The gauges on a vehicle's dashboard is very crucial, mainly because it both displays and conveys various meanings using a variety of gauges. These gauges also show us when a problem exists. If we know what they're telling us, the gauges can also let us know before a problem occurs. Understanding our gauges can help prevent many problems. This in-depth tutorial is designed to help teach both new and old forum members. Whether you're experienced or a newbie, this can help broaden your knowledge of these gauges of which you can apply to your driving in both BeamNG and the real world. Right now, we are going to use the dashboard of the Gavril Grand Marshal as an example, mainly because these dashboards are designed in their own unique way, however they still function the same, regardless of appearance. 1. Tachometer 2. Speedometer 3. Fuel Gauge 4. Oil Temperature Gauge 5. Voltmeter 6. Water Temperature Gauge 7. Gearshift Indicator 8. Odometer 1. Tachometer: The tachometer gauge shows the speed at which the engine is rotating. Engine rotation speed is measured as revolutions per minute (RPM). Normally, the numbers on the tachometer gauge stands for 100 RPM. For instance, 25 actually shows 2,500 RPM. The photo, for instance, shows the engine is currently at 900 RPM. Generally, a lower RPM reading on the tachometer gauge shows the engine is turning lower. This is ideally the case when sitting still with the engine running. The lowest RPM is referred to as idle speed, which is usually between 500-800 RPM. More importantly, the red barred section of the tachometer gauge is referred to as redline. Redline refers to the maximum engine speed at which the vehicle's engine and its components are designed to operate without causing damage to the components themselves or other parts of the engine. In this particular case, the Grand Marshal redlines at 5,300 RPM. 2. Speedometer: The speedometer gauge indicates how fast the vehicle is currently moving in miles per hour (MPH) and/or kilometers per hour (KM/H). Often, vehicle manufacturers will provide an additional scale to indicate KM/H on a speedometer that shows MPH, or vice versa. Driving at a rate of speed higher than the maximum speed indicated on the speedometer is known as "burying the needle," which is because the needle will either disappear below the gauge or rest on the stop pin just below the highest increment on the speedometer. 3. Fuel Gauge: The fuel gauge shows how much fuel is currently remaining in the vehicle's tank. Refilling our tank, especially when the gauge reaches or indicates 1/4 remaining can prevent fuel exhaustion. 4. Oil Temperature Gauge: Not to be confused with oil pressure, although oil temperature gauges are used alongside oil pressure gauges. The oil temperature gauge shows the temperature of the oil flowing through the engine. The gauge can also warn the driver when oil temperature is reaching a critically high temperature. 5. Voltmeter: The voltmeter indicates how many electrical volts (v) the vehicle's charging system is available. Most vehicles operate on a 12 v electrical system. It is important to remember that when running, the system will generally produce slightly above that amount. Readings from 12.5 to 14.5 v are about normal on most vehicles. Readings below 12 v or above 15 v generally indicate a problem in the charging system. 6. Water Temperature Gauge: The water temperature gauge (also referred to as a engine temperature gauge) shows the average temperature of the engine. Many people mistakenly think it checks the coolant level or condition. This isn't the case, but it is extremely important. Most engines will operate between 195-215 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures above this will damage the engine very quickly. Temperatures above 260 degrees Fahrenheit are likely to do permanent damage to the engine. Ironically, temperatures below 195 are also bad. When an engine is running too cold, sludge tends to form and the engine's lubricating ability is lost entirely. Low engine temperature is a leading cause of poor fuel mileage. 7. Gearshift Indicator: The shift indicator, or gearshift indicator, is a readout that indicates what gear the transmission is currently engaged in. Every vehicle with an automatic transmission has a shift indicator. The shift indicator is attached to a shift indicator cable. The shift indicator cable moves the shift indicator's position to accurately reflect the gear the transmission is engaged in. Many mechanical-style shift indicators that move along a rudimentary track on the " P R N D 2 L" display, which indicates whether your transmission is in Park, Reverse, Neutral, or Low Gear. 8. Odometer: An odometer is an instrument that indicates distance travelled by a vehicle. In this case, this Grand Marshal has 168, 331 miles (271, 012 kilometers) displayed. This particular type of odometer is a mechanical odometer. Mechanical odometers can only display 6 digits, so when the odometer reads 9 9 9 9 9 9 and the vehicle travels one more mile, the odometer will roll over and restart from zero, so it reads 0 0 0 0 0 0. If you enjoyed my in-depth explanation of the various dashboard displays, or if you found it interesting, please feel free to give it any rating you wish on the poll and/or leave a constructive, yet cheerful comment down below.
I guess I appreciate the detailed explanation, but it's a little weird to see something so simple explained in so much detail in less-than-perfect grammar. It's like you're explaining this to an alien child that's never seen a car before.
I appreciate your constructive feedback. Yes. it may seem like I am talking to an alien child who've never seen a car before, but believe me, I am targeting this tutorial at forum members who have recently joined, so this may help answer some questions that they have. Now, for my "less-than-perfect grammar," can you please elaborate on that?
Honestly, it's fine and I shouldn't be nitpicking. I was just thrown off by the first section of text which both reads weirdly and has a few issues. I'm going to try to be less needlessly critical of small things in the future.
That's one thing I've always found weird about the grand marshal, oil temperature? On modern cars yeah I guess, but 90's cars? that should be oil pressure imo, I remember my dad had a '93 Jaguar XJ6, it had a oil pressure gauge, and I know there are many more cars from the 80's and 90's with oil pressure gauges. Just a little tid bit that kinda urks me with the marshal.
Thanks for the reply! It really helps me out a bunch! Yeah, it is oil temperature, because of the visible C and H on the gauge, instead of the standard L and H that is often seen on oil pressure gauges. But other than that, thanks for the creative feedback!
No, you don't need to be a member of the forum to know gauges, if you drive your dad's camry you should know.
Crank rotation, the pistons go up and down, it's the crankshaft that rotates. But people do refer to RPM as the engine speed.
Just wondering, can anyone help explain to me how edit the game files to have the tachometer needle to go past the stop pin? Because the Hirochi SBR4's tachometer needle went past the stop pin before they fixed it, and having the needle looping looks cool. Sorry for the bump BTW.
