Well, it is finally installed!
The first of two oil pressure gauges is installed in my CRD now, with the second one going onto Papaindigo's CRD tomorrow as part of the turbo install.
A couple quick observations of what you can expect from this install: NO DRILLING / TAPPING! Yes, that is correct, it has a threaded plug that you will need to extract, then you can use that port and just put it all together. The front port that I was hoping to use... Completely useless. You can see it, but there isn't really any way to get TO it without removing a LOT and most likely draining the cooling system. You will need an adapter to change the metric threads to 1/8" NPT, but after that, it is just a matter of installation.
What do you need to remove to install this in the furthest-back port? Surprisingly little.
Start off by removing the airbox and the two air hoses on the turbo, you will need the room. If you feel adventurous and have a long support, you might also want to remove the passenger-side hood strut. Slip some needle-nose pliers under the metal band on each end of the strut and gently pull out. It should lock in the open position, then just slide it off the bulb. Again - you will need the room, this is a long reach.
Unbolt the two support nuts on the coolant tank, and flip it upward toward the passenger fender. The goal is to never drain the cooling system, and I have managed to do all this with the bottle still attached and full. Hopefully your hoses will allow you to do the same. If you can, after removing the turbo's heat shield, you may want to move the water bottle over the top of the turbo and forward. Everything else you do will be behind the turbo, from the fender side, and it is really in the way there. The smaller hose on the passenger side of the bottle was the only one I needed to unhook (on another day) and re-route around the AC lines so the bottle can be more easily moved toward the front.
OK - Pull the turbo's top heat shield if you haven't already.
Unlock the clamp on the turbo downpipe, and let the pipe droop toward the fender and down as much as possible - you need it out of the way.
Reach down to the next heat shield, this one may or may not have a bolt into the bell housing, and it should have one pointing away from you just out of sight under the exhaust manifold. 10mm socket will pull that out, remove the heat shield.
Now your target is in sight!
This is a plug with a copper washer under it, and REALLY cranked tight. It is a 6mm hex, I would strongly suggest using a 3/8" socket-adapter hex to remove it. I got a metric kit at Home Depot for $12 with this size in it, worked great. Take the socket adapter and put it in WITHOUT any extensions on it, and using a 1/4" extension into the top of the socket (yes I know it will be too small) tap it HARD with a wrench or hammer - The hex on mine *felt* like it was correctly seated... And I nearly messed up the socket because it had gotten stuck on filth only about 1/8" in or so. Make sure that thing is IN THERE before you try to unlock it.
You WILL need a wobble head extension rod to get at it, and I would suggest at least 2 full 1-foot extensions to get the wrench out to the hood line so you have the leverage you will need. You may also need to do what I did, extending your socket handle using a cheater bar or large box wrench to get enough force. Once it cracks loose however, it should come right out without fuss.
Now, you have this image in front of you!
Set your self up with the adapter, and then some of the following parts:
Note the plug in those two images, you can discard that now.
These parts might be available at your local NAPA, but I also found them at Home Depot. This is basic brass 1/8" NPT stuff.
Here it is installed:
Now, the problem you may encounter if you are using the same adapter design we are - That hex on the base is 19mm or 3/4"... And is ***VERY*** close to the bell housing. So close that even a thin-wall socket will barely fit. I managed to get that adapter tight to the copper washer with a socket I had, but just barely. The problem is there is a protrusion on the bell housing that sticks right where you need the socket to be. Future versions of this adapter will hopefully address this by being milled smaller to an 18mm or 17mm socket size. You CANNOT tighten the brass and expect it to tighten the adapter onto the crush washer. I tried, and wasn't happy with the results, it wasn't tight enough.
Once the adapter is in, install the brass extension and the elbow you have chosen for your sensor. I used the 90 degree elbow, and this is what the final setup looks like:
I was not able to re-install my heat shield on this, because that sensor is so freakishly huge. Papaindigo's sensor is smaller, so we might be able to modify the shield and use it on his, but I'm not convinced of that yet. I realize that there is a lot of heat potential in that area, but at the same time... There isn't anything hazardous that will happen if the shield isn't there - The worst that will happen is that the sensor quits working. I'm not expecting that however. I had removed my forward heat shield which is a LOT closer to the thermostat housing several weeks ago, and nothing has happened there yet. Yes, I'm putting that forward shield back in tomorrow when I go for another look at this to check for leaking. Everything here has at least 2 inches of clearance to a heat source, so I think the setup will be fine. The hottest points are on the turbo anyway, which is further away.
Operating pressures - I would like to get a baseline recorded from anyone that does this, so people can confirm if their system is working normally. I have a fresh oil change, and with a warm engine, it is running about 35psi at 60mph, 40psi at 70mph, with idle at 20psi. Remember, this is measuring the pressure gallery that feeds the 4 cylinders and the turbo, so there are a lot of outlets for the pressure. I would like the numbers to be higher, but I think this is about right. I will be contacting VM on Monday for their opinion about these pressures... But at the same time, my CRD is running great, so these numbers must be correct.
any thoughts?
Can anyone think of a way to have the fittings of this same mod lead to a canister that would feed oil back to the turbo after shutdown, and is that port in a position to provide any cooling to the turbo bearings? What I'm trying to come up with is a way to not have to idle when you park in your garage, or wherever, and thought this might be a possibility. The canister would have to fill without starving vital cooling of other parts though, so I'm guessing it would have to be really fancy, like a diaphram with Nitrogen or something else ridiculous? Or perhaps a very small fill hole that would fill after a while and would drizzle oil back through turbo guts after shutdown. 
