I want to change my gauge cluster for one that has a tach...My question is do I have to remove the steering wheel to get the cluster out or is there enough room to slide it out as it is..thanks in advance for the help
dave
by dave99rolla, April 8, 2004
I want to change my gauge cluster for one that has a tach...My question is do I have to remove the steering wheel to get the cluster out or is there enough room to slide it out as it is..thanks in advance for the help
dave
I believe that there are two screws on the top of your gauge bezel and two clips at the bottom that you can get at with a flat blade screwdriver. You don't have to remove the steering wheel - you can just tilt it down to the lowest setting and it should give you enough room (if you have tilt steering). If not, you may be able to wiggle it out enough to get at it. After you remove the bezel - that will give you a better look at what is going on under there.
A word of caution - make sure ignition if off and locked, key out, make sure that you disconnect the NEGATIVE cable to the battery and wait at least 5 minutes before you start working on the car. The reason is the airbags can be accidentally triggered. If you working around the dash - always a good idea to do this, if not for the safety factor at least for the expense of replacing a $500+ airbag. I've seen it happen at mobile audio installs - even with trained techs - accidents can happen.
Good Luck.
hey i wanted to install a guage cluster that has a tach also. is it possible to just swap the clusters? do you have to run wiring to setup the tach? how much does it cost to get a cluster with a tach? is there alot of work involved. if u do it could u make a write-up?
It would be easier for you to pick up a shop manual than for me to write it up. The illustrations are much more informative than anything I could write down.
As for swapping clusters - that shouldn't be much of a problem - as long as you can find one. You still have to run a wire from a sending unit or a connection to your ECU - depends on what type of cluster you get.
Cost - depends where you go. No clue how much a dealer will charge, but you can bet it will cost at least $200+. A good tach alone will run about $100 - $150 by itself. The amount of work depends on what you get - if OEM, shouldn't be too much of a problem, just some rewiring. If you feel uncomfortable with that - then I would highly recommend you don't do it. You could potentially short out a wire by accident or a splice may come apart. You may end up with a completely dead dash - without any working gauges, or gauges that read incorrectly.
Aftermarket is also a possiblity - usually about the same price as OEM stuff - but you get a wider range of selections for different types of gauges or lighting effects. Choice is your.
Good Luck.
If I wanted to plug in a dash from another corolla that has a tach would I have to run wires for the tach to work? Or is that wiring already there in the connectors and the ce just lacks the tach?
If the car did not come orginally with the tach - chances are low that the signaling wire is there. You will have to make a connection with a sending unit or connection to the ECM or both.
Good Luck.
