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OK....I've got a 1985 LeBaron turbo convert w/the electronic digital dash cluster. For quite a while now, while driving or idling the car, the dash cluster will spontaneously:
--Just turn off, then back on, and/or--->
--Odometer will turn to lines then redisplay proper mileage, and/or--->
--All gauges will go "crazy", ie., turning on all bars, or going to max, or mix of both, to include any and/or all of the "idiot" lights coming on, and/or--->
--Speedo will go to zero, then back to real speed. It's even been seen displaying speeds other than zero when idling and not moving.....and/or--->
--And to top it all off, the cluster acts perfect when driving on the interstate. Did a two hour, one-way drive last week with the car, and from the point when I hit 70mph or faster, the dash didn't act up once. Of course, once I got into ATL and traffic off the interstate, it began to act up again. And, to my chagrin, it acted perfectly on the way home as long as I was driving on the interstate.....once I got off my exit and stopped, it started up again....and did it all the way home.
What I've done to diagnose:
--The cluster goes through its self-diagnosis properly and, according to the '85 FSM, passes the internal self-diagnosis as a properly functioning cluster.
--Ensured that all plugs going into the cluster are clean, tightly plugged in...and they are.
--Ensured the cluster's main ground, (L) side under dash, is tight and clean, which it is.
--Wiggled darned near every wire while the car's running and cannot make it replicate the bizarre behavior myself.
I am at a loss.......I'm down to either going through and replacing each and every single sensor under the hood in hopes that it's a sensor shorting itself, or completely stripping out the underhood wiring harness and replacing it. I don't really want to do the latter......very expensive and way too much work.
Anyone have any other ideas?
--Just turn off, then back on, and/or--->
--Odometer will turn to lines then redisplay proper mileage, and/or--->
--All gauges will go "crazy", ie., turning on all bars, or going to max, or mix of both, to include any and/or all of the "idiot" lights coming on, and/or--->
--Speedo will go to zero, then back to real speed. It's even been seen displaying speeds other than zero when idling and not moving.....and/or--->
--And to top it all off, the cluster acts perfect when driving on the interstate. Did a two hour, one-way drive last week with the car, and from the point when I hit 70mph or faster, the dash didn't act up once. Of course, once I got into ATL and traffic off the interstate, it began to act up again. And, to my chagrin, it acted perfectly on the way home as long as I was driving on the interstate.....once I got off my exit and stopped, it started up again....and did it all the way home.
What I've done to diagnose:
--The cluster goes through its self-diagnosis properly and, according to the '85 FSM, passes the internal self-diagnosis as a properly functioning cluster.
--Ensured that all plugs going into the cluster are clean, tightly plugged in...and they are.
--Ensured the cluster's main ground, (L) side under dash, is tight and clean, which it is.
--Wiggled darned near every wire while the car's running and cannot make it replicate the bizarre behavior myself.
I am at a loss.......I'm down to either going through and replacing each and every single sensor under the hood in hopes that it's a sensor shorting itself, or completely stripping out the underhood wiring harness and replacing it. I don't really want to do the latter......very expensive and way too much work.
Anyone have any other ideas?
