no dash lights, flaky tach, temp and fuel gauge not working...what gives?

[neumann]

on an 82 300TD (wagon)....no dash lights, flaky tach, temp and fuel gauge not working...what gives?

anyone have a pic of a "jumped" reostat (spelling?)?

[Ken in NC]

You most likely have a loose electrical plug on the back of the dash. Fashion a stiff wire with a small hook in the end, and use the hook to wiggle the dash cluster out enough to disconnect the wires on the back of it (to entirely remove the dash). The large electrical plug is most likely loose.

Regarding no dash lights, naturally check the two dash bulbs first. They are at the top of the dash cluster. If they are fine, your dimmer is probably bad. The dimmer has only two soldered connections to the circuit board...it is pretty obvious which two they are. If you solder a short insulated wire across the two connections, you will have dash lights at the brightest level, which is about a normal setting for me

[Diesel Giant]

I never use the wire hook on the cluster thing anymore. I just take 2 screws out of the lower knee panel and stick my hand up to the back of the cluster and push it out.

Works much better.

Check your ground connections.

[Pete Burton]

I snapped a picture when I did mine a while back, but believe me, you don't need it. I'd recommend doing it though, wish I did it 9 years earlier!

[pmari]

Why jump it when the rebuild is so simple...
http://web.archive.org/web/20040603004113/instrument.articles.mbz.org/dimmer/

[ImBroke]

Do your other electrics work, ie windows, sunroof?

[Pete Burton]

Originally Posted by pmari

Why jump it when the rebuild is so simple...
http://web.archive.org/web/20040603004113/instrument.articles.mbz.org/dimmer/

when the spring is hanging out and everything inside is shredded it's not rebuildable like that.

[neumann]

Originally Posted by ImBroke

Do your other electrics work, ie windows, sunroof?

windows and other items work fine...manual sunroof

[Pete Burton]

Originally Posted by neumann

windows and other items work fine...manual sunroof

I still pine for the sunroof on my 99. One little tug and it was right where you wanted it - fast.

[sailor15015]

Most definately check your main grounds, like the body to the chasis. I bought my brother's '84 a week or two ago and a couple of days later it quit starting. The temp and fuel gauges would go crazy before it quit and I just thought it was a shorted out instrument cluster. I swapped clusters from my wrecked '85 and still no dice. The weird thing is that the gauges would peg and every light in the cluster would come on when the speedo cable touched the back of the cluster. I took a jumper cable, hooked it from my EGR to my negative battery post and it started. I didn't have time to look for my main chasis-engine ground because I was leaving on vacation but when I get back I expect to find it in pretty bad shape. Also my other electrical items worked fine up until and during the period when it wouldn't start.

[Stevo]

"check your main grounds"

First take a peak under the car at your main ground strap, about abeam the bellhousing, driver side. 13mm I think

There are two you will see if you take out the instrument cluster, look with the flashlight, you cant miss them.

Lose grounds will do all kinka strange things

[sailor15015]

Now that you mention it I do remember it being on the bell housing. I also remember I couldn't get the bolt loose. If I do need to replace the strap will it hurt anything to just loosen and re-tighen just one bolt on the bell housing? It won't mess up any kind of alignment?

[ImBroke]

Originally Posted by neumann

manual sunroof

duh,, man sometimes I just can't read.. Of course you have a manual sunroof.. Nevermind that comment..

I agree, either a loose connection, or messed up ground.

[ImBroke]

Here's a pic of what a jumpered rheostat could look like.

[my123ca]

You could also have a burned out wiring behind those instruments. When you take out the instrument cluster remove the metal covers at the back. The thin copper strips under the white paint would sometimes pop like a blown fuse.