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Derbybug
Senior Member
USA
59 Posts |
 Posted - 03/07/2013 : 04:46:39 AM
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| I've got several 01 International bodied 3800's with the 444e and hydraulic brakes. I've got several drivers complaining that the guage clusters will occasionally freeze up while driving down the road. They state that the bus doesn't malfunction but the dash just goes dead. Does anyone have a schematic available that tells which wire powers the cluster? Its the guages themslves that go dead, not the backlights. |
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Bus Tech II
Senior Member
121 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2013 : 05:01:05 AM
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| Dont bother, these dash clusters are notorious for shorting out. Best bet is to find someone who rebuilds them or replace it with a reman. |
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Derbybug
Senior Member
USA
59 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2013 : 05:35:42 AM
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| Is there a way to fix this in the shop? The replacements are close to $500/each and I've got several of them doing this. Kind of cost prohibitive to replace them all at this point. |
Safety in all things, always! |
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Fastback
Top Member
1500 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2013 : 05:45:03 AM
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You can save some dough with remans;
www.ddinstruments.com |
Why yes, the ORIGinal CHARGER is a Fastback |
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slippert
Top Member
USA
630 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2013 : 07:46:23 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by Derbybug
Is there a way to fix this in the shop? The replacements are close to $500/each and I've got several of them doing this. Kind of cost prohibitive to replace them all at this point.
I have had decent luck over the past yrs pulling dash and removing circuit board for what ever section is freezing.(usually middle section on mine)
Check the pin connections where the wiring plugs into dash.... they are soldered to the board if you see cracks..... that is typically the cause of dash malfunction, I have repaired those by re-soldering cracked pins with decent luck. is a little more time consuming than just replacing dash cluster, but cheaper than new or reman dash is..... |
Edited by - slippert on 03/07/2013 07:48:43 AM |
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Derbybug
Senior Member
USA
59 Posts |
Posted - 03/07/2013 : 09:49:07 AM
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| I will take a look & see what I find. Thanks for the info guys. Ill keep you posted |
Safety in all things, always! |
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Derbybug
Senior Member
USA
59 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2013 : 04:06:59 AM
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| I took the dash apart and I dont think I can solder any of the circuits on the board. They appear to be covered with a coating & I cant tell if it is cracked. Is there a trick to this that I am missing? |
Safety in all things, always! |
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Fastback
Top Member
1500 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2013 : 04:36:06 AM
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| As Slippert said above, look at the solder joints at the connectors where the harnesses plug into the cluster. They say to look for the solder joints that appear differant or "dull". |
Why yes, the ORIGinal CHARGER is a Fastback |
Edited by - Fastback on 03/08/2013 04:37:38 AM |
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oldmech
Active Member
United States
21 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2013 : 05:00:24 AM
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| The coating on the board will peel off.its a tedious job but it will come off if you work at it.Its hard to tell sometimes if there is a bad joint or not. I always re-solider all of them when im doing one |
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Derbybug
Senior Member
USA
59 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2013 : 07:42:36 AM
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| I looked into a reman circuit board and they are around $280. I can get the whole cluster (all 3 boards + the plastic housing) for around $330. I would prefer to fix the ones I've got. So I need to remove the center circuit board & focus on the pins on the reverse side of the harness connector? It doesn't appear that the harness connector comes off the board. I just need to resolder those pins? I just want to make sure I'm understanding this correctly. |
Safety in all things, always! |
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Fastback
Top Member
1500 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2013 : 08:08:05 AM
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Usually when our clusters "freeze" up you can reach under dash and nudge the wires and cause it to start working for a while again, if thats the case on yours then the solder joints at the pins on the circuit board connectors MAY be the only culprit.
Personally I have never resoldered them, only replaced. You have to decide for yourselve how much time you have to mess around with it and you don't want to mess it up so they won't take it for a core on a reman. |
Why yes, the ORIGinal CHARGER is a Fastback |
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slippert
Top Member
USA
630 Posts |
Posted - 03/08/2013 : 09:33:05 AM
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Second what Fastback says above, typically when I nudge/wiggle wires or hit another bump in the road dash will come alive... if your problem is the same, it just depends on where you want to spend money....labor or parts and how confident you are at repairing the solder joints yourself... as Fastback stated you don't want to ruin one so they won't accept it for a core ,,, then you would be out the core $$ charge too on top of the cost for replacement dash...
If you get the board in your hand look on the back side of the connector that the truck wiring plugs into you should see the ends of the pins sticking thru the board where they are soldered,, if solder is cracked, you should be able to tell... I use a fine tipped electric soldering gun and as small of solder as I can get..never had a problem fixing them yet.... |
Edited by - slippert on 03/08/2013 09:45:11 AM |
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Topic |
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guage cluster freezing
