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All Gauges keep going dead, then airbag light comes on

W

Wheel_Works

NAXJA Forum User
Location
MI
Ok guys need some help. My Instrument cluster keeps going completely dead. Then the airbag light comes on. Doesn't seem to affect anything else. If you shut the Jeep off everything will start working again. I started cleaning grounds today. Any advice?
 
Im sorry, it's a 98'. Does the airbag light typically come on with a loose connection like that? Friday I'll pull the cluster and check it out. Any other suggestions?
 
Pull the instrument panel. Clean the contacts, use some dielectric grease, and see if you can pull on the harness and get a little extra "slack" back there to take the strain off the connector.
 
My 98 is doing the same thing....I already pulled the cluster out once but I didn't clean or lube anything, which hopefully will take care of the problem, I'll try it this weekend!
 
joe_peters said:
Pull the instrument panel. Clean the contacts, use some dielectric grease, and see if you can pull on the harness and get a little extra "slack" back there to take the strain off the connector.
Click to expand...

That was not a permanent solution for me; only a temporary fix.
I have owned my '98 since new in '97 and have had that problem since '00.
The dealer has performed their TSB where they remove the bus connectors that snap into the instrument cluster and replace them; which only lasted for several months.
I personally have removed the instrument cluster at least 6 times to clean the terminals.
A friend of mine that is a Jeep Tech at a local dealership tried what usually works for him at the dealer; that only worked for 2 months.
About 2 years ago I cleaned the cluster pins and connector contacts with contact cleaner and scotch bright and then applied dielectric grease; the problem returned after a week.
Nothing has solved the problem; so I just live with it....
Pressing on the cluster face almost never worked for me; what does work everytime is flipping the turn signal lever upward to make a right turn. The airbag light goes away and the all the instrument cluster functions resume.
 
CharlesS said:
what does work everytime is flipping the turn signal lever upward to make a right turn. The airbag light goes away and the all the instrument cluster functions resume.
Click to expand...
This whole thing including the gauges drop and the air bag light comes on is whats going on with the new XJ I just bought? Also the turning on the signal light dose sometimes work for me, today it was hitting the wipers and there they went? LOL
But thanx guy's on the infor I will pull them out asap and check things.
 
Thanks for the advice! I've been having the same problem since I've had the Jeep for two weeks. My problems seems to be related to the overhead console buttons being pressed - does this seem possible? I'll try the suggestions.
 
I have a 98 with the same problem. Usually pushing on the face of the gauge cluster works for me. I read a few months ago in either JP mag or 4wheel offroad that there's a replacement harness available that's supposed to fix this but now I can't find any info on it. The article listed the part number but now I can't find it. Does anyone have it?
 
praetorian said:
I have a 98 with the same problem. Usually pushing on the face of the gauge cluster works for me. I read a few months ago in either JP mag or 4wheel offroad that there's a replacement harness available that's supposed to fix this but now I can't find any info on it. The article listed the part number but now I can't find it. Does anyone have it?
Click to expand...

IIRC the buss connectors are what is in the replacement kit.
Probably 9 years ago there was a Technical Service Bulletin issued addressing this problem and I had the new buss connectors installed under warranty. This is where they cut the old connectors off the harness and solder new ones onto the existing wiring.
That procedure only lasted about 6 months and the problems returned.
The problem stems from oxidation on the contact surfaces of the instrument cluster pins and the buss connector surfaces.
In the 13 years that I have owned the Jeep; I have removed the cluster over a dozen times cleaning the contact surfaces and the problem returns.
Several years ago I actually cleaned the surfaces with Scotchbrite, wiped the metal with plastic safe contact cleaner and the applied dielectric grease to the connectors and pins. The problem returned within a couple months.
Now I just deal with it....where I move the directional stalk to make a right turn and the gauge function returns.....
 
I have a '93 and a '98 XJ and the gauges on BOTH cars go dead every now & then.

I've done nearly everything (cleaned up grounds, pulled and cleaned the connectors
and reassembled with dielectric grease) and the results are either short-lived or
no improvement at all.

On the '98, pressing the gauge pack into the dash works, albeit temporarily.

On the '93, thumping or tapping on the gauge pack lens will sometimes
cause the tach and speedo needles to spring to life for a few miles.

The only thing I haven't done is to cut off and replace the harness connector.
I WAS going to do this, but now I've read here that this, also, effects only
temporary improvement.

Up until now, I thought Lucas electrics was bad (the Lord Of Darkness; the bane of
British sports cars, etc.) ...but now...I'm beginning to think Chrysler may have kept
the spirit of problematic car electrics alive and well.
 
I am a forever optimist.

I have a plan, but I don't have a 97+ with the problem so I offer it free to all:

Add about six + inches of wire to the connector. That might relieve strain on the connector enough to eliminate the problem.

Now, you could simply cut the wire and solder in a six inch section--two soldered joints and 2 pieces of heat shrink tubing per wire, or head to the salvage yard for a connector with wires attached cut from a harness--if the salvage yard would permit it, some won't.

That is my big and clever idea. Dragonslayer, you seem to have had a particular hard time with yours, are you willing to give it a try?
 
There is a product called DeOxit that may very well cure the problem. It is a spray-on deoxidizer and conductivity promoter- or something like that. It's specified by Ford for certain airbag connector issues and also quite expensive. Since it's not cheap, you may have luck calling a few Ford (or other?) service departments to see if they have it. R/R the cluster in the parking lot and give it a spray.
 
I use an electric contact cleaner every time I clean and apply dielectric grease to the
connector (with limited success). However, DeOxit sounds intriguing and I just may
try it.

My next plan for my '93 is to go to a self-pick wrecking yard and cut off a connector.
This will enable me to try to dissect it to see how, exactly, each female metal socket is retained in the harness connector block. I think that if I can remove each of the female
sockets and gently squeeze them with pliers to more strongly grip the male pins, I might be able to achieve a better, longer lasting connection.

The later model Cherokee ('97 and up) haven't yet trickled into the self-pick yards
in my area.
 
My 98 does this, i found turning the ignition back towards the off position just slightly brings the guages back to life.
 
I am honored to be part of this faulty electrical connector club. Up to now, I've only been part of the dreaded death wobble club, broken center latch club, improper wheel offset and rubbing the control arms club, wobbly door hinge club, dead passenger window club, cracked exhaust manifold club, and broken driver's door speaker club. I love my XJ and all the wonderful experiences I get to deal with. It enriches my life and I am often amazed at how many others experience the same things.

As a new member of this faulty electrical connector club, I will contribue what I know with hopes of enlightening someone with similar experiences. My airbag light came on when I dropped off a rock and smacked my front JCR bumper hard enough to jar something loose. Shortly there after, I lost my horn. Today, a month after the airbag light, I lost my cruise control. I fully anticipate loss of my guages before I finally get around to removing my instrument cluster.

I will post up what I find, if anything, to this or any number of other similar threads. For now, I shall figure out how to remove the guages...
 
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