Awron/Alpina Guage

[e46tiag]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but does the screen not take up the full width? Seems like it is not wide screen so the sides are just black borders which is a waste of space. For that price, they should at least make the screen bigger/wider. Otherwise, it looks pretty cool.

[Jadar]

Looks amazing for sure. All the more reason this should already come from the factory via I drive infotainment screen as standard on all M cars!!

[Venom]

Originally Posted by Jaguar

The fact that this is the gauge Alpina puts in their cars from the BMW factory, really solidifies it for me and explains why it is so OEM looking!

I'd really like to know where you get this info. Never heard it from AWRON and it would be killer if they put it in their ad. (e.g. Official part manufacturer for Alpina)

[jaehshim]

nice tech for sure, especially for like a track day car
for daily use, give me back my AC vent, especially in a hot summer day with black interior

[tom @ eas]

Originally Posted by Venom

I'd really like to know where you get this info. Never heard it from AWRON and it would be killer if they put it in their ad. (e.g. Official part manufacturer for Alpina)

We are the US importer for Awron displays, this came from Awron direct. Here's a video of the Alpina B3 BiTurbo at the 2013 Geneva Salon, the gauge may look a bit familiar (logo at 0:26):

Most times why you do not see this advertised is due to pre-exisiting contractual agreements.

[Venom]

Originally Posted by tom @ eas

We are the US importer for Awron displays, this came from Awron direct. Here's a video of the Alpina B3 BiTurbo at the 2013 Geneva Salon, the gauge may look a bit familiar (logo at 0:26):

Most times why you do not see this advertised is due to pre-exisiting contractual agreements.

Thanks Tom! That is a really cool vid!
Shame if a contractual agreement is stopping them. Device looks tops!

[tooch]

Damn looks good, looks high tech! I'm still on the fence though..... Do I really need it?

[RoboM]

Does it mean that there still cold air from the aircon flowing behind the display?

[s!ke]

Originally Posted by TurboSid

It's cool... just not sure $1k+ cool.

Shit this looks awesome. But maybe for the $350+ price that is the current price for the vent gauges haha

[s!ke]

Originally Posted by RoboM

Does it mean that there still cold air from the aircon flowing behind the display?

Good thinking!

Is it blocked off behind the display?
If not, will the cold (or hot) air effect the display or wiring in anywAy

[s!ke]

Originally Posted by Plano

I like the idea, but removing the air vent is a definite no no for me. Now everything looks just looks kinda off, id have to remove the air vent next to it feel better about the look. Wish they had a better way to integrate it, oh well. Definitely cool though...

I would rater remove the left air vent (to the left if the wheel)

Is this interchangeable or only for the center left vent?

[Narek]

Having the AWRON gauge for my 1M, I can make a few contributing points.

Firstly, the look and feel is so OEM because thats what 90% is - the stock vent frame. What AWRON does apart from inserting the actual display, is a frame that goes around the display and allows it to fit into one air vent. If you deconstruct it, you will actually find the holes from the vent flaps still there, as AWRON doesnt fabricate new vent panels but rather uses the BMW ones.


Another observation i made was, when i tried to manually deconstruct the whole thing and fit the screen on the right vent, the only thing not compatible is the aforementioned smaller bracket around the display that allows it to fit into the vent. I.E., if anyone has means to get a custom fabricated plastic shell identical but inverse (mirror effect) to the bracket that AWRON makes, you could switch the place of the screen to the right vent within 15 minutes.

Gauge looks great OP, and i completely agree that its worth every cent.

[ijahman]

Perfect just added one to my M5...

[clbmw]

Originally Posted by bdoooh

Cool but I dunno how anyone can lose that vent.. It's the only vent powerful enough to blast cool air in your face....

+1 !!

[pokerface]

Very neat. But BMW or somebody should make an idrive app with these functions instead.

[Welcome to NBA Jam]

Originally Posted by bdoooh

Cool but I dunno how anyone can lose that vent.. It's the only vent powerful enough to blast cool air in your face....

I've been interested in this gauge for a while. I decided to test out not having the vent by disabling the front-right vent for a month. I ended up not even realizing it was gone after a few weeks. Blocking off that single vent created more blowing force out of the other vents as well, so I didn't miss it that much.

Give it a try for a few weeks, and you'll have your answer for if this gauge is for you

[jeff@autocouture]

love the awron vent

[BGR]

I like the look/idea, but as other have said I'm not sure if I could lose a vent.

Isn't there some way to feed the brain into a "hacked" iDrive screen?

[stefan]

Originally Posted by BGR

I like the look/idea, but as other have said I'm not sure if I could lose a vent.

Isn't there some way to feed the brain into a "hacked" iDrive screen?

Likely not as BMW's system is closed source. But I'd like to think there's a better option than losing such a crucial vent. Monitoring boost, oil temps, etc is quite important. Maybe not today with the cars being so new. But even if you're just street driving, such information is must-have for troubleshooting. It will make your life much easier when pinpointing problems.

[pkimM3r]

looks like some of the readings arent real time. is there a lag or is it set to a max mode or something?

[tom @ eas]

Originally Posted by SlowSaloonM3

looks like some of the readings arent real time. is there a lag or is it set to a max mode or something?

No lag. HP/TQ cannot be correctly read while strapped to a chassis dyno.

[pkimM3r]

whats with all these "this info is great for street driving" type of comments? lol