Cluster problems (only tach and speedo work)

[droptop318]

Only my tach and speedo work, and they work pretty well as far as i can tell.

but

My odometer, tripometer, gas gauge and water temp gauges do not work.

I am new to the e30 m42 world and curious if these are common problems.  

is the odometer cable driven or an electronic signal?  

I played around with the plug at the fuel sending unit and it seemed to cause the gauge to "dance" around a bit.  don't know if this is related to the initial problem tho.

Also, if i tap the top of the dash, the water temp gauge will change positions, not sure if it is moving to the correct temp or not.  

any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated.

Mahalo,
greg

[DesktopDave]

All instruments are fully electronic, no cable at all.  There are two frequent problems.  If you take out the cluster you'll see two small grounding nuts on the back, behind the coolant and fuel gauges.  If they're loose, you'll get erratic gauges.

The second frequent problem is the SI board batteries.  Very common on e30's.  You'll have to take apart the entire thing, pull the SI board out, solder new NiCd batteries in and then it should work.  They power the oil change, inspection lights in the bottom of the cluster.  It'll cost you about $15 for the batteries and an hour or so of work.  If you're not handy with soldering, get a buddy to do it.

The cluster is difficult to remove until you get the hang of it.

[droptop318]

thanks for the advise....

any DIY's on removing the cluster?

[///M3Mike]

thanks for the advise....

any DIY's on removing the cluster?

http://zoso.no-ip.org/318i-dash.html

It becomes 2nd nature after you do it as many times as I have.  I swear I've removed mine with my eyes closed

[DesktopDave]

Check the gears on the odometer...they're nylon and they break.  It's a common BMW e30 problem:
http://www.azbmw.org/index.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=107961

It's never all that easy to get the dash out, but I can do it in less than a half-hour without braking anything.  

BTW, that guide neglects to mention a detail or two.  Make sure the turn signal stalk is cancelled (centered) before you put the wheel back on, or else you'll crack the cancel switch right off.  Then you'll wonder why it won't turn off any more.  It's also better to use the steering lock to get that big steering wheel nut off, then unlock it to pull the wheel.  It won't come off if it's locked, and you'll bend the slip ring.

I deleted my airbag wheel & swapped it for a 3 spoke leather 'vert wheel, stalks & cruise control.  I couldn't be happier with it, AND I can get the cluster out without pulling the wheel...though not blindfolded.

I swear I lose at least one of those little screws every time I take apart the dash.  Why BMW chose nineteen different types of fasteners for the dash is one of those little Bavarian practical jokes we all get such a kick out of.

[droptop318]

thanks for the help guys... i plan on tackling this on sunday.  I'll try to post picks and updates on how it goes...

[dvmotorsports]

Bring it by my place. I'll take it out.

[rjcaptsean]

Sorry to jack the thread, but on a related note, I have a question regarding the speedometer.  If the gears are broken in the odometer, would that cause the speedometer to not work?  Mine works intermittently and my thought was that the odometer gears might be missing some teeth or cracked, and they occasionally jump and work.  Sound reasonable?

[DesktopDave]

I had the same trouble with mine.  Bad wire in the harness off the diff in my case.  The sender in the rear of the diff can also fail at high mileage.

[rjcaptsean]

I had the same trouble with mine.  Bad wire in the harness off the diff in my case.  The sender in the rear of the diff can also fail at high mileage.

That sender is just a magnet isn't it?  How does it fail?

[DesktopDave]

Damned if I know.  It should be foolproof.

[M42_Jester]

if there is something in the diff that control the speedo, wat control the Tach?
mine doesn't work...the motor is fine, cause i've done the test that Dave told me about, but it still won't move an inch when the car is running...in fact, the whole right hand side of my cluster seems to have failed...

thoughts??

[DesktopDave]

Tach is controlled by the DME.  It reads off the crank position sensor.  I'd think that your newer e36 cluster has a failed capacitor on the driver board...happened in my e34.  The e30 cluster is simpler, not as vulnerable to board failures.