Scanmaster LT1 Installation

I finally got around to ordering a Scanmaster LT1 from TBryne Motorsports to help me tune the engine and solve some of those weird problems that crop up. The Scanmaster is made by Modern Musclecar and is a very cool and needed device for monitoring your engine. It's an odd little thing, about the size of a small radar detector, and doesn't come with any mounting brackets, and there isn't any provision on the outside of the case for mounting anyway. I'm assuming most people tape it to the steering console or someplace on the dash where you can see it easily. After giving it much thought, and not finding a mounting place to my liking elsewhere, I decided to mount it a little more permanently. As usual, I decided to post the pictures in case someone else was interested in how I did mine. Basically, my goal was to mount it more permanently in position where it was easiest to see and use, and looked cool.

 

Note: If you have a Camaro instead of a TransAm, check out Brent Franker's Install of the ScanMaster in his '96 Camaro.

The first thing I did was decide approximately where I wanted it to be mounted at. I chose inside the instrument cluster "tunnel" since that was best line-of-sight and would shield it from sunlight so I could read it on bright sunny days. Once I decided where it would look the best, I made a little mark around one corner of it to mark my spot. Don't try to draw all the way around it -- save that for when you remove it off the car.
To remove the console cover, remove your steering wheel adjustment knob by turning it, and remove the back of the little black plastic cover that covers the wires for your blinker post. The black plastic cap comes right off with minimal prying on mine.
Carefully measure and mark out where you want to cut the hole at. I put a little tab in the front to keep the front part of the Scanmaster from going too far up into the hood.
Carefully begin cutting the hole out. I used a Dremel tool to cut out a hole, but you could also do it with a file and a hacksaw blade after drilling a couple large holes. You can see a small booboo in the back where I accidentally scraped the back part. This will be behind the Scanmaster and can't be seen. Try not to do what I did! It's not an expensive part to replace if you mess the whole thing up. It just a simple plastic hood.
As you get close to completing the hole, shape the hole in small amounts checking often with the Scanmaster to see how it's fitting, and where you need to remove material. The more time you spend here crafting the final hole, the better it'll look in the end. You may also notice that I made a little notch in the back for the cable to go through. I did this to make it easier to mount in the way I wanted. The Scanmaster mounted in from the bottom, but the cable from it needed to go over the top. It was necessary in order to slip the cable up through the hole first, then insert the Scanmaster. The cable actually lies on top.
Once you have it all fitting the way you want, run a bead of adhesive around the edges to hold it in place. I used body trim adhesive which is strong and stays somewhat pliable. It'll also make it easier to remove if I need to have it serviced. The final hole I cut fit snugly enough that it all stayed in place even without the adhesive.
Here's a driver's view of what it looks like all put back together. Make sure all the clips for the hood go back in their respective holes and it all fits snug. There is actually a considerable amount of room behind that where you could inset it farther up into the hood if you want. Mine is inset about a 1/4 inch or so, and easily clears all the gauges so it doesn't interfere with them visually. Looks killer at night along with the rest of the gauge cluster. I also don't have to worry about someone coming along and stealing it. All wiring is behind the hood and I wired it all in permanently. No muss, no fuss. Looks almost factory! Enjoy!

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