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Creative Clock Replacement Options


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I think I'm giving-up on my dash-clock. I've pulled it, examined it, soldered it, replaced it, etc ... all to either temporary or no results. And I see here by reading the archives that I'm not alone. Fuji shouldda maybe let someone else handle the 'ole clock design, eh?

 

Well, I'm looking for creative things to do with the hole. It's a neat hole, clean, and the cover is still good. I suppose I could just stuff all the wires back in there and just say "She dont' work!" but for some reason I got an itch... which usually gets me into trouble.

 

Here are some (maybe even stupid) things I thought of ...

 

  • LEDs for Alarm (fake or not fake)
  • LED Tach
  • Stereo component of some kind (I have an S-50 in there now)
  • Go to my dollar store and buy one of those stick-on LCDs, hehe

What creative uses for those 4 wires have you seenor heard? What have YOU done?

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In one car it held my direct line oil guage.. used one wire for the light. For another I used some wiring to complete the wiring for my ac delco to have a dimmer switch automatically, like it would in the chevy it came from. On my current soob, the clock is 20 and still running... with full guages, I could use a suggestion or two also. I have noticed the carb models keep it longer, no doubt due to less top end engine heat and simple electrical.

I do have a mini amp meter, but the volt guage gets both like a light dimming to power drawn "why I have an ammeter"? I thought to myself.

Maybe a tranny temp guage...

rear diff temp guage like a rig would have...

air wind speed guage like an airplane... with pitot tube on the hood as an ornament :rolleyes: ...

maybe an altimeter guage!....

fuel mpg reader...

vacuum monitor...

fuel pressure...

EGT

"percent of throttle" ...

A 20 guage steel cup holder....

a small light blinking to #4 plug wire, or maybe all 4 wires on 4 lights in the shape of the firing order...

another heat duct...

onbaord video cam mount like a cop car...

one of those things that dance light to music (what is the name of that exactly?)...

a big red button with "Eject" stamped underneath...

Hmmmmm.

A rear view mirror...

outside air temp, intake air temp, humidity.. (that would go well with my old carb soob experiment)

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.

 

I suggest covering the hole with a small brass plaque which is engraved with:

 

In Honor of the employees

in the Clock-Making Division

of

Fuji Heavy Industries.

 

TEMPUS FUGIT...

but how much we will never know.

 

 

 

Tempus Fugit?!??? :lol: PRICELESS!!!!! I am STILL chuckling...

 

I like the plaque, but here is another option (the .s are just there to hold the space):

 

...THIS

.CAR IS A

TRAPEZOID

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How about a small (like 2") LCD monitor? You could install a backup camera, or your passenger could watch very tiny movies in letterbox format while cruising.

 

Now THAT is a friggin' cool idea!

 

A red led light like a Cylons faceplate

 

Yeah, I thought about that ... I was thinking K.I.T. from Knight Rider, hehe - but yeah, I like the fluidity of the Cylon Faceplate better - the LED look is way '70s ... I wonder if they make that kind of car alarm ...

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I havent had a bad clock yet, out of ALL the Soobs I've owned. Thats over 20+ of them.

 

Yeah, I thought about that ... I was thinking K.I.T. from Knight Rider, hehe - but yeah, I like the fluidity of the Cylon Faceplate better - the LED look is way '70s ... I wonder if they make that kind of car alarm ...

 

That was my first thought, but the actual display was pretty wide. Then the Cylon came to mind, kind of fitting the theme of Pliedes(sp?)

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A red led light like a Cylons faceplate:cool:

 

or a L/R scanning one like a Cylon (oops, you just saide that - I read "cyclops") or the Night Ranger (oops again, I mean KnightRider, you know, with Hasselhoff?)...

 

But my fave so far (other than the Fuji memorial plaque), is the ejector seat button. I'm picturing a protected toggle switch like you might see on "the botton" to "the bomb" like in an airplane or submarine. You always see the bomberdiers in movies flipping open the switch cover of the "pickle."

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Could shove a spirit level in there and call it good.

On my grandads rover the LCD display for the radio is there - no screen on the radio face plate just buttons - very stupid design.

 

Hows about widening the hole a bit and installing an in-dash pie warmer? :slobber:

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You know... until this thread came along, it never dawned on me that there might be a connection between the malfunctioning clock on my newly acquired Forester... and the fact that it's just another Subaru--in a long line of Subarus that have clocks that display the correct time only twice each day. Even though Subaru has made steady progress in supplying clocks that use the latest whiz-bang technology, they have yet to come up with a single model that keeps ticking longer than the first scheduled oil change.

 

Let's look at the bright side: when you buy a Subaru, you can be reasonably certain that the engine is going to give trouble-free service for well over 200,000 miles. So, when you're on your 7th trip around the earth in your aging Subaru... take a look up at the heavens thru your sunroof and say, "Hallelujah! Thank God that the managers at Fuji Heavy Industries assigned all their top-notch assembly workers to the engine factory---and assigned all the worst workers (the dropouts, malcontents, drug users, and those with sub-sub-normal IQs) to the notorious Subaru Clock Division."

 

In my opinion, Subaru management has their priorities set correctly.

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Try to imagine yourself 20 years into the future...

 

You have worked your way up in the world, and now manage your own business. Things are going great---your wife is a sex-godess, your children are smart and well-mannered, and you're making tons of money.

 

Today you need to hire a new employee. The new prospect is standing in front of your desk. You look over his resume and notice that he spent the past 12 years working for the Subaru Clock Division.

 

Do you:

  1. Hire him on the spot?
  2. Give him a pat on the back, and tell him that your competitor is looking for someone with his backround?
  3. or do you reach under the desk and fumble for that big lever that controls the trap door situated in front of the desk (right below where the prospect is standing) that leads to a long, sweeping chute---that dumps him into the city sewer system along with unspeakable filth and super-sized alligators?

 

--------

 

 

The trap door opens... and you hear a long scream that fades away for several seconds... followed by a big splash... and then a lot of desperate thrashing and nasty gurgling sounds.

 

Another Subaru Clock Division worker has earned what is due him.

 

 

 

.

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I tell him that if he can fix the clock in your Subaru that he's hired! :lol:

 

 

Today you need to hire a new employee. The new prospect is standing in front of your desk. You look over his resume and notice that he spent the past 12 years working for the Subaru Clock Division.

 

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You know... until this thread came along, it never dawned on me that there might be a connection between the malfunctioning clock on my newly acquired Forester... and the fact that it's just another Subaru--in a long line of Subarus that have clocks that display the correct time only twice each day. Even though Subaru has made steady progress in supplying clocks that use the latest whiz-bang technology, they have yet to come up with a single model that keeps ticking longer than the first scheduled oil change.

 

Let's look at the bright side: when you buy a Subaru, you can be reasonably certain that the engine is going to give trouble-free service for well over 200,000 miles. So, when you're on your 7th trip around the earth in your aging Subaru... take a look up at the heavens thru your sunroof and say, "Hallelujah! Thank God that the managers at Fuji Heavy Industries assigned all their top-notch assembly workers to the engine factory---and assigned all the worst workers (the dropouts, malcontents, drug users, and those with sub-sub-normal IQs) to the notorious Subaru Clock Division."

 

In my opinion, Subaru management has their priorities set correctly.

 

 

I think we have a winner!!

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I think it's safe to assume that Subaru is not making clocks--even though I referred to the mythical Subaru Clock Division. But that is no reason to congratulate a company that has a 20 year history of outsourcing a notoriously poor assembly. At what point to they take notice... and maybe switch suppliers?

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  • 1 year later...

I think I finally found something to do with that space ...

 

GPS

 

garmin-nuvi-670-gps-unveiled.jpg

 

I'll take out the existing clock & replace it with a GPS ... hopefully, I can find something with close dimensions. I can route power cables up & hard-wire it directly instead using the of ciggy.

 

Anyone done this?

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My solution for my 02 Impreza was getting an older Outback cassette deck that has a clock in the display. It also has weatherband!

 

But if you want a creative clock replacement solution...

Yeah boyeeeeeeeee!

 

Flavor-Flav-cc08.jpg

 

Flav don't need no clock or GPS in his Subaru!

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