I once drove a USDM Hawk, though that story is for another day; a bit sad and a bit happy. But what’s important is the boost gauge that was in that Impreza: Lamco. In my opinion, it doesn’t really match the Hawk with its beautiful crimson-red Feng-shui, but I remember thinking: “Hm, in the Forester, that would look really good.” I kept it at the back of my mind thinking about it from time to time, and when, a few months later, a similar one showed up on eBay, I clicked on “Buy it now” without much hesitation. The installation is very simple and well-described at blingstorm.

(Not necessarily) step-by-step, it comes down to:

A T-piece; I have a metal (brass) one for fuel, 6x4x6mm, with nicely shaped fittings. It’s plugged in to the BOV line:

Hop across the bulkhead, through the rubber plug:

Rendezvous above the accelerator pedal and upwards we go to the steering column:

A nice surprise from FHI, a dedicated connector awaits behind the center vent and the hazard light switch:

Pro tip: the gauge’s bulb is white, but the emerald one looks so much nicer.

Final result:

The values look correct, with vacuum donw to -1 and a peak of 0.6 bar; pretty cool, might even come in handy if I ever decide to compete in a fuel-efficiency rally, since the boost to fuel consumption correlation seems obvious.

I need to get to the dial, as the needle is slightly faded and set back by about 0.1 bar. If anyone knows how to fix this, I would be very grateful. I took the gauge out of the rubber cover, unscrewed the rear panel, but I couldn’t access the dial; it looks like the glass is glued in place.

Oh, and there’s one unexpected effect of the gauge: every time I make myself a cup of coffee, I think about the Forester:

Finally, two postcards:

• Meeting a very handsome cousin:

  

• Forester as a service car at my local (completely made up) Tour de Mosina:

  

• Forester
• Sg