spent some time looking, but like your link, i could only find left hand drive versions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merckx Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 A very nice job , just what I was thinking about doing. 30secs on google, I'm sure you could find UK sellers if you spent five minutes You can,but they're at least £80. I've been looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk-rich Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 nice job, and nice gauges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Shame mine is right hand drive:p , I spent some time looking, but like your link, i could only find left hand drive versions. Good point I found a couple of doubles but no triple. Surely Nic/Envy et al must be able to get hold of them?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 There have been various posts talking about the availability of tripple pods but I have never seen one. Any chance of adding this FAQ or sticky? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burna Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Nice work as usual Trick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrickTT Posted February 6, 2007 Author Share Posted February 6, 2007 Good point I found a couple of doubles but no triple. Surely Nic/Envy et al must be able to get hold of them?!? Miami GT used to do them, but the supplier went bust according to Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Is there no end to your skills? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bignum Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 TRICK,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, you have too much time on your hands, can you make me 1 please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Do you mind if this gets poached for the 'FAQ's and Guides section'? I remember Miami-GT were selling them a while back, not sure anyone else ever found a supplier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrickTT Posted February 7, 2007 Author Share Posted February 7, 2007 TRICK,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, you have too much time on your hands, can you make me 1 please? Sorry mate making 1 is fun but doing the same stuff again gets dull Do you mind if this gets poached for the 'FAQ's and Guides section'? Feel free to use it as you wish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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