[Skidoo xtreme]

I think I found the problem part and where to get the part to repair the pest speedo problems


http://www.microcomponents.ch/products/switec...
The us agent for the part id ISM inc. telephone256)772-7500 Part # XC5.168 (If you pull your speedo and look at the motors they will have that # on them. One motor cost about $50 delivered.

I am going to order one tomorrow. I took the dash apart last night and had the whole thing apart in 30 minutes. There are 4 solder connections on the stepper motor that needs to be removed and resoldered. Just be careful nut to break the tabs off the instrument cluster when working on it. The stepper motor is the same for all the gauges.

I will post more when I have done the repair and give a detailed instrustions.

Matt

 

[TheBac]

Which part number is ours? Are you absolutely sure these are the updated versions that fix the problems?

Keep us posted.

 

[silverado04]

search ebay.. $12.50 each

 

[TheBac]

search ebay.. $12.50 each

Thanks! Found them! ($14.50 each) #120074739140

 

[Skidoo xtreme]

XC5 168 is the part number you are looking for. When I call the company, I will ask if they are the updated/revised version. They ebay version looks like it will work as well. It probably is a generic version of the same stepper motor. When I searched the web, I found lots of manf. of stepper motors. The hardest part is finding one that will work for this application. For as easy of a job it is to replace the stepper motor. I am going to try the ebay version. Just remember to be carefull of ESD (electrostatic discharge) it could damage componets on your motherboard. Also, do not use to much heat when soldering as this will damage your board. If you don't have a soldering iron, buy one with a smaller tip. You will also need soldering wick, flux and solder. The soldering wick is what you use to remove the solder from the old stepper motor. The wick is put on the terminal you want to remove on the back of the board and then the soldering iron tip rest on top of it. The heat from the soldering iron draws the solder into the soldering wick. Just make sure all the solder is gone from the terminal going thru the board before pulling off the stepper motor. Otherwise if you force the removal of the stepper motor, you will damage the board and it will be trash. When installing the new stepper motor, put a little flux on the connections your are soldering. Then put a dab of solder on the soldering iron and heat up both connections at the same time. Apply solder for about 2 seconds and it will flow onto the board and the stepper motor terminal.

If you are unsure if this will fix your problem, take the stepper motor off the voltage gauge and swap it with the stepper motor on the speedo.
All the motors are the same on the board that run the gauges. If your speedo motor is bad, the voltage gauge will be inop and the speed will work after the swap.

The hardest part taking apart the instrument panel is removing the needles from the stepper motor. I found if you turn the needles CCW they would come off easier. However, mark with a pencil where the stepper motor stops when you turn it CCW before you force the needle CCW. What you are doing is trying to mark the calibration of the gauges before you move the needles. Once the needles are off, they can go on in any position and therefore show false gauge readings. I have found when you start the truck and turn it off again the gauges go thru a zeroing process and this will help you make sure the needles are put on correctly. If someone really wanted to they could dicifer what wire controlls what gauge and apply a known voltage value and calibrate the gauges afterwords.

I hope this information helps. It really is a easy job to do. Just take your time.

 

[TheBac]

Skidoo....thanks very much for all that info!

 

[Skidoo xtreme]

Spoke with Charlie from ebay and ordered 2 stepper motors. Great guy to work with and very professionial. These stepper motors he has are the same ones used by GM and they are the latest and greatest. They should be here Wed and I will let everyone know how they work. Charlie does recommend you replace all the motors at once, but I told him I wanted to try 2 out first before I replace all of them.

 

[TheBac]

Guess I should go order a few then.....

 

[silverado04]

Thanks! Found them! ($14.50 each) #120074739140

He raised the price, he did have them at $12.50, still $14.50 is way better then $50plus.. also he ships as many as you want/need for the same shipping, Or did anyway.

I will be buying some from him myself soon.

 

[silverado04]

One more thing, if you feel you can not do the job with out messing up something I believe he repairs them for people as well.. not sure.. been awhile since I read his add.
I will check it out though.

I would like to snag a few to have on hand, I have worked with electronics for years as in radio repair and such so I have no doubt being able to do these as well. I have all the needed stuff and would even help someone out if you need it done.

 

[Skidoo xtreme]

He raised the price, he did have them at $12.50, still $14.50 is way better then $50plus.. also he ships as many as you want/need for the same shipping, Or did anyway.

I will be buying some from him myself soon.

Yes your are correct, he will shop as many as you want for $8.00(I think that is what he is charging) shipping price. Be carefull when seperating the instrument panel. There are two tabs on the back that are difficult to get unlatched and could break real easy. I current work in a electronic calibration/repair lab and will be using our equipment to repair the instrument. That is why I had a hard time paying someone else to repair the instrument panel. I knew there was a simple fix out there.

 

[winter200]

Can anybody get some pictures when they do it. I could probably handle it myself also but do not consider myself a pro at soldering. Maybe a little more info on the soldering tools that work the best. Is the flux the same flux that is used for copper pipe. I usually just turn up the heat and tin the tip and go from there.

 

[screamin' 85 z]

Dieselplace.com FTW!!!!! Just ordered 2

 

[newfydad]

Is the flux the same flux that is used for copper pipe.

No!! Absolutely not. The flux used for plumbing contains corrosive acid. Never use that for electronics.
Just go to Radio Shack or similar and buy some 60/40 resin-core solder. (Some spell it rosin-core). Thats all you need.

 

[silverado04]

No!! Absolutely not. The flux used for plumbing contains corrosive acid. Never use that for electronics.
Just go to Radio Shack or similar and buy some 60/40 resin-core solder. (Some spell it rosin-core). Thats all you need.

EXACTLY!!!!
What he said is CORRECT.... You need NO FLUX.. the 64/40 rosin/resin core is ALL YOU NEED..
It is all I have used for years..

 

[TheBac]

Well, I purchased 5 from him. Only needed 2 as of right now. I figure that way I'll have extras in case any more go bad.

 

[quikag]

pardon my ignorance, but what problem are you having with your speedo that requires this repair. Thanks.

 

[Skidoo xtreme]

pardon my ignorance, but what problem are you having with your speedo that requires this repair. Thanks.

The problem is the speedometer will not read correct MPH or just hang out at 120MPH. I was driving down the interstate and the speedometer said I was doing 85MPH and so I would slow down to 75MPH. Pretty soon everyone was passing me and I figured out my speedometer was showing I was going 20MPH faster than I really was. This problem was going off and on for a while and finally the speedometer just quite and was stuck at 120MPH. Basically if you have any gauges that are showing adnormal readings, the stepper motor is going bad. The stepper motor is what moves the needle on the instrument panel.

 

[Skidoo xtreme]

Can anybody get some pictures when they do it. I could probably handle it myself also but do not consider myself a pro at soldering. Maybe a little more info on the soldering tools that work the best. Is the flux the same flux that is used for copper pipe. I usually just turn up the heat and tin the tip and go from there.

Soldering is not hard to do at all. What I would recommend doing is taking apart some broken electronic thing and pratice removing and replacing a few componets on a circuit board. Build your confidence there and then jump into fixing your instrument panel. I would not try to removing/replacing any microminature componets as it is harder to do and the experience is not needed to replace the stepper motor. Microminature componets are very small in size and require additional equipment to work on them. The best thing to do is go to radio shack and talk to one of the employees about the best soldering iron for you. You don't need anything fancy. A $10.00 soldering iron, wet sponge to clean your soldering iron tip, solder/flux and soldering wick to remove old solder is all you will need.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/i...ring+iron&kw=soldering+iron&parentPage=search

Here is a nice soldering iron for $7.99.

Good luck

Matt

 

[screamin' 85 z]

Update: Just put mine in, and for the first time since I've owned the truck (bought it used) I have a working speedometer!! All in 20 mins start to finish! (MUCH better than 300.00+ for a new cluster ) If anyone has any questions, feel free to shoot me a PM and I'll be glad to help out!