So, I found an inclinometer locally (not an easy task) but turned out to be from a tercel but figured i'd buy it since it was cheap. Thinking i'd keep on looking for the altimeter one, I decided to go to town on this for something different. I dont like the DIN setup since I have the factory double din deck and when you need to know the angle, the last thing you are doing is looking down! So I gutted it a bit and found a mini led flashlight which i dremmelled and extended one of the led connectionswith some good ol' fashion solder and wire to point the other direction to disperse the light. I lined up the flashlight button with the already present light bulb hole. I fibreglassed the exterior of the gauge unit to make it more aesthetic and mounted a cell phone windshield mount..I painted it brown, but may paint the next one black when i do one with the altimeter...whew,,,onto pics.

LED's and gauge

 

OK, you lost me at this point...

 

well not sure what you mean... Its not easy to find inclinometers, let alone used toyotas. And inclinometers were offered in older tercel 4wd models. The difference between the two was the tercels had a 4wd indicator light instead of the altimeter

 

4x4 tercel???

 

looks good to me! a good option if you don't want to drill into your dash or mod for a DIN, or if you can't put it on your dash if it's not flat (like my 3rd gen). good job!

 

yes I have a 3rd gen as well and it just looked ghetto putting the whole thing on the dash..and then the wiring would have to be routed, but i did not want to drill my dash.

And for the 3rd time? yes a tercel 4wd. as in toyota tercel..the 80's station wagon version of the tercel could be found in a 4wd model..you guys need to do your homework.

 

Looks good 'zilla... with a little work you could make the 4wd indicator functional if you wanted to...
as another mounting option suggestion if you don't/can't do the dash top or DIN mount for the incinometer you could frankenstein the case or something and mount it to the top of the windshield frame.

 

ya, it was a thought but then figured to make this a removeable piece with no hardwires. and I already have the glowing wheels in the dash to tell me my 4wd status. Once I find one with an altimeter I will make a 3rd led to run behind. this is my prototype i suppose. I considered the upper winshield area, but there is too much goin on up there with the mirror and sunroof controls and etc.

 

Yes, 4wd tercel





I never had any luck with those suction cup mounts. They ALWAYS came off. I don't think it will work, especially with the weight of that inclinometer.

 

well so far so good,,hit some bumpiness and it is cold here as well (-25C). This mount actually seems beefy compared to others i saw. I also rest an edge on the dash to prevent shaking and no probs so far.
Only problem was getting it on before the windshield got warm enough..

 

When i get the one with the altimter and modify that one I am most likely going to go with a RAM mount. All will be well with that, but for the moment this one is doing suprisingly well

 

OMG someone still has the 4wd Tercel and it's in good shape too!!!
And the inclinometer looks sweet !

 

It is the only FWD car with a transfer case that has low range. Awesome little cars!

James

 

VERY hard to come by !

 

didn't subaru loyales have FWD/4hi/4lo?

And I've driven one of those 4wd tercels, and offroaded it as well! I'll see if i can dig up pictures...

 

If you have a hard time with the mount, buy a Sirius radio window mount. You can buy them cheap and the suction is fairly heavy duty and can withstand the weight of the inclinometer. Just need to mod it a bit for the guage.

 

Yes, I used to have one. It had a better low range than my friends Suzuki.

I agree. I have the window mount for my Sirius radio and it is very stout. I have one of the larger receivers and have had no problems at all.

 

It would be pretty cool to lock one of those 4wd Corollas or Tercels, or Subarus with a low range and have them outwheel some jeeps. Ground clearance would be a bit of an issue but many times you loose traction before gournd clearance is and issue.

What is the point of a inclinometer? I've never flopped but a couple times I cam close. It seems to me it was pretty easy to tell when you had me make a quick turn down hill by the pucker factor.

 

Your inclinometer installation looks outstanding - 1st one I have ever seen like that.