Dash Light Problems! *Help*
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From: The Natural State
Dash Light Problems! *Help*
The problem started gradually and was not a big issue until now as it is getting almost unbearable. My dash lights/guages on my 02 will not light up whenever I turn the headlights on for quite some time. In warm weather, right now, they light up about 10 minutes after the headlights have turned on. If it is cold outside they sometimes take 20 minutes to come on after briefly tricking me by coming on for a few seconds at a time and going back off until they finally stay lit. All fuses and relays seem to be fine and all of the other lights come on when they're supposed to (i.e. the lights behind the climate control, door lock and window switch lights, cruise control, etc). I had a buddy who is a professional car audio installer trace all the wires going to the dash guages and everything looks brand new. Anyone have any ideas how to fix it and how much is it going to cost me??
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Joined: Sep 2004
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From: Maui
Author-fcmiller
EL Dash light repair
In a previous append I was lamenting the fact that my electroluminesent dash lights had failed, as has happened to many of you, and the only apparent remedy was a new gauge cluster. Well lucky for us that is not necessarily the case. This fix costs less than $5 and about three hours labor.
Much better than $400 for a new cluster and $150 labor and programming fee.
The EL gauge face in a Lightning is activated, or "driven", by an inverter circuit that boosts the truck's 12 volt system up to approximately 120 volts. The circuit also takes the DC signal and pulses it to approximately 400 hz. Most of these types of circuits are protected by a fuse and, fortunately for us, so is this one. This is not one of the fuses that is in the access panel under the dash or under the hood. This fuse is in the inverter circuit.
The inverter circuit (board) is packaged seperately inside the gauge cluster and can be removed and repaired. You will need to remove the cluster from the vehicle. Before you do any work disconnect the (-) ground side of the battery. You will need to remove the black dash plate around the stearing column, the headlight switch, the black dash panel that the headlight switch mounts into, the large dash panel above the instument cluster and the black circular panel around the radio control panel. The headlight switch is easy to remove but tricky, you need to know how. Turn the headlight switch **** to the "on" position. Pull the **** out like you are turning on the fog lamps. Look on the underside of the **** and you will see a small square access hole. Inside that hole is a snap that needs to be released. Insert a tooth pick into the hole while pulling out on the ****. Be carefull, the snap is fragile. The **** should slide off. The **** is now used as a tool to remove the headlight switch. Turn the **** 180 degrees and place it back on the switch stem. Turning the **** will disengage the hooks that retain the switch. You're past the difficult part, the rest is fairly straight forward.
After you have all the dash panels off you can loosen the cluster by removing 4 screws. At this point make sure that you are grounded. Attach a wire to a piece of sheet metal under the dash and then strip the insulation off the remaining end and put it inside your sock and make sure that the wire is in contact with your skin. The PATS module in the cluster is ESD sensitive. You don't want to go to all the trouble of fixing the inverter but zap the security module in the process.
At this point you need to remove the cable that operates the shift indicator dial in the cluster. A small black cable runs from the bottom of the cluster down underneath the steering column and then attaches to a hook that is attached to the transmission shift lever. Disconnect the cable from the shift lever. Disconnect the two wiring harness connectors and the vaccum line for the boost gauge. The rubber boot that attaches the vaccum line was suprisingly difficult to remove but if you turn it a bit while pulling, it should come off of the gauge barb.
At this point the cluster should lift out of the dash. Place the cluster face down and remove the white plastic back cover. You should see a three wire connector next to where the boost gauge fitting is. This connector is for the inverter module. Disconnect the inverter connector and the connector for the odometer and remove the cluster board.
Place the board on something soft like foam rubber or a conductive ESD bag if you have one. Remember this board must be protected from static charges or your security module is toast.
Remove the plastic panel that covers the inner gauges. Try not to let the clear plastic front lense or the gauge face separate. All you want to remove is the white panel. When the panel is removed you will see that the three wire connecter leads go to a black plastic cube attached to the inside of the panel with two screws. This is the inverter. Disconnect the two wire connector from the EL panel and remove two screws. Luckily FORD did not pot the whole circuit or we would be out of luck.
You should be able to see the EL driver board and all of it's components. Notice where the three wire connector wires attach to the board. Next to this attachment point is a green component that should have "LF 1/4 amp " printed on it. This is a 1/4 amp Littelfuse. Meter across this fuse and hopefully you find that it is open. This fuse is Littelfuse P/N R251.250. It is a fast blow , axial lead , 1/4 amp fuse. At this point all you need to do is buy a fuse and install it. I would suggest not trying to put a larger fuse in thinking that it will prevent it from blowing again. The fuse may very well have saved the coil or the transistor that chops the signal and both of those would have been much harder to replace. Put a 1/4 amp back in and if it blows again several years from now, well , just replace it again.
Good luck.
EL Dash light repair
In a previous append I was lamenting the fact that my electroluminesent dash lights had failed, as has happened to many of you, and the only apparent remedy was a new gauge cluster. Well lucky for us that is not necessarily the case. This fix costs less than $5 and about three hours labor.
Much better than $400 for a new cluster and $150 labor and programming fee.
The EL gauge face in a Lightning is activated, or "driven", by an inverter circuit that boosts the truck's 12 volt system up to approximately 120 volts. The circuit also takes the DC signal and pulses it to approximately 400 hz. Most of these types of circuits are protected by a fuse and, fortunately for us, so is this one. This is not one of the fuses that is in the access panel under the dash or under the hood. This fuse is in the inverter circuit.
The inverter circuit (board) is packaged seperately inside the gauge cluster and can be removed and repaired. You will need to remove the cluster from the vehicle. Before you do any work disconnect the (-) ground side of the battery. You will need to remove the black dash plate around the stearing column, the headlight switch, the black dash panel that the headlight switch mounts into, the large dash panel above the instument cluster and the black circular panel around the radio control panel. The headlight switch is easy to remove but tricky, you need to know how. Turn the headlight switch **** to the "on" position. Pull the **** out like you are turning on the fog lamps. Look on the underside of the **** and you will see a small square access hole. Inside that hole is a snap that needs to be released. Insert a tooth pick into the hole while pulling out on the ****. Be carefull, the snap is fragile. The **** should slide off. The **** is now used as a tool to remove the headlight switch. Turn the **** 180 degrees and place it back on the switch stem. Turning the **** will disengage the hooks that retain the switch. You're past the difficult part, the rest is fairly straight forward.
After you have all the dash panels off you can loosen the cluster by removing 4 screws. At this point make sure that you are grounded. Attach a wire to a piece of sheet metal under the dash and then strip the insulation off the remaining end and put it inside your sock and make sure that the wire is in contact with your skin. The PATS module in the cluster is ESD sensitive. You don't want to go to all the trouble of fixing the inverter but zap the security module in the process.
At this point you need to remove the cable that operates the shift indicator dial in the cluster. A small black cable runs from the bottom of the cluster down underneath the steering column and then attaches to a hook that is attached to the transmission shift lever. Disconnect the cable from the shift lever. Disconnect the two wiring harness connectors and the vaccum line for the boost gauge. The rubber boot that attaches the vaccum line was suprisingly difficult to remove but if you turn it a bit while pulling, it should come off of the gauge barb.
At this point the cluster should lift out of the dash. Place the cluster face down and remove the white plastic back cover. You should see a three wire connector next to where the boost gauge fitting is. This connector is for the inverter module. Disconnect the inverter connector and the connector for the odometer and remove the cluster board.
Place the board on something soft like foam rubber or a conductive ESD bag if you have one. Remember this board must be protected from static charges or your security module is toast.
Remove the plastic panel that covers the inner gauges. Try not to let the clear plastic front lense or the gauge face separate. All you want to remove is the white panel. When the panel is removed you will see that the three wire connecter leads go to a black plastic cube attached to the inside of the panel with two screws. This is the inverter. Disconnect the two wire connector from the EL panel and remove two screws. Luckily FORD did not pot the whole circuit or we would be out of luck.
You should be able to see the EL driver board and all of it's components. Notice where the three wire connector wires attach to the board. Next to this attachment point is a green component that should have "LF 1/4 amp " printed on it. This is a 1/4 amp Littelfuse. Meter across this fuse and hopefully you find that it is open. This fuse is Littelfuse P/N R251.250. It is a fast blow , axial lead , 1/4 amp fuse. At this point all you need to do is buy a fuse and install it. I would suggest not trying to put a larger fuse in thinking that it will prevent it from blowing again. The fuse may very well have saved the coil or the transistor that chops the signal and both of those would have been much harder to replace. Put a 1/4 amp back in and if it blows again several years from now, well , just replace it again.
Good luck.
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 104
Likes: 0
From: Paramus,NJ
Sorry to bring back such an old thread, but I was wondering if anyone has put together a step by step how-to with pics of the fuse replacement?
My dash has been dark for several months now and its driving me crazy. I have to take care of this soon.
Thanks,
Kyle
My dash has been dark for several months now and its driving me crazy. I have to take care of this soon.
Thanks,
Kyle
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 179
Likes: 1
From: MO
Originally Posted by JollyGiant
Author-fcmiller
EL Dash light repair
In a previous append I was lamenting the fact that my electroluminesent dash lights had failed, as has happened to many of you, and the only apparent remedy was a new gauge cluster. Well lucky for us that is not necessarily the case. This fix costs less than $5 and about three hours labor.
Much better than $400 for a new cluster and $150 labor and programming fee.
The EL gauge face in a Lightning is activated, or "driven", by an inverter circuit that boosts the truck's 12 volt system up to approximately 120 volts. The circuit also takes the DC signal and pulses it to approximately 400 hz. Most of these types of circuits are protected by a fuse and, fortunately for us, so is this one. This is not one of the fuses that is in the access panel under the dash or under the hood. This fuse is in the inverter circuit.
The inverter circuit (board) is packaged seperately inside the gauge cluster and can be removed and repaired. You will need to remove the cluster from the vehicle. Before you do any work disconnect the (-) ground side of the battery. You will need to remove the black dash plate around the stearing column, the headlight switch, the black dash panel that the headlight switch mounts into, the large dash panel above the instument cluster and the black circular panel around the radio control panel. The headlight switch is easy to remove but tricky, you need to know how. Turn the headlight switch **** to the "on" position. Pull the **** out like you are turning on the fog lamps. Look on the underside of the **** and you will see a small square access hole. Inside that hole is a snap that needs to be released. Insert a tooth pick into the hole while pulling out on the ****. Be carefull, the snap is fragile. The **** should slide off. The **** is now used as a tool to remove the headlight switch. Turn the **** 180 degrees and place it back on the switch stem. Turning the **** will disengage the hooks that retain the switch. You're past the difficult part, the rest is fairly straight forward.
After you have all the dash panels off you can loosen the cluster by removing 4 screws. At this point make sure that you are grounded. Attach a wire to a piece of sheet metal under the dash and then strip the insulation off the remaining end and put it inside your sock and make sure that the wire is in contact with your skin. The PATS module in the cluster is ESD sensitive. You don't want to go to all the trouble of fixing the inverter but zap the security module in the process.
At this point you need to remove the cable that operates the shift indicator dial in the cluster. A small black cable runs from the bottom of the cluster down underneath the steering column and then attaches to a hook that is attached to the transmission shift lever. Disconnect the cable from the shift lever. Disconnect the two wiring harness connectors and the vaccum line for the boost gauge. The rubber boot that attaches the vaccum line was suprisingly difficult to remove but if you turn it a bit while pulling, it should come off of the gauge barb.
At this point the cluster should lift out of the dash. Place the cluster face down and remove the white plastic back cover. You should see a three wire connector next to where the boost gauge fitting is. This connector is for the inverter module. Disconnect the inverter connector and the connector for the odometer and remove the cluster board.
Place the board on something soft like foam rubber or a conductive ESD bag if you have one. Remember this board must be protected from static charges or your security module is toast.
Remove the plastic panel that covers the inner gauges. Try not to let the clear plastic front lense or the gauge face separate. All you want to remove is the white panel. When the panel is removed you will see that the three wire connecter leads go to a black plastic cube attached to the inside of the panel with two screws. This is the inverter. Disconnect the two wire connector from the EL panel and remove two screws. Luckily FORD did not pot the whole circuit or we would be out of luck.
You should be able to see the EL driver board and all of it's components. Notice where the three wire connector wires attach to the board. Next to this attachment point is a green component that should have "LF 1/4 amp " printed on it. This is a 1/4 amp Littelfuse. Meter across this fuse and hopefully you find that it is open. This fuse is Littelfuse P/N R251.250. It is a fast blow , axial lead , 1/4 amp fuse. At this point all you need to do is buy a fuse and install it. I would suggest not trying to put a larger fuse in thinking that it will prevent it from blowing again. The fuse may very well have saved the coil or the transistor
Good luck.
EL Dash light repair
In a previous append I was lamenting the fact that my electroluminesent dash lights had failed, as has happened to many of you, and the only apparent remedy was a new gauge cluster. Well lucky for us that is not necessarily the case. This fix costs less than $5 and about three hours labor.
Much better than $400 for a new cluster and $150 labor and programming fee.
The EL gauge face in a Lightning is activated, or "driven", by an inverter circuit that boosts the truck's 12 volt system up to approximately 120 volts. The circuit also takes the DC signal and pulses it to approximately 400 hz. Most of these types of circuits are protected by a fuse and, fortunately for us, so is this one. This is not one of the fuses that is in the access panel under the dash or under the hood. This fuse is in the inverter circuit.
The inverter circuit (board) is packaged seperately inside the gauge cluster and can be removed and repaired. You will need to remove the cluster from the vehicle. Before you do any work disconnect the (-) ground side of the battery. You will need to remove the black dash plate around the stearing column, the headlight switch, the black dash panel that the headlight switch mounts into, the large dash panel above the instument cluster and the black circular panel around the radio control panel. The headlight switch is easy to remove but tricky, you need to know how. Turn the headlight switch **** to the "on" position. Pull the **** out like you are turning on the fog lamps. Look on the underside of the **** and you will see a small square access hole. Inside that hole is a snap that needs to be released. Insert a tooth pick into the hole while pulling out on the ****. Be carefull, the snap is fragile. The **** should slide off. The **** is now used as a tool to remove the headlight switch. Turn the **** 180 degrees and place it back on the switch stem. Turning the **** will disengage the hooks that retain the switch. You're past the difficult part, the rest is fairly straight forward.
After you have all the dash panels off you can loosen the cluster by removing 4 screws. At this point make sure that you are grounded. Attach a wire to a piece of sheet metal under the dash and then strip the insulation off the remaining end and put it inside your sock and make sure that the wire is in contact with your skin. The PATS module in the cluster is ESD sensitive. You don't want to go to all the trouble of fixing the inverter but zap the security module in the process.
At this point you need to remove the cable that operates the shift indicator dial in the cluster. A small black cable runs from the bottom of the cluster down underneath the steering column and then attaches to a hook that is attached to the transmission shift lever. Disconnect the cable from the shift lever. Disconnect the two wiring harness connectors and the vaccum line for the boost gauge. The rubber boot that attaches the vaccum line was suprisingly difficult to remove but if you turn it a bit while pulling, it should come off of the gauge barb.
At this point the cluster should lift out of the dash. Place the cluster face down and remove the white plastic back cover. You should see a three wire connector next to where the boost gauge fitting is. This connector is for the inverter module. Disconnect the inverter connector and the connector for the odometer and remove the cluster board.
Place the board on something soft like foam rubber or a conductive ESD bag if you have one. Remember this board must be protected from static charges or your security module is toast.
Remove the plastic panel that covers the inner gauges. Try not to let the clear plastic front lense or the gauge face separate. All you want to remove is the white panel. When the panel is removed you will see that the three wire connecter leads go to a black plastic cube attached to the inside of the panel with two screws. This is the inverter. Disconnect the two wire connector from the EL panel and remove two screws. Luckily FORD did not pot the whole circuit or we would be out of luck.
You should be able to see the EL driver board and all of it's components. Notice where the three wire connector wires attach to the board. Next to this attachment point is a green component that should have "LF 1/4 amp " printed on it. This is a 1/4 amp Littelfuse. Meter across this fuse and hopefully you find that it is open. This fuse is Littelfuse P/N R251.250. It is a fast blow , axial lead , 1/4 amp fuse. At this point all you need to do is buy a fuse and install it. I would suggest not trying to put a larger fuse in thinking that it will prevent it from blowing again. The fuse may very well have saved the coil or the transistor
Good luck.
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Senior Member
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From: The People's Republic of Los Angeles
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 179
Likes: 1
From: MO
Thanks Tim, nice pic.........Took the dash cluster out and removed the inverter, fuse shows no continuity...............will be ordering one asap........
Last edited by STRK BY; Jan 18, 2008 at 11:16 PM.
