Back in the Fox days, the most common method of tuning was to increase timing until detonation, and back it off a couple degrees. Like Fox cars, that method was crude, but a dyno wasn’t on every other street corner at that time. Plus, tuning was even more of a black art then compared to now. Let’s be honest, we weren’t making a ton of power, either. Most of us were happy to make 300 horsepower at the wheels, and if you were making 500-600 horsepower, you were already consulting the experts.
After a while, we saw the introduction of piggyback computers, standalone engine management systems, and the growth of the professional tuner. All of these spawned the popularity of air/fuel gauges and wideband sensors. Air/fuel gauges and wideband sensors became commonplace, to the point where today, every other Mustang has an air/fuel gauge in it.
And that includes our Terminator-swapped 1994 Cobra. However, our AEM air/fuel gauge started to show a lean condition so we reached out to our tuner Lee Blanksenship of Blankenship Tuning and Performance. He wanted to see a log; we used our SCT X4 handheld to send Lee a datalog so he could look everything over. Everything as far as air/fuel, timing, fuel pressure, and the like, came back fine. Lee suggested we take a look at our existing air/fuel gauge/wideband sensor.
Not knowing the exact age of our wideband sensor, but knowing our car had been subjected to a variety of fuels, it started to make sense that it could be our sensor had lived a rough life. Simply put, time and being exposed to various fuels can shorten the life of a wideband sensor, which caused the incorrect reading with our air/fuel gauge.
To remedy this, we called up our friends at AEM for a new wideband sensor and air/fuel gauge combination. AEM’s X-Series Wideband UEGO AFR Sensor Controller Gauge (PN 30-0300) is the company’s latest and greatest, so we thought it was the perfect replacement for our existing wideband and sensor arrangement. The new AEM X-Series retails for roughly $190, but you can get a silver bezel and whiteface gauge accessory kit (PN 30-0300-ACC) for roughly $10. Until we bring you the full install, here’s a look at unboxing the new AEM X-Series Wideband UEGO AFR Sensor Controller Gauge.
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