mrmel2you Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 I wanted to go in with a full gauge cluster, my old cluster was working just fine, but I wanted to know more of what was going on under the hood. Got a cluster from an '89 XJ, mine is a '90 MJ (told it would be plug-n-play). Pulled the battery cables off, cleaned all ground connections, replaced the water temp sensor and oil pressure sensor with ones for gauges. Pulled the old cluster, put the new one in. Put cables back on, turned the key to ON. Fuel gauge was pegged at the 5 o'clock position, voltmeter was the only gauge that worked. Rechecked all grounds and connections, plugged it back in----same thing. Pulled the cluster and put the old one back in, fuel gauge pegged again at the 5 o'clock, getting upset by now. Pulled the old one back out, run all new ground wires, put the new one in----all gauges are now working--except for the 5 o'clock fuel gauge. Got another cluster, had the same issue with the fuel gauge. ***SOLUTION*** with the cluster plugged in, key in ON, remove one screw from the fuel gauge, spin the needle around a few times, replace the screw. There are 5 screws on the fuel gauge-----the last one worked for me. I am so happy, everything now works as it should. Before I buttoned it all up, I replaced all the dash illumination bulbs with LEDs. I left the turn signal indicators and the high beam indicator alone, LEDs in them would be blinding after dark. Hope this will help anyone else that is planning on doing a cluster swap and wind up with the same problem. Happy trails everyone, Papa Mel :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schardein Posted April 13, 2018 Share Posted April 13, 2018 Good to hear you got everything working, but... What does removing the screw and spinning the needle actually do? I'm wondering if removing/reinstalling the screw just ensures there is a good ground connection between the gauge and the printed circuit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmel2you Posted April 14, 2018 Author Share Posted April 14, 2018 That has me stumped, I have no answer-----just that it worked. Maybe being electrical and magnetic----it have "reset" the field in the gauge? I don't know, I'm not a rocket scientist or an engineer. As I said, I run all new ground wires to the big connector (snipped all the stock ones) and the fuel gauge was still pegged out. I did the above----and it worked. If I would have known it was going to work-----I would have made a video of me doing it :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmel2you Posted April 14, 2018 Author Share Posted April 14, 2018 ***Side Note*** When I first spun the needle on the fuel gauge, there was some drag on it (felt magnetic in nature). But after a few spins it loosened up. The drag kept coming back after removing and replacing each screw----until the last one. It just popped right over where it should have been at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreasemonkeySC Posted June 13, 2018 Share Posted June 13, 2018 I need to do this swap.The @$$ hat previous owner put a used gauge cluster in this truck. The actual milage is around 150k, but he didn't bother taking the time to correct the odometer reading to match the truck. It's shows 245k.Guess I need to start making a pull-a-part list! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schardein Posted June 13, 2018 Share Posted June 13, 2018 8 hours ago, GreasemonkeySC said: I need to do this swap. The @$$ hat previous owner put a used gauge cluster in this truck. The actual milage is around 150k, but he didn't bother taking the time to correct the odometer reading to match the truck. It's shows 245k. Guess I need to start making a pull-a-part list! If your truck is a renix, you can adjust the mileage. Just need an electric drill. It can also be done for HO, but is a little more involved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreasemonkeySC Posted June 13, 2018 Share Posted June 13, 2018 If your truck is a renix, you can adjust the mileage. Just need an electric drill. It can also be done for HO, but is a little more involved. Oh yeah, I've made adjustments, but I'm far to impatient to wait on a power drill.I remove the gear cover, and manually roll the gears to the proper location. Little instant spot glue, and we're back in action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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