I put this tach in my 84 Rx-7 GSL-SE autocross car and I'm quite
pleased with it to say the least. On a whim I started the installation
at the track after going through registration. I tapped the signal
off my MSD ignition and configured the tach per the instructions, 2 x
number of rotors. I was initially concerned that the double sided
foam tape wouldn't be able to handle the 1.5g that my car can achieve
but it hasn't had a single problem.
My favorite feature, LIGHT WEIGHT! This thing is incredibly light.
It's easily 1/3 the weight of any other similarly sized tach that I
looked at. Even the guys at the local race shops said that their
'race' tachs would only work well in a straight line. Anything with
corners in it, such as road racing or autocrossing, would radically
shorten the life of the tachs they sold. They were simply too heavy.
Another favorite feature is the two stage shift light. I have mine
set to start flashing at 6,500 and go solid at 7,500. Time and time
again that has proven to be an invaluable tool. The only drawback
here is that the tach doesn't come with a real sized shift light. I
would advise that you get the bigger shift light that is an option for
this tach. Very large and very bright LED that I haven't had any
problems seeing on very bright days in direct sunlight. The shift
light is definately $40 well spent.
The tach has a very wide useful range, 0 - 12,500 RPM. Wide enough for
all but the highest revving peripheral port engines. The tach isn't
keyed to the mount anywhere so it's easy to put the most useful RPM
range at the easiest to read position. For me that means putting
6,000 right at the top and paying attention to the 4,000 to 8,000 RPM
range.
The thirty second memory is somewhat handy. Even with the datalogger
I have in the autocross car it's useful. I have found that I can
learn a lot about my starts just but watching the replay right after I
make a run at the autocross course. This feature in particular is
very useful for drag racing types.
Feature for feature this tach is definately my pick for any serious
sport or competition use. Other tachs such as Autometer's Ultra-Lite
series with playback are literally hundreds more with no significant
differences. Taken with the advice of several local race shops that
I've visited not to use heavier tachs in cars that corner, the Apex-i
was quite literally the only tach that suited my needs. Big bonus
that it cost $250 less than the other tachs I was
considering at the time.
Thanks to Anthony at Gotham Racing for
his suggestion to look at this tach.
Tim Schuh
President
D/FW Rx-7 Club
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