There’s something about symmetry that really floats my boat. Maybe that’s why I my appreciation gravitates to the films of Wes Anderson, identical twins, and this image of a gauge cluster and protected toggles.
Analog gauges are da’ bomb, and having them match left to right only adds to their aesthetic. What do you think, what car has the best balanced dash?
Last Call indicates the end of Hooniverse’s broadcast day. It’s meant to be an open forum for anyone and anything. Thread jacking is not only accepted, it’s encouraged.
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Last Call: General Cluster Edition
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29 responses to “Last Call: General Cluster Edition”
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Those are beautiful.
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Esthetically I’m never sure which I like more… the Scout 80 instrument cluster, with it’s simple symmetrical layout:
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Or the later Scout 800 instrument panel that’s just kookily asymmetrical, with one big gauge placed in the least important place, like a caboose.
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The Scout 80 dash is much like a pre-90s motorcycle instrument cluster in that it puts all the info there but doesn’t expect you to spend much time at speed looking away from the road. The Scout 800 dash makes you feel like an engineer on a big diesel train or a boat, like all of this is the most pertinent info and your speed is the least consideration… but it also makes you think that you should be paying attention to all of that; as if it might be malfunctioning.
The Scout 80 dash is more reassuring in its confidence that you don’t really need to be looking to closely at it, and fits with the simplicity of operation that was a selling point for the early Scout. The Scout 800 dash seems to feed your ego that you’re an operator of a very complicated piece of equipment in trying situations; something that it shares with the sports cars of the day, and which is a symptom of off-roading becoming another motor sport.
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69 Camaro. Not only instruments but the whole drivers side of the dash is balanced. Even the vent and climate control levels mimic each other.
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I sorta remember mom’s ’68 dash. The instruments were hooded by these deep cowls, and it took my mom 10 years before she noticed the high-beam light, which was a 1/8″ red light at the bottom of a tube between the cowls (in the cleavage, basically) and could only be seen straight on.
The spherical vents were a lot of fun to play with as a kid, really the only thing in the car we could touch.-
I didn’t check to see how different the ’68 was. At least on the ’69, the round gauges in their square bezels, the woodgrain on the wheel bridging the strips down below on either side…I just love it’s “designedness”
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Wow, vastly different. the ’68 was full of compound curves and the spherical vents matched the round cowlings.
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…and Pontiac had their own plasticky-assed version of it, which took away all the sculpted bits (I bet they’re under there, though.)
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First-generation Toronado gives you good balance, but also the groovy meat scale speedometer.
https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2564/4148040335_502ac8e49e_b.jpg
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I’ve always been partial to Jaguar wood from the 50’s. Here’s the dash from a Mk1 sedan like the one I drove in the early 70’s.
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Stunning. The idea of cruising along in that with the MPH dial at 5 o’clock is a delicious one.
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Hey, I own that very same car now! It doesn’t look nearly as nice, but
it will again soon (well, maybe a bit later than soon. ;))-
Does it happen to be this one?
I stumbled across this ad for my old Mk I years ago. Looks to be from the guy I sold it to. -
Oops! Just revisited that link and read your comments. Cool to know that the car hasn’t been parted out. I’ll email you.
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I had an alarm clock once: three identical buttons in a row, hardly labeled. Unbelievable that this won a design price once. Designed BS.
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Guys, I need your knowledge. What do you know about the 9-3 Aero (2.8 liter turbo V6) with a 6M in terms of reliability? And what can you tell from these exhaust pipes?
http://karakullake.blogspot.com/2015/04/very-productive-day-shopping-for-saab.html-
I mentioned it before, but parts availability is a real issue.
As far as reliability, my wife has a 2006 Aero SS with a 6 speed manual. Currently has 102k miles. We did buy it used (in 2008 – ultra low mile lease return with onloy 15k miles on it) so I can’t vouch entirely for the previous owner, but the GM records showed only maintenance.
In our ownership period, we’ve done the following: Rear brake pads (only car I’ve ever known where the rears wear out, but not the front), one of the horns, the lights (the ballast goes), and currently waiting for fuel pump – should be here today, and the rear window regulator.
It is a WONDERFUL car, is really quick and really fun to drive. -
The carbon could be a bad turbo but it does not look THAT bad in that photo. When the car has been sitting for at least a day, stand behind the exhausts with a board of some particle board or what not. Have someone else start the car and rev it while you watch the exhaust. If soot shoots out and covers the board, that’s a bad turbo.
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It would look good even in the daytime
http://agecars.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/66_charger_dash.gif
But the 66-67 Charger dash reaal shines at night. -
Different nations take pride in different vehicles:
http://s26.postimg.org/j2ipbwjft/IMG_20150425_180425.jpg -
In other news, Herr Piech has left VW, and so has his wife.
He kicked off a debate by mentioning that Herr Winterkorn wouldn’t be the best staff decision. The Porsche family’s spokesman dubbed this as Herr Piech’s private opinion, and both the German state Lower Saxony (20% owner of VW) and the union representative expressed loyalty to Winterkorn.
I love this soap opera of two families fighting over their private issues on the stage of multinational companies! -
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Also, am I the the only one who now needs a Cummins Diesel Swapped Packard Sedan?
http://bringatrailer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/00S0S_lKLw9b6YU0z_600x4501.jpg
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Diesel and Packard are mutually exclusive. You need torque, yes, but not noise and vibration. Bad idea. Instead think torque monster Nailhead, FE Ford, Lincoln 430….or even Cadillac 472.
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This gives me ideas…
http://oyster.ignimgs.com/wordpress/www.ign.com/9474/2010/12/sweet-tooth.jpg
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Napier rail ton is the only answer to this question.
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Early Broncos had an agricultural feel to the dash. It was difficult to read the secondary gauges at all.
http://classicbroncos.com/photos/data/6860/interior_dash.jpg -
I think I may have figured-out how to stop the annoy emails from disqus. http://i.imgur.com/Tt5CwjP.png
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