Well, the mod was a success, and no wire cutting/splicing is necessary.
The wires to the temp sensor are violet, and green with black tracer. It is the sensor on the left side, facing the engine. The grille should be removed for easier access.
You will be able to confirm you have the correct sensor, by unplugging it and turning the ignition on and observing the temp gauge. It should read -49F or -45C depending on the setting you have it on. After confirming, switch off and remove negative battery lead.
The wire loom that the sensor wires feed into is located along the bottom of the cavity between the bumper and A/C condensor. The loom can be made accessible by pulling out on the 2 center loom holders (plastic) and lifting up on the 2 metal holders that slide into the supports on either side of the condensor.
Remove the tape holding the right side plastic loom holder to gain access to the wires in the loom. Pull out the wires going to the left temp sensor. There is enough slack to allow you to relocate the sensor to the area where the bottom tube from the air box rests above the driver's side front fender. It can be wire tied in place there.
The loom can now have the plastic holder taped back into position, and the loom remounted.
Remove airbox to give access to the mounting location and to aid in passing the wire through the space to the right of the condensor, which looks like a piece of roofing tar paper. It has enough give in it to easily pass the sensor wires through it to the engine compartment. Wire tie the sensor in. The grille can now be replaced.
Now would be a good time to remove the upper and lower silencers from the airbox (if you haven't already done so), before replacing the airbox. Don't forget to reconnect the negative battery wire.
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Ambient temp this morning was 73F. I started the car and did some driving and recorded the following:
9:33 AM Trip Odometer set to 0.0 73F outside temp
.4 to .6 miles started rising and stabilized at 86F
1.0 miles 84F @ 60 MPH
1.2 miles 83F @ 60 MPH
1.3 miles 82F @ 60 MPH
1.6 miles 81F @ 60 MPH
1.9 miles 80F @ 60 MPH
2.3 miles 79F @ 60 MPH
3.5 miles 78F @ 60 MPH
3.7 miles - 9:39 AM Traffic light stayed at 78F (short light)
4.0 miles 79F @ 60 MPH
8.0 miles 78F @ 50 MPH
8.3 miles 77F @ 50 MPH
In town, I had to make a few stops, and had someone in the car, so I left the car running with the A/C on. During that time the temp jumped from 95F to 140F, and when I started going again it fell from 140F to 95F. This happened 2 cycles; I was able to see it make the jump one time.
After those 2 cycles, the temp started tracking higher than 95F, and the highest recorded temp was 112F in stop and go driving with the A/C on. Normal up and down tracking through the 95F previous jump point was observed. End of trip, after 49.2 miles on the trip meter, the temp was 84F.
I don't know if the 2 cycles to 140 and back to 95 before it started tracking properly was a fluke or not. However, in driving under varying conditions I found it would track the intake air temp (at the point where the air enters the air box) fairly accurately, and give a good overview of what the temp of the air getting to the intake is.
The mod is easily reversible, and leaves no tracks. No wires were cut. The tape that was removed to gain access to the loom was easily replaced, and everything is stock appearing.
It is possible to add a DPDT switch to the overhead console, and an extra temp sensor to allow you to toggle between ambient temp and intake temp. I can provide a circuit diagram for anyone wanting to do that.
I took a number of pics, each averaging 60K documenting the steps taken in doing the relocation. I will be glad to email them to anyone who can put the process together for a DIY topic. I may be able to get a web page together and provide a link outlining the process.
As with all mods, do at your own risk. This one seems fairly harmless, and gives a way to tell the air intake temp
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