I'm the OP from the mastercraft post. I became a member of all of the various inboard forums years ago when I was looking for a used boat and heard this made its way over here. Glad this is working out on Supras too.Originally Posted by 2500HD
After becoming intimately involved with the Medallion gauge system I had several hypothesis about why it was appealing to the OEMs but all of them ultimately were disproved except one:
1) Simplified wiring/install during manufacture- I probably eliminated 15 ft of wire and obviously the MDC during the process of removal and didn't have to add a single inch of wire for my particular application. Theoretically they could have mounted the MDC by the engine and then only routed one bus wire up to the console for the gauges which would have saved wire (Albeit inexpensive 16-18 gauge wire) but I haven't seen any builds where they did this. All wiring from every sender runs all the way up to the console then just plugs into the MDC instead of the gauges directly. The standard gauges I used required a little more thought to connect but they do make "connectorized" analog gauges that would lend themselves to "plug and play" harness manufacture where they'd just plug the gauges in on the assembly line the same way they'd plug in the Medallion gauges. In the manner I've seen it implemented there could be no savings of time or money during manufacture with this system.
2) Consolidating sender data and giving better information and/or making decisions for the operator: This is where I really expected to find the value of this system. Water temp climbing and/or low/high oil pressure? Display a useful message on the dash and possibly take protective action for the operator against engine damage. Not only does the system not tap into the "Check Engine" light (That goes straight back to the MEFI computer. Mine functions without the MDC as it never passed through the MDC to begin with) but it has no provisions on the gauges to display such information. There is also no electrical path from the MDC to talk back to the MEFI or cut ignition to shut down the engine. The MDC/Medallion gauges, at least as implemented on my boat, is simply a 100% direct replacement for "normal" gauges that offers 0 additional functionality.
3) Other than that I only have a conspiracy theory left. It's simply to confound the shade tree mechanic and drive them to the dealer for repairs/parts. Why else would you implement a more expensive, more difficult to install during manufacture, more complex system that offers absolutely no additional functionality? At a minimum they have you on the proverbial "teat" for the life of the boat for OEM gauges and parts that otherwise could have easily been replaced with aftermarket offerings.
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