Anyone have a vacuum gauge permanently attached?

Anyone have a vacuum gauge permanently attached? I have a TR6, and I had thought about attaching a vacuum gauge permanently. I am trying to decide where to mount it in the cockpit, but more importantly where to connect it to the intake manifold. Any suggestions?

Kevin

I have vacuum gauges permanently mounted in the Mini and my daily driver Civic. Obviously those won't be installed exactly as you would on the TR6.

On the Mini I have a brake servo and I simply put a T fitting in the vacuum line between the intake manifold and the brake servo. A common alternative for cars running HS series SU carbs are carb insulating spacers that are drilled and tapped for barbed vacuum hose fittings. I don't know if there are similar parts available for the TRs, but you could easily modify your existing carb spacers to accept a small barbed fitting. There are places to order automotive specific barbed fittings and some new vacuum gauges come with them as part of the installation kit. If you don't find what you need in the kit, consider looking at your local pet store in the aquarium supplies. They should have some air supply barbed hose fittings you can improvise with.

What year is your 6, Kevin ?

I have a 69.

In that case, I guess "T" off the brake servo's vacuum hose would be the easiest, if you find one with the right size nipple for the vacuum gauge's hose.
I had a Vacuum Gauge mounted on the dash of an XK-150. The needle does move around depending on what your right foot is doing, but for diagnosing engine problems a temporary connection is just as good.

The gauge needle does move around a bit as you say. However, that's why I have a vacuum gauge in the Civic. During most my driving I keep the vacuum gauge in the corner of my sight. I adjust my driving style as appropriate to keep the needle as "high" as possible. When the reading approaches the value at idle I've been known to press in the clutch and coast for a bit. Learning to drive using a vacuum gauge like that will reduce your fuel consumption.

dklawson said:

Learning to drive using a vacuum gauge like that will reduce your fuel consumption.

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Years ago during the early-70s fuel crisis I'd see these sold as "economy" guages with red, yellow and green zones and without meaningful values.

The "T" take-off from an existing line worked well enough for me.

Permanently install a vacuum gauge, why? Do you watch the tach when you shift? Heck, do you even watch the speedometer or just gauge your speed to the cars around you? Unless you are running a super charger, don't complicate your life by installing a test tool.

That said, I do remember when all cars had a vacuum gauge installed, they were call windshield wipers...

TR6oldtimer said:

Permanently install a vacuum gauge, why? Do you watch the tach when you shift? ...don't complicate your life by installing a test tool.

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That's the distinction here.

As I mentioned in my last post, it doesn't have to be just a test tool. A vacuum gauge does have other purposes.