retrofitting a tachometer?
 

i'm looking at getting a kit for a digital tachometer.
it includes all components needed to build a basic two digit tachometer that counts the pulses behind the breaker....

this could be interesing to determine certain shift points more eccactly.
and the two red lcd digits will blend nicely in the 80's interior.

however i'm wondering what other options i have. i assume there's ready build tach's available analog or digital, as i see them om tuned cars but i assume they're pretty pricy, and i'm not sure where these hook up? i could also try to find a donor part maybe but ince they're ussually part of the complete dash that might not be easy.

does anyone have any experience with retrofitting tachometers? any advice is much appreciated.

I would be interested in anything on this topic also. Would be nice to know my engine RPM at times.

I think that you can buy one that will have a little gizmo that attaches to the coil wire or one of the spark plug wires. Very easy. Don't have time to search for one now, though.

One of CarloSW2s bajillion tidbits from the net:
https://www.jaycarelectronics.com/pro...=&SUBCATID=347

Not LCD, but a kit anyway.

https://www.jaycarelectronics.com/pro...Large_5733.jpg

I was thinking something like this. I'm sure there are better ones and cheaper ones, too.

if you go to a lawn mower repair shop you can get the "Tiny Tac" for about $45 US dollars, that is about as cheap as I have heard of, it's a small black plastic digital tac that has it's own battery sealed inside, I have had one for the last ten years and it's still working perfectly, it simply needs one of it's wires grounded, and the other wraps around a spark plug wire about 4 times, the one I have also has an hour meter, right now it's installed under my hood, so I can see the real time engine speed while doing tune ups with the engine running, but they commenly come with about 3-4 feet of wire, enough to rout thru the dash, otherwise you can go to an auto parts store and buy a gauge style tac that works simalerly, but with a nice gauge insted of digital readout.

I was looking at Ebay yesterday and found some digital tachs for 30 dollars or less shipped. I think they were the kind where you need a reflective piece of material on the engine then it uses an led or something to read.

Looks like I could also get a simple gauge-style tach for about 30 dollars shipped also.

I definitely prefer analog for a tach. But it's up to your own preference.

Below might work for your car... have a look, and maybe contact some junkyards. I use the self service ones when I can.

This past March I put a tach in my car.
I got one from another Volvo 240; it fit my dash perfectly.
The wiring was already there behind the dash; I just hooked it up.

It fit in a space where I had a clock before. When I got the tach from the junker I also took the small clock that was used in another dash location, for cars with a tach.

I believe I paid like $15 for a cheap sunpro 2.5" tach from a local autoparts chain about 6 years ago, was fortunate enough to know where a signal wire already existed, unconnected to anything, tied to the firewall in my old car. took about 10 minutes to wire up.

I believe I paid like $15 for a cheap sunpro 2.5" tach from a local autoparts chain about 6 years ago, was fortunate enough to know where a signal wire already existed, unconnected to anything, tied to the firewall in my old car. took about 10 minutes to wire up.

i'm thinking about this one...
it's not lcd as i mistakingly wrote earlier just a two digit led readout. it's a self build kit... the only problem is that i don't have a convenient place to put it yet and the full assembly is fairly big. i've even been contemplating HUD like setups with a reflection in the window.... wich i doubt i could pull off, but still it would be cool :)

i suppose i'll have to check a car supply store to see what they've got... most sugestions listed above look good but i'd have to find alternatives available in europe