Dim Dashboard

[Happy Face]

My dashboard lights are really dim. Even with the light cranked up all the way, you can barely read the gauges.

do I need to pull the gauge panel off and change bulbs or is this a power or grounding issue somewhere?

[Chris_B]

If your instrument panel lights are uniformly dim, either the goesinta or goesouta power is restricted. On the input side, you have the rheostat in the light switch, and on the output side, you have the ground for the instrument panel (a perennial problem area for the 02). If you need help in troubleshooting these two areas, I or others on the board can assist.

[ray_]

I'd pull the panel and look for burned out bulbs. There may be some higher wattage bulbs available that will fit. And clean the inside of the speedo and tach glass, that will help also.

Or send it to North Hollywood Speedometer and they can do LED lighting!

http://www.nhspeedometer.com/914/914clusteriluminated.jpg

Cheers,

Ray

[Happy Face]

thanks for the responses.

I'd like to first tackle the possible grounding issue. This might also be why the tach doesn't work (or that might be due to the Crane system I put on, not sure). The tach was always spotty even with the previous system. So I've always suspected a grounding problem.

What's the approach to ensuring proper grounding of the gauges?

If i pull the dashboard, I'll replace all the bulbs as a matter of course.

[Napes]

All of the above are good tips. Search the FAQ for instrument grounding instructions. As an aside, the 1st time I pulled my instrument cluster I was amazed @ the amount of dust on the bulbs. Though I later replaced them all, initially, just dusting them did wonders.

[Guest]

Check out my200tii for a nice dash rebuild How-To.

Mark

http://www.my2002tii.com/how_to_dash_gauges.htm