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PPE A - Pillar Pod and Gauges - On the Face of ItINSTALLING PPE GAUGES AND A TRIPLE-GAUGE A-PILLAR POD From the October, 2008 issue of 8-Lug Author: Matt Emery Photography: Matt Emery
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Knowing what your diesel engine... Knowing what your diesel engine is doing at all times is easy thanks to the PPE gauges (pyrometer, turbo boost, and fuel rail pressure) and new triple-gauge A-pillar mount. WITH 24-HOUR CABLE NEWS SHOWS AND THE INTERNET, WE ARE definitely living in the information age, and there is no reason not to include your truck in there too. That is why the placing of gauges into the A-pillar pod has become so popular. The A-pillar is the perfect place for these gauges because not only are they in the driver's line of sight, but they don't have to take up any space below the dash (not that there is much of that these days). Unlike some other installs such as suspension and turbo swaps, installing gauges and an A-pillar pod is something that those at home can do for themselves. As long as the owner has a modicum of mechanical and wiring skills, adding gauges is a simple task that will give much-needed information as to what the engine is doing. The usual suspects on the gauge front are exhaust gas temperature and boost pressure, but Pacific Performance Engineering (PPE) also offers a fuel rail pressure gauge for the common-rail engine found in Chevy Duramax diesels. That isn't surprising, as the folks at PPE are specialists on the Duramax engine (they recently installed one into a very clean '72 Chevy C10), and have pretty much everything that a Duramax owner could want. And as PPE offers some killer engine mods for the Duramax, they also have what they call their dual fueler pump and high-performance fuel rail for those who want to add a boost of fuel to their Chevy. PPE has been known for their high-performance and racing parts for diesel-equipped vehicles since 1994. We say diesel-equipped vehicles because they not only have trick parts for trucks-they also are one of the premier outlets for those with diesel-powered boats. They offer everything, including turbo kits, electronics, and fuel and transmission upgrades, but they even have trick suspensions, brakes, and gauges for the diesel enthusiast. We were on hand as the PPE mechanics installed one of PPE's new triple gauge A-pillar mount and gauge packages. PPE also offers a twin gauge pillar, but as the old saying goes, if two is good, three must be better. And when one is talking about keeping an eye on your engine's operational parameters, then more is always better. Being pros, the PPE crew had the install done in a matter of hours, but those doing this at home should plan on it taking 3-4 hours. However, it is 3-4 hours of work that will give you the confidence in knowing what your engine is up to at all times. And as with life, knowing what is going on can sometimes be the difference between joy and sorrow.  The three gauges that will...  The three gauges that will be installed are the PPE boost pressure, exhaust gas temperature, and a fuel rail pressure gauge (a PPE exclusive). They feature white numbers on black faces with an orange needle for easy reading. And speaking of easy reading, rather than a single incandescent bulb, they have LED surround lighting for those dark and stormy nights on the road.  Available in either double-...  Available in either double- or triple-gauge configurations, the A-pillar pod comes in basic black, but as this shot attests, it can be painted to match any interior color.  Since there was significant...  Since there was significant electrical work, the first step was to pull the leads from the battery.  The lead wires and boost pressure...  The lead wires and boost pressure tube will be routed along the back of the firewall and through an access port, so the inner wheelwell on the driver side was removed. The passenger-side well was also removed to allow access to the exhaust manifold.  The plastic air intake tube...  The plastic air intake tube was pulled to allow access to the aluminum intake manifold.  Electrical connections, such...  Electrical connections, such as the MAF sensor on the air intake tube, were pulled.  There was an electrical junction...  There was an electrical junction block mounted to the top of the aluminum intake manifold. The lead wires were removed so that the intake could be removed.  The hardware holding the air...  The hardware holding the air intake was removed and the tube pulled from the engine. A rag should be placed over the opening at this point to ensure that no debris falls into the engine during the job.  This is the spot where the...  This is the spot where the boost pressure sender was marked on the aluminum air intake. This spot was actually chosen before the piece was pulled to ensure that no other engine parts would interfere with the sensor.  The hole for the sensor was...  The hole for the sensor was drilled into the air horn.  As the sensor features threads,...  As the sensor features threads, the manifold was tapped.  These flakes of aluminum inside...  These flakes of aluminum inside the manifold are why the drilling and tapping needed to be done with the manifold off the engine. Once they were done, compressed air was used to blow out the debris. This is a very important step, as these tiny flakes will lunch the engine if they are allowed to drop into the combustion chamber.  With Teflon tape coating the...  With Teflon tape coating the threads, the boost pressure sender was threaded into the manifold. Note that the sender actually has pipe threads, which means that the threads taper outward as they go. Tightening the sensor is done carefully, as it may be possible to split the manifold if the sensor is overtightened. With the sensor in place, the manifold is replaced on the engine.  Another hole was needed for...  Another hole was needed for the exhaust temperature gauge; this one drilled into the exhaust manifold and access was easy with the passenger side wheel well liner removed. One trick here is that by having the engine idling, it is possible to drill this hole without removing the manifold from the engine. The exhaust gases of the idling engine will blow the shavings out of the hole during the drilling, but be careful to wear safety goggles as the pieces really fly out. And did we mention that they are really hot, too?  To help trap the cuttings...  To help trap the cuttings when tapping the hole, grease was used on the tap. Teflon tape was used, and again care was taken when tightening the sensor so as not to cause damage to the manifold.  Leads such as the exhaust...  Leads such as the exhaust temperature have been color coded so connections were easy to make. PPE also supplied shrink tubing with the kits, so these connections will be made weather proof.  The fuel rail pressure lead...  The fuel rail pressure lead was easy to install but hard to get to as the electrical connection was way back at the rear of the engine. When located, the lead wire connection was pulled.  The PPE harness simply piggybacks...  The PPE harness simply piggybacks off of the connection, which means that the lead from the truck plugs into the PPE harness and the harness lead plugs into the fuel rail. A third lead from the harness was then run to the gauge.  After running the lead wires...  After running the lead wires and pressure tube along the firewall above the engine, they were routed through the rubber grommet, which passes through the firewall into the engine compartment.  All of the various engine...  All of the various engine components were re-installed at this time.  The stock A-pillar was held...  The stock A-pillar was held in place with one screw and the door's rubber molding. Removing it is easy, but care needs to be taken when removing the speaker from the pillar as it is plastic and damage could occur if too much enthusiasm is used.  As the gauges feature internal...  As the gauges feature internal LED lighting, they also need to dim with the rest of the stock gauges, so the lead for the lights was run to the dimmer switch.  The light lead was piggybacked...  The light lead was piggybacked off of a lead wire using the supplied electrical connectors. They simply fold over the wanted wire and are crimped in place. A male connector was then plugged into it and run to the gauges. The lighting leads from the gauges are ganged together so that only one lead is run to the dimmer switch. The same process is used for the power and ground leads. They are ganged and then led to a point under the dash and then installed. A post holding the dash to the metal frame was used for the ground.  PPE supplies a detailed wiring...  PPE supplies a detailed wiring diagram to connect the gauges to the fuse block, but suffice to say that a switched power lead was needed and that a good ground is imperative. Ninety-nine percent of electrical problems come from a bad ground, so beware.  With the electrical connections...  With the electrical connections made, the lead wires are fed up along the side of the dash. Pulling the side panel makes this easy.  With the lead wires and tubes...  With the lead wires and tubes fed through the holes in the new PPE A-pillar, the connections such as the boost pressure tube were made.  As the fuel rail and exhaust...  As the fuel rail and exhaust temperature gauge feature only electrical leads, they were snapped into place on the rear of the respective gauge. Note that PPE has made the process as easy as possible by color-coding each wire.  With the gauges gently in...  With the gauges gently in place inside the A-pillar pod (no backing bracket was necessary, they simply push into place), the pod was installed.  After final positioning of...  After final positioning of the gauges and making sure that they are fully seated in the pillar, the job was done.
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