Our 2019 Civic Si came from the factory with some thorough instrumentation. In addition to the usual–road speed, engine speed and even a temp gauge which, these days, can be seen as a bit of a luxury–the Civic’s dash can also display mpg, turbo boost, throttle application, brake pressure, G-forces and even a shift light.
But we have been going a bit deeper using the Banks iDash Datamonster. It packs a Godzilla amount of data into a standard 2-1/16-inch pod.
Step 1: Connect the iDash’s cord to the OBD port. On the Civic, it’s located beneath the dashboard, kind of to the left of the steering column.
Step 2: Place the iDash in available pod mount.
Step 3: Attach the pod to the windshield using the included suction cup–and we should note that it’s the stickiest suction cup known to humankind.
Step 4: Decide what you want to monitor. Banks notes that just using the OBD port provides up to 80 channels of info. What kind of info? All kind of stuff, from basics like rpm and various system temperatures to turbo speed, air/fuel ratio, fuel rail pressure and more.
The iDash can display up to eight channels of info, and the location of each cell can be customized. The colors of the display can also be changed. The four buttons on the display face control everything. Easy.
The iDash can also operate as a warning light, as parameters can be programmed in. If something gets too hot–or too fast or too slow or too whatever–the gauge will instantly flash an alert. This unit can also record data and, to be honest, we’re just cracking into that feature.
So, where does this device fit in our world? It’s a clean, easy way to add more instrumentation–no cutting, no custom work, no mess. It’s a simple plug-and-play solution that doesn’t take up much space.
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