vehicle compass

[Kottonwood]

So I really love having a compass in a vehicle. My f150 has a nice built in digital one that is easy to calibrate and has never failed me. However I am now looking to purchase an older vehicle that doesn't have one in it. I have bought cheapo ones in the past and they never seem to work for long if at all. Others I have used seem to be effected by the vehicle and always point to one direction.

Any one know of a good one to buy?

 

[Arclight]

Airguide is the traditional choice for mechanical ones. Make sure you test it in place and see if it will calibrate before you permanently mount it. On my old Bronco, the compass had to be moved 2" away from the center of the dashboard due to the extra steel there.

Or get yourself a rearview mirror with compass. The company that makes these for all of the car OEMs is called "Gentex" and they do sell them as kits for a lot of vehicles. Or save yourself some money and get one at the junkyard from an Escalade, Tahoe or other high-optioned car. There are all kinds of forum instructions on how to harvest and reinstall the correct set of parts, such as this one:

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f12/auto-dimming-rearview-mirror-compass-temperature-install-1459831/

Arclight

 

[deserteagle56]

I gave up on having a compass mounted in my rigs once I started using my Garmin Montana. There's about 50 different data parameters it can monitor for you in addition to compass heading. And because it uses GPS to determine the heading it seems to wander much less than a regular compass. Plus you have that map that scrolls along with you as you drive and provides all sorts of useful information. Not to mention that you can create "tracks" to follow along if you are in an unfamiliar area!

 

[holl]

I put a junk-yard rear view mirror with compass in my old suburban. If you decide to go that way find a donor with only the compass and temperature and get the temperature sensor. Avoid the models with the onstar or passenger airbag sensor. Mine works fine.

 

[1stDeuce]

Yup. Junkyard rearview out of any GM truck with buttons that say "Comp" and "Temp" is easy to install. Get a short chunk of the harness that comes out from under the headliner (Pull the overhead bin to get more of it.) and one of the temp sensors and connector from behind the grille. (There are two, and either one should work.) Mirror needs constant power, keyed power, ground, and two wires to the temp sensor. Done.

The other source for a good mirror, but a little harder to find is Jeeps. TJ's after 2003 had Comp/Temp mirrors with built in LED map lights, which is nice.

Any pull-it yourself junkyard should have the GM version, or buy one off Ebay perhaps??
C

 

[craig333]

My compass sits behind the wheel. Its about 90% accurate. That other 10% I wish I had a compass.