Car Thermometer
New cars and trucks normally have a factory installed car thermometerlocated in the dash or rear view mirror, but what if you have a car that doesn’t have one? No problem, you can easily pick one up and install a car thermometer yourself. There are many car thermometer models available to choose from. Usually they are supplied power by a couple ways. One common power source is the cigarette lighter. The car thermometer has an adapter that plugs into the the cigarette lighter for easy use. Another possible power source are AA batteries. It is self contained and doesn’t need to be plugged in to anything. But, the downside is the batteries must be replaced from time to time.
Some car thermometer models just give the temperature and that’s it. But there are many models available that do much more. Some features available are a clock function, compass, clock with an alarm function, switchable Celsius and Fahrenheit readings, and a save feature for the highest and lowest temperature. Some car thermometer models also have a really useful backlight which is a big help when the sun has gone down. Since the backlight pulls more power, these models usually come with a cigarette lighter power adapter. Some of the high end models have a backlight that self adjusts based on the amount of light available in the car.
All car thermometer models available do not offer the same temperature accuracy.
This is what makes the difference between a $10 car thermometer and a $100 one. It’s important to know how the car thermometer is going to get its readings. Some inexpensive models just give the temperature with an internal sensor. The problem is to use it, you have to roll down the windows. But this really defeats the purpose of having a car thermometer in the first place. For a more accurate and comfortable way to find the temperature outside, it is important to buy one with external sensors. Usually the more money you spend on one, the better the external sensors are. Some inexpensive car thermometer models come with an external sensor wire that attaches in the door cavity to take readings. Some of the more expensive models come with 10 feet of wire for the external sensors and offer dual monitors that attach inside the front bumper for very accurate temperature readings.
You should really consider what exactly you want before choosing a car thermometer. And doing your research should really help. Because if you are going to take the time to install, why not install the one you really want the first time? There is quite a variety of car thermometers on the market to choose from but choose the one that will make you happy. It’s possible to pick one up for around $10 that will give you a pretty accurate reading of the temperature outside the car. But by spending a little bit more, it’s possible to have one that gives the time, has a compass, backlight, and much more accurate reading of the temperature outside.
Also, don’t worry about the installation since it’s really not that difficult to install the car thermometer.
The unit usually attaches to the dash with double sided tape or velcro. And there’s only a couple ways to install the external sensor wires. Either run it along the dash in the gap between the dash and the window and outside to the door cavity. Or run the external sensor wire through the dash and along the side of the engine support and then down past the radiator to the bumper using wire ties to secure it. That’s all that needs to be done to have a car thermometer that gives very accurate temperature readings.
