R model guages

[jerry merrill]

Does anyone know why the R models and I guess the 66 trans Am coupes had white needles on the tach and other instrument's instead of orange colored like the street cars? It seems that the orange ones would be easier to scan during a race.

[Bob Gaines]

Does anyone know why the R models and I guess the 66 trans Am coupes had white needles on the tach and other instrument's instead of orange colored like the street cars? It seems that the orange ones would be easier to scan during a race.

One reason is because that is how the SW gauges came from SW .

[jerry merrill]

Did the later R models and next years T/A cars use the white or orange needles, if they used white and street cars used orange it just seems strange unless they did not make the other gauges in orange except the oil pressure and they wanted all to match, just always wondered about that.

[Bob Gaines]

Did the later R models and next years T/A cars use the white or orange needles, if they used white and street cars used orange it just seems strange unless they did not make the other gauges in orange except the oil pressure and they wanted all to match, just always wondered about that.

The SW gauges typically used in the Competition cars (R models)were a standard in the industry. They were used in many different models of competition cars and not just Ford. The street GT350 on the other hand did not use SW gauges. You are comparing apples and oranges.

[jerry merrill]

I guess that makes sense, thanks for the info.

[paul]

I'm still confused. Why is the tachometer needle color different on the R model from the street GT 350?

[jerry merrill]

The tach was made for competition use (more reliable?) and was made by a different company

[98SVT - was 06GT]

Faria did the street car tachs if I remember. They were done to match the orange needles in the stock Mustang gauges.
R Models probably used off the shelf Stewart Warner tachs that came with white needles.
Somewhere there is a parts list of items added to the R Model that would have the make/model of the tach used.

[paul]

Fellas, I'm sorry but I'm still confused. So just to clarify the discussion for my feeble mind:

1) Jerry, your last posting ends without a period or question mark. Are you asking if the R model Tach was made by a different company or are you stating that it was in fact made by a different company?

2) 98SVT, I was under the impression the tachometer in the R model was the same as the street car(Faria) but just the needle color is white. I'll look through what I can find from back in the day to see if the Tach is listed as a Stewart Warner piece.

3) Bob, are you saying the R models used S.W. tachometers?

[camp upshur]

I seem to recall (?) that the S model tachs were ACs but I could be wrong.
My tach is devoid of any mfg ID.
Is there any Faria ID?

[Bob Gaines]

Faria did the street car tachs if I remember. They were done to match the orange needles in the stock Mustang gauges.
R Models probably used off the shelf Stewart Warner tachs that came with white needles.
Somewhere there is a parts list of items added to the R Model that would have the make/model of the tach used.

The 66 street car tachs were Faria. The 65 street car tachs were typically made by AC spark/Delco. The SW gauges were found to be more durable. I think there were some instances where a street car tach was used instead of the more reliable SW unit. Through attrition they were few and far between.

[deathsled]

Did the later R models and next years T/A cars use the white or orange needles, if they used white and street cars used orange it just seems strange unless they did not make the other gauges in orange except the oil pressure and they wanted all to match, just always wondered about that.

The SW gauges typically used in the Competition cars (R models)were a standard in the industry. They were used in many different models of competition cars and not just Ford. The street GT350 on the other hand did not use SW gauges. You are comparing apples and oranges.

Very clever analogy given that apples are white on the inside and oranges are orange on the inside.  Well done.

[6R07mi]

Very clever analogy given that apples are white on the inside and oranges are orange on the inside.  Well done.
[/quote]

as our English blokes would say "well played mate !"

jim p