External Thermometer

Wow! Thank you! I think I'll order my temp monitor this weekend. The one that is in my wife's car has been a life saver. Here in Central NH, the temps at the road level can hover right at the freezing mark and if it starts to rain, it will freeze as it hits the asphalt. My old Wrangler didn't have a temp sensor in it...I took a few slides down the road because of it. I learned to tell when the road noise diminished, I was probably on black ice.

 

Yeah we get black ice here too.
Good luck this winter and keep the shiny side up and pointin straight down the road.

 

I went original and installed a factory display from an early model in my overhead console

 

I contacted Bob at bobs mirrors and got a Gentex with an external temp sensor. $130 and looks like OEM. Bob is very knowledgable too, I recommend him without a doubt.

 

+1. That's the general area where I installed the probe on my 1st Gen. It works well as long as you're moving and/or the engine is running because that keeps air moving around the probe. When you park, however, the "heat bubble" around the engine will cause false high readings until you get the air moving again.

+1 for Bob (aka @RJP869). I just upgraded my rear-view mirror with one from him. He provided solid advice throughout a smooth transaction.

 

Bear with me...I could answer a thousand questions about Jeep TJs but this Tacoma thing is very new to me. My 2010 Tacoma is a base model...it came with no compass/outside temp installed but it does have backup camera in the RV mirror. Is the wiring already installed in the truck in the vicinity of the rearview mirror so if I find a used one in a scrapped out Tacoma somewhere, will it fit (and work) if I were to swap it with the mirror in my truck right now?

 

I'm not familiar with 2010 MY details/wiring but, according to the brochure, an "electrochromic mirror with integrated backup camera monitor" was part of the SR5, TRD OR, and TRD Sport packages; and was standard equipment on the X-Runner. It connects via a 14-pin wiring harness that extends down from above the headliner. The mirror-side connection is the white receptacle at the center, top of this photo:


The more difficult question is, if the plug is present in your truck, what connections are ready for use and which ones aren't. (e.g., The temperature probe may not be present behind your grill.) Note also that you may have a hard time finding an inexpensive mirror upgrade. Depending on specific features (e.g., monitor, temperature, compass, HomeLink, etc) and vendor, they range in price from a couple hundred to several hundred dollars.