Jump to content

Guage cluster swap.... HELP!


Recommended Posts

My 88 MJ had guages but no tach. So i grabbed a cluster out of a 89 XJ and swapped it in. Everything works but the tach isnt. Am i missing something? Also, The temp guage rises when the key is turned but when the the truck starts it goes all the way down... sensor?

 

Gary

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did this swap a couple weeks ago... Once I plugged in the new cluster I turned the jeep on prior to pushing it back in to the dash. My tach didn't work at first either. I had to re-seat the connector one additional time and the tach has been working great ever since.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tach may be defective.

Mine worked fine when I switched it over.

 

You need to change out the oil pressure sending unit by the distributor and the temperature sensor at the back of the head for those gauges to work properly. The sending units on there now are for idiot lights, not gauges.

 

Check my build thread in my sig as I did this and I'm pretty sure I have pictures of the sending units and their locations.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You need to change out the oil pressure sending unit by the distributor and the temperature sensor at the back of the head for those gauges to work properly. The sending units on there now are for idiot lights, not gauges.

He stated that his truck has gauges. There is no need to change senders.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Today I messed with the connection, got the tach to work. However, once the dash lights come on the reading on the guages drop all the way down and the turn signal and highbeam lights are illuminated. I plugged the old cluster in and it was fine. I'm gonna look for another cluster. Although it was fine yesterday except for the tach, my thoughts are there is a bad connection on this cluster. Thanks for all the input guys.

 

Gary

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You need to change out the oil pressure sending unit by the distributor and the temperature sensor at the back of the head for those gauges to work properly. The sending units on there now are for idiot lights, not gauges.

He stated that his truck has gauges. There is no need to change senders.

 

Missed that... Sorry. :doh:

 

I would like to see a pic.

 

The only clusters I've seen are the full gauges with tach and the one with only fuel and speedo and idiot lights.

 

New one on me :huh???:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Renix era is not uncommon to have full gauges except tach.

Correct. Both the Pioneer and Chief trim levels included gauges, but the tachometer was an extra-cost option. The gas gauge was a biggie that occupied the space where we expect to see a tachometer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 months later...

Assuming to do this I will need the sensors off the engine from the donor as well as the cluster in going from idiot lights to full guages. Also assuming I will have to find a donor with the same engine for this to work properly. Are these assumptions correct, and if so where are the sensors located? Mine is a 4wd 88 Pioneer 5 spd w. 4.0.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The sensors are the same between similar years 2.5 and 4.0. They are also available new from auto parts stores for less than $20. Don't know if there's a difference between Renix/Chrysler (HO).

 

You need the oil pressure one, which is located more or less next to the oil filter as well as the coolant temp one which is at the driver side rear corner of the head, next to the valve cover (has a single wire going to it). Fuel gauge obviously won't need a new one and volt meter is driven directly by supplied power. Tachometer signal is also always supplied to the cluster whether the cluster has a tachometer or not, so nothing extra is needed for that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...