Bluefire vs fix guages

[Desertsparky]

I am starting to plan for our expected summer cross country trip. While we made it home with a code scanner for engine temp and a phone gps for a speedo I would love a less exciting drive this summer! I'm debating between getting the bluefire and tablet setup or looking into re soldering this gauge cluster myself. Which I have zero experience in but I am a licensed electrician. I'm fairly confident in my ability to buy a bluefire after I screw it up haha. Does anyone have any advice on which way to go. I lean towards bluefire and be done however I don't believe it will show trans temp?

[Clouse House]

Originally Posted by Desertsparky

I am starting to plan for our expected summer cross country trip. While we made it home with a code scanner for engine temp and a phone gps for a speedo I would love a less exciting drive this summer! I'm debating between getting the bluefire and tablet setup or looking into re soldering this gauge cluster myself. Which I have zero experience in but I am a licensed electrician. I'm fairly confident in my ability to buy a bluefire after I screw it up haha. Does anyone have any advice on which way to go. I lean towards bluefire and be done however I don't believe it will show trans temp?

Not sure what bus you have but I know for my 08 international RE there's a company on eBay that sells rebuilt gauge clusters for $500. Most have extra gauges compared to mine like Trans temp and an ammeter. Could work out cheaper than a bluefire.

[Desertsparky]

Sorry. 03 t444e ic body. I already have the tablet I already use in my work van for gps and scheduling app so only need to pick up the bluefire.

[rossvtaylor]

Originally Posted by Desertsparky

I'm fairly confident in my ability to buy a bluefire after I screw it up haha.

The chuckle of the day. Thanks!

The Bluefire would work fine for this and will tell you a lot more than the stock gauges. I'd suggest one of the GPS speedometers and the tablet...which you can customize to show what's important to you. I've used a Bluefire in lots of buses with pretty good success.

[Desertsparky]

That is the way I am leaning. What are the cons to using the bluefire? I dont want to go into it with rose colored glasses

[rossvtaylor]

Originally Posted by Desertsparky

That is the way I am leaning. What are the cons to using the bluefire? I dont want to go into it with rose colored glasses

None, really, if it works when you plug it in. I did find a couple of buses on which the Bluefire didn't work, or which reported just a few items, but that seemed to be a bus port issue...not the Bluefire. So, if it works on your bus it should be good to go. I found it established a BT connection quickly and was good about reconnecting when powered up. It shows a lot more info than most gauge sets, as long as the port provides it...such as transmission temp, boost pressure, and other things for which there were no gauges.

[Desertsparky]

I was under the impression trans temp didn't have a pid so it wouldn't show? If that is not the case and I can for sure get trans temp as well then I've decided haha. We live in phx area so any summer trip requires a mountain climbing. Haha

[rossvtaylor]

Originally Posted by Desertsparky

I was under the impression trans temp didn't have a pid so it wouldn't show? If that is not the case and I can for sure get trans temp as well then I've decided haha. We live in phx area so any summer trip requires a mountain climbing. Haha

The Bluefire will show whatever data it can access. I've had that show up on some buses with MD3060 or B400 transmissions, but I don't know about others.

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by rossvtaylor

The Bluefire will show whatever data it can access. I've had that show up on some buses with MD3060 or B400 transmissions, but I don't know about others.

I have an 03 IC with a DT466e and 2000-series transmission and I get transmission temperature on my Bluefire - which is great because the gauge on my physical cluster is busted.

Only important thing I don't get on my Bluefire is fuel level.

[Hutchy]

Originally Posted by rossvtaylor

The Bluefire will show whatever data it can access. I've had that show up on some buses with MD3060 or B400 transmissions, but I don't know about others.

on my 2000 BB tc1000 with a 24v 5.9 and AT545 with air brakes I don't get brake pressures or trans temp or oil temp on the BlueFire. Should I be getting that? it's the multi gauge dash

[Desertsparky]

Well it seems possible anyway. Air pressure and fuel still work. I assumed they were mechanical and not though the ecu? We have an allison 2000 trans as well

[Dbacks2k4]

Originally Posted by Desertsparky

I'm fairly confident in my ability to buy a bluefire after I screw it up haha

This made me laugh as well!

Originally Posted by Desertsparky

Well it seems possible anyway. Air pressure and fuel still work. I assumed they were mechanical and not though the ecu? We have an allison 2000 trans as well

Correct, bluefire will only report what it can read from ecm or tcm. Air pressure is almost always mechanical. I'll have to check mine next time I'm out there to see if I get fuel level, I thought I did but could be wrong.

Mine is an 06 dt466e on a CE300 body so I've got the next Gen instrument cluster that didn't suffer the bad connection points like the generation you're on. Why international upgraded that in 2005 on the conventionals but kept using the old one on the fe and re buses I'll never understand, besides the fact the conventionals got a body overhaul that year the other types didn't.... I digress, anyway my gauges all work correctly but I've got the bluefire running on a cheap galaxy tablet to view some data out of the ecm that the gauges don't tell. I may pull a Christopher level modification to get my ICP/IPR data - that's what I'm really curious about seeing regularly without having to break out servicemaxx and my nexiq

[John 321]

I’d recommend you resolder your gauge cluster and also get BlueFire. I have both working on my 1996 Thomas ER with a 2005 Cummins 5.9 and Allison 3060. I have the J1708 connector and do get transmission temp. I love the redundancy and the accuracy of the BlueFire system.