Diesel Guages

They is a guy at my school who has a Dodge like I'm about to buy (late 90's, not sure if its 12V or 24V). Well he's got a lil' guage pod that has 2 guages in it right on top of the dash on the far drivers side (right above the factory guages). One is Boost I know for sure, but I can't remember what the other one is? I don't plan on towing an awful lot, but I'm buying a 96 2500 4x4 5spd Std. Cab. How import would it be to add these guages? Are they very expensive? Since this is my first Diesel truck I would have a professional install them. I imagine if I towed something everyday that they'd be very helpful, but for occasional towing and everyday driving would they be worth the $$?

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I'm no expert but I would guess the other gauge is Exhaust Gas Temp. I don't think you need gauges until you start adding more HP/Torque like bigger injectors or a fueling/timing? box. Most people who have gauges use them to monitor their truck while towing a heavy load.

i second that about the EGT gauge. If the truck is a late 90's say up until mid year 98 it will have the 12v cummins. anything after that and it will have the 24v. gauges can be very important in instances other than just towing. a boost gauge will help you diagnose problems with the intercooler lines and such. An EGT will help keep you from knowingly cooking your turbo. A general safe rule of thumb is to let the turbo cool down to about 300 degree's before you shut it off. you might what to check out http://www.turbodieselregister.com/. That site is a wealth of info for the cummins owner. be ready though, it is contagious!!!!

When you say cool down to 300 degree's do you mean like after driving for a few hours you should sit and let the truck idle until it gets down to 300 degree's before shutting it off? I'm planning on driving to Gatlinburg(unloaded)(a good 4 or 5 hours) on the interstate on Labor Day weekend. Anything I should be careful about? I wasn't thinking really hard about adding those gauges, but now it seems like a good investment for my daily driver. Any idea where I can get those two gauges at? The guy at my school has 'em in a dual pod above his speedo and etc. where can I find that at?

FOR--AND MUST--SALE!! 93 Toyota Ext. Cab 4x4 3" PA Body lift 33" Mud Brutes w/40-45% left, MUST SELL GETTING NEW TRUCK! $3,500FIRM!

sorry for the delay in getting to answer this, been on vacation. Yes it is a good idea to let the truck cool down after running for extended periods of time. The EGT generally will not build as high running unloaded as it will loaded. As far as gauges i recommend Autometer. They have the gauges and the gauge pod like you mentioned. summit or jegs usually has better prices or visit http://www.turbodieselregister.com and look through the discussion forum and you will find several diesel oriented business that will help you out with gauges. It does cost a yearly fee but you get a print magazine plus access to the forums for that price. been a member a year myself and have already saved more than the membership costs.