im having trouble with the cluster and im not sure on what to check next?...

the car is a '90 crx dx w/obd1 conversion (p28 ecu also) with an si gauge cluster.

i've tried 2 different gauge clusters and also 2 different speed-o cables.

when i had the 1st si cluster in the car, i had the following problems;

1. speedometer didnt work
2. fuel gauge didnt work
3. "door open" light stayed on (doors were shut)
4. "open hatch" light stayed on and the hatch is shut


with those problems, i swapped out the speed-o cable and installed a (known to be) working cable, because my main consern is my speedometer! even with the 2nd cable speedometer didnt work.

after tryin the cable w/no luck..... i swapped in the 2nd gauge cluster (and i took this out of my civic, i know that it works perfect.) and my new results are;

1. speedometer doesnt work
2. rpm "tach" bounces around (but the more i drive the more accurate it seems to get?)
3. now both the door open light and hatch open light seem to alternate on and off ( 1 light goes on, other light turns off, and that continues)

but the fuel gauge now works!!

i bought the car as a shell and the interiorwiring seemed to be a mess, so electrical help and wiring diagrams would help too! (the engine harness was replaced when i did the obd-1 conversion)



sorry for the long post, but i wanted to make it clear as possable....... please help!!

 

Bump, for some much needed help!

 

Have you checked all your grounds on your cluster and the plugs that go to the back of the cluster? I would think of a wire being broken and arching on another wire?

Just check and make sure all the wires are pinned into the sockets nice and tight, I.E pull on the wires, NOT HARD, just a little tug and see if one comes out.

 

hey thanks for the reply! here is what I got now;

UPDATE:

-speed-o still doesnt work
- only light that stays on is the hatch light (so open door light went away?)
- the rpm guage/tach only bounces when i have the turn signal on and my steering wheel turned( when the signal is on but my s. wheel is facing straight ahead, the rpm's dont bounce)

- when the blinkers are on, the signal light,open hatch light,and check engine light(i have a bad o2 sensor) all flicker.


I just pulled the cluster out again to look @ the wires/grounds, everything was pinned pretty nicely (nothin was loose)....

but on the plug(far right plug behind cluster) that plugs in behind the speedometer, has a yellow w/red stripe...well that wire has a solid red wire spliced into it(red wire must of been done by previous owner). I traced the red wire back to the ecu part of the harness, i believe its the C plug... well the red wire is then spliced back into the yellow w/red stripe wire..... other then where the red wire goes into the yellow w/red stripe... the yellow(w/red stripe) wire is solid(i.e. no other cuts). I think that might be a big part of my troubles..... can anyone tell me what that yellow w/red stripe wire goes to/is for?

any help weather its trouble shooting, or wiring diagrams is much appreciated!! I'm and need all the help I can get!


oh btw, I have a grant streering wheel(so no horn) in this car, if that might be any relavence?

 

first things first, are you using a cluster that matches the year of your car? You should be using a 90-91 cluster, otherwise there will be problems not unlike what you have described.

second, the speedo problem is a result of the cable being either A) broken or B) not clipped in on the transmission side. Lots of people around here will tell you that you don't need to run a clip on the transmission side of the speedo cable, and to some extent that is true, but if you don't want it popping out randomly then a clip is a good idea.

To me it sounds like you are fighting 2 problems, a broken or unclipped speedo cable, and a mismatched cluster or really f'd up wiring.

 

your right about the wiring, it was f'd up (but thats what the last owner did 2 it, seems when i fix 1 problem, the next 1 pops up!) and like you, i've thought that the speedometer shouldnt be effected by the lights on my cluster since its a cable speedo!

the cluster is from a '91 (it worked perfect, when i pulled it from my '91 civic so i could trouble shoot the crx issues).

as for the speedo cable, ive tried 2 different cables in the car, and i made sure that both cables were fully connected/clipped at both the transmission and the back of the cluster?.... also when i pulled the cables from the transmission (and left the other side in the cluster) i would spin the cable with my fingers, and the speedometer needle would go from 0-10mph....so that would leave me 2 believe that both cables still were working properly.

thanks alot for the reply man (btw i used 2 live in ft. collins and loveland! i love their beer, fat tire (i remember that was brewed in ft.collins)



any more suggestions (any1)

 

can any1 tell me what that yellow wire with the red stripe is for? i've been searchin thru the archives but no luck yet, i would love to know how fast im going!(before it gets to the point, where a cops pulls me over to tell me my speed)

 

Did the cluster work before u converted to obd1?

 

i got the crx as a shell (but it had full interior, including the cluster) so i wasnt sure if it worked properly.... but the(2nd) cluster which is in the car now....worked perfect so thats why im leaning towards that wire (yellow w/ red stripe) like Fo-do said; i think its ground related but i cant fint anything out of place except 4 that wire.... any1 know what that wire does?

 

anybody, know what the wire is for? or are then any other grounds that should be checked? (i already checked all major,engine gounds and the wiring behind the cluster) anywhere else?

 

here is the pinout mapping for the 90-91 civic/crx guage cluster plugs:

plug a 8 pin
A1 | GRN/YEL | R TURN SIGNAL
A2 | YEL | SWITCHED +12V
A3 | YEL/WHT |FUEL GUAGE
A4 | CANADA BLU/YEL US BLU/RED | SEAT BELT WARNING LIGHT
A5 | GRN/BLK |OPEN HATCH LIGHT
A6 | empty |empty
A7 | YEL/RED |VEHICLE SPEED PULSAR
A8 | BLK |GROUND
Plug b 12 pin
B1 |BLU| IGNITION COIL
B2 |WHT/BLU |ALTERNATOR WARNING LIGHT
B3 |BLK/YEL |SWITCHED +12V
B4 |YEL/RED | CHECK ENGINE LIGHT
B5 |YEL/RED |OIL PRESSURE WARNING LIGHT
B6 |GRN/RED |BRAKE WARNING LIGHT
B7 |US ONLY BLU/YEL |US ONLY/DOOR OPEN LIGHT
B8 |empty |empty
B9 |empty |empty
B10 | GRN/RED |COOLANT TEMPERATURE
B11 |RED/BLU |HI BEAM INDICATOR
B12 |GRN/BLU | L TURN SIGNAL INDICATOR

you should also check the transmission ground..

 

wow that looks like what ive been lookin 4!!! good lookin out !


im gonna go back take another look @ the harness....ill re-check the trans groung too. 2 the garage i go... thx again


ill report back

 

**** already beat me to it. I just put a new tranny in today and forgot the trans ground and it made my gauge cluster act weird. Like I'd always have a full tank when I know I had about a quarter.

Check all the wires from the pin out and trans ground. Good luck chuck!