My truck is a 99 f-150, my gauges all went out and a mechanic that i had look at it said i need a whole new gauge cluster, I looked around in a couple salvage yards and i found one but it reads quite a bit more miles on it than my current one does, the reason i am hesitant about buying it is because I dont want to make my vehicle show MORE miles on it than it really has and decrease the value. My question is this......Does the vehicle keep track of the mileage in the ECM computer or is it kept right there in the actual gauge cluster.

 

Uuummm.

Isn't a 99 a PATS truck ?

If so, your PATS stuff is located in the cluster as well.

So unless you get 2 keys with the salvage yard cluster, you would need to tow it to Ford to get the PATS stuff re programmed.

Just a little FYI...maybe ( I have no idea for 100% sure when PATS was intro'd to the F150 I thought it happened with the digial odometer...but again that is my failing memory with booze induced brain cell loss )

As for the location of the millage, I have seen others that had the dealer swap the cluster, and the correct millage was on the truck when they left the dealer. never saw a posting to know if this is in the PCM, or if they had to use a NGS or WDS programmer to change it.

Maybe jefflaws would be along in a bit to lett you for sure ( about the PATS system, and about the millage ).

 

Yes, you will have to have your keys programmed. And yes, the mileage is ONLY in the cluster. So whatever mileage cluster you put in there will be what it shows. Just out of curiousity, did just the odometer display quit on your old cluster? If so, I can help you get your current mileage AND not have to reprogram your keys. Also, a replacement cluster from a ford dealership with the correct mileage already programmed in should only cost around 300-350. I know salvage clusters bring around 200 in this area, so it may be worth buying one from the delaership already set to your correct mileage. People think that since we can get the cluster with your correct mileage on them that we do the programming or can change them, but we order them from a electronics place that is set up with ford to program them. We call in the order, and they set the mileage and ship it to us.

But what i was saying earlier is, if your old one just had the display quit, or a physical problem with one of the gauges, you can use the rear circuit board off your old one, put it in the salvage yard one and the mileage and PATS stuff will still be on your old circuit board, powering the new odo. display and gauges.

 

Learn somethign new all the time

 

We get ours from southern autotronics (richmond va) and JT Grim (somewhere in NC or VA, cant remember). I was talking to a guy on the phone at one of these places and asked how they programmed the odo. He didnt seem to want to talk about it too much. Just said that ford had sent them a machine that sets it and verifies all functions before they send one out (they are a refurbishing facility).

 

Maybe the tight lips is a case of it is not too hard to reprogram them, and if it got out, there would be a whole new rash of warr. claims for trucks
...and the after market would be flush with low millage F150s

 

exactly