Boned Instrument Cluster

[RipNGrip]

HEy guys,

I have a gts4-t and have recently got full time employment and a daily driver. So i have been modding my car......... BIG surprize! on the weekend i installed whiteface dials to the cluster and LEDS however i think i have BONED my entire dash! speedo doesn't work tacho starts at 2000 rpm and moves to 3 grand. TEmp and oil move up to the max.. etc.......... nothing works Now i did remove the needles carefully with a fork and place them back in position however should i:

1. found another gts4 cluster straight replacement - forget about white face

2. buy a gt-r cluster and pay for a rewire of the dash

3. Send it to a instrument repair

IF ANYONE has any ideas, thoughts, abuse, and something i could try FIRE away.......

Edited April 30, 2007 by RipNGrip

[TramanBaba]

HEy guys,

I have a gts4-t and have recently got full time employment and a daily driver. So i have been modding my car......... BIG surprize! on the weekend i installed whiteface dials to the cluster and LEDS however i think i have BONED my entire dash! speedo doesn't work tacho starts at 2000 rpm and moves to 3 grand. TEmp and oil move up to the max.. etc.......... nothing works Now i did remove the needles carefully with a fork and place them back in position however should i:

1. found another gts4 cluster straight replacement - forget about white face

2. buy a gt-r cluster and pay for a rewire of the dash

3. Send it to a instrument repair

IF ANYONE has any ideas, thoughts, abuse, and something i could try FIRE away.......

what kind of white faced dials are we talking about it? The el ones off ebay? If so I thought they were slide on replacements to the stock dials. You wouldnt have needed to remove the needles..

well if all fails you could get another cluster off surprise surprise.. EBAY for $50 or so..

[Baconer]

sounds like you put the needles too far in or not far enough, its very very touchy, works out to be a couple of mm between right depth and wrong. Pull the needles out again and try driving the car with cluster plugged in but without plastic cover so you can adjust it if necessary while driving. If its still rooted then take it to an auto electrician or buy a new cluster

[RipNGrip]

Thanks for the input guys if u ever return to this tread to read it. It was a replacement white face not the EL ones that slide over the orginials it was from Reckless motor sports... Good dials but i definiately will try baconer idea...... sounds like a go'er

thanks again guys i will post an update - car is not in a good running state currently! awwwwwwwwwww i miss boost! daily driver is an N/A

[BAMR33]

You will need to re-calibrate the gauges. I'll try'n find a thread how to. Also try to remember where your fuel needle was because it's essential to get your petrol gauge accurate.

I'm surprised the kit didn't come instructions covering this.

[RipNGrip]

Yeh there was instuction and there was a disclaimer about the needle removal. Surprize surprize! the instructions stress that u need to take a photo of where the needles are! and i took note! Ie you only need to look at the fuel guage! all the rest should be at the bottom! How do u recalibrate???

[Baconer]

1. Pull out the needle stops

2. Take car for a drive with a friend in their car and test it out at different speeds (20, 30,40 etc) until you are getting the right speed

2a. If needles are reading too high, wind past the needle stop position (you will feel some resistance, push a little past it) and test again

2b. If too low, push in the opposite direction (go clockwise till resistance, push past)

2c. If the needle movement is slow (lagging behind actual speed then catches up) then the needles are inserted too far into the circuit, raise it a little (pull needle gently) and test again

2d. If needle does not move at all it isnt inserted far enough.

3. Continue adjusting until it reads correctly

Same goes for all the gauges(speedo, fuel, oil pressure, oil temo, tacho)

Speedo - Follow what i said above

Tacho - Go by the sound of the engine or if you remember what revs you were at in a certain gear at a certain speed (eg. In 2nd gear at 40km im at around 3k rpm). Adjust till you get it correct

Oil Pressure - Get the car up to operating temp and make it so the needle sits in the right place (hopefully you rememebr where it was positioned)

Oil Temp - Same deal as above, warm car to operating temp and get the needle to read around the middle, should be a marker on gauge face where the middle/ ideal temp is

Fuel - This one i buggered myself as it has a weird resistance to it but im too lazy to fix it Just fill the car up at a servo and get the needle to read full.

If your still having problems after this, pay someone to fix it.

[RipNGrip]

Thanks champ, I am hoping this is what my problem is! i wil have a go tomorrow - my day off! sweet and i will keep u posted!

[RipNGrip]

quick update: I have taken out the speedo and pulled out the needles a little bit and tinkered with the idea of replacing the individual dials (the white plastic mechanises behind the faces/plastic diffusers). Re-calibrated the tacho as baconer suggested ! and the tacho is now working well! however considering my skyline is broken down severly and i haven't been able to go boosting for a while i can' re-calibrate the speedo/temp/oil guage...... my skyline sounds like a rexy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!