Hey guys... I was looking around on the forum, but it appears nobody has had the same problem as me. I bought the Autometer Cobalt Boost Gauge (electronic).
The problem is this.... When I put the key on accessorie, the gauge starts up normal, does it`s auto-calibration. Now, I start the car, the gauge jumps up to about 10 PSI. When I get boost on, it shoots down into the vacuum part of the gauge!!?? What's going on ?

It's as if the gauge is reading everything backwards... It should read a bit of vacuum in the beginning then shoot into PSI, not the other way around! Just as a side note, the installation is pretty straight-forward. Everything is plug and play. So, can anybody help me? What did I do wrong?
Thanks

well - what did you do for the install? where did you grab power and ground, where did you tap for boost, etc.

Sounds like the gauge or sender could be defective. Need more info.

Ok, lets see if I can explain this a bit... I dont know exact terms quite yet, but here goes... There is a round plastic part (kinda like the t-fitting) with two hoses coming in either side and a nipple with a hose connecting to the intake manifold? (it's metal,its silver and it's towards the frontof the engine, looks like part of the engine). As for the electric, I would love to tell you, but I havnt a clue. The lighting works fine, meaning it lights up when the lights are on. The power is taken directly from the fuse box and seems to work fine. Ground is grounded no problem.
Does that help at all?? :|

Here, check this picture out, slightly to the left, you can see the little round thing I was talking about... I hooked it to the tube between the round thing and the engine...

Doe, forgot to put the link...
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=35569

that's a good place to tap for boost - it's got to be an electrical issue - what did you run for wires? (i.e., need to know where you tapped to see if there could be an issue) - really sounds like the gauge is defective if everything is connected properly.

Ok, I spoke to the guy who did it... He said that the power is hooked directly to the fuse box and is a constant feed with the igition... the lighting to the gauge is hooked up to the car light switch and the ground is hooked up to the car ground... Hope it helps...

I suppose if the wiring is alright, that either the gauge or the sending unit could be defective?

That wiring is correct, and the point you tapped for the sender is good too. Sounds like a defective gauge or sender. Return it to your vendor.

Alright, guess I just might have to return it... I'm not sure how the sending module works, but if it was on upside down, I wonder if that would cause the backwards reading...Hmmm... If it works on a bubble moving up and down, then perhaps being upside down, it reads the opposite.... I wonder if I crack it open if I'll be able to return it afterwards! :)

Are you sure that sender is compatible with your gauge? At least for oil pressure senders, some increase their resistance as the pressure increases, while other are designed to decrease their resistance as the pressure increases.

It sounds like the polarity of the connections to the gauge meter is reversed. Does everything plug in and go only one way, or is is possible to easily reverse the wires that go from the sensor unit to the gauge?
Armand's suggestion above wouldn't apply to this situation, the electronic boost gauges use a pressure sensor that produces a voltage signal proportional to the manifold pressure.

WE thought of that, reversing the wires... But that's no good either, didn't do anything. And yes, they only plug in one way, everything is pretty much plug and play...

Did you ever figure it out? I'm having the same problem.

Nope, never got it figured out... i'm just gonna get a new one, switch them out of the box and return it defective... Let me know if you figure it out... I am assuming that it must be either the sender that is sending the wrong info or the actual gauge that is mis reading the info sent...

For me I think I might have mounted the MAP sensor improperly. I would assume that since it's solid state it would not be picky...but I guess I was wrong. It was suggested to me that I try mounting my sensor with the pressure port facing down(as Autometer suggests in the install instructions).

I got it fixed finally... after all that, it was the damn gauge that was bad... i changed the gauge, and POOF! everything is fine...

-- SACHIN -- I also tried changing the direction of the sender unit like the instructions say, but it changes nothing. If your wiring is done properly then it is most likely the gauge like mine. Let me know if you get it worked out.

I think the orientation of the sender has to do with condensation and is more important if the unit is mounted under the hood. I remembered it was mentioned in the directions for the Cobalt gauge, but didn't remember why when I posted that in another thread. My bad.