Not long ago here was a posting for some interesting aftermarket electronic "pod" instruments. At first blush I had counted-out the optional pod instruments; the clock is redundant to the dash clock, and the tach is rather unnecessary for street driving. But I have changed my mind, not that I suddenly need either; I just think I can use the pods for other things in time.
Earlier this Fall I (well, "we;" no, "he") decided that I shall give-up (SCCA Club) racing as a driver and not seek to renew my license. Not for lack of skill or results, by my SCCA medical officer will no longer pass an arm with a permanent injury that is slowly deteriorating. I could still do OK left-hand steering while right-hand shifting a LHD car, but not the opposite in a RHD, and there is no such thing as a “LHD Only” endorsement. Time to move on. {In fact there is no going back; the race car was bought almost immediately, sight-unseen, and the last of the extras have now been picked up; just a few personal pieces of silver on the shelf and a tub of driving gear in the attic are all's that left.}
So, to move on to what? Well, a smart will do as well as anything else in SCCA Time-Speed-Distance road rallying, a much milder form of the sport than stage rallying (I just sent my stage rallying navigators manual to “tipo158”). I (correction, "we") will begin again as a rank novice team. The “we” is my wife, who can for once now be more directly involved beyond running Red Bulls, logging lap times, and tracking all the considerable expenses.
Anyway, the “pods….” In time they may be able to be re-instrumented to include a high-visibility, electronic odometer and a similar high-visibility, zero-set timepiece for the navigator, though that should wait a bit. Timepieces are pretty much an open issue, but any odometer, other than the OEM instrument in its original position, puts one up in the “Limited” class where we would be most uncomfortable as novices. The “Standard” class is intended for almost any timepiece, pencil and paper, a simple calculator, and the above OEM odometer. But, it should be fun, and the smart has plenty of cabin room for the navigator to work off a lap table and with maybe a book light, and the pods are in a very handy place. I probably will need an Edmund's Scientific catalog.
I can't find the original posting about the aftermarket pods; can the member who provided the info post a link or address in case I need some professional help?
Today
Linear Mode
