Dad’s 1969 Dodge Dart Swinger 340
Working on the gauge cluster. 3 gauges were giving fits. Temp and Fuel gauges were not working at all. Speedometer was working, but getting stuck and wouldnt drop back to zero - or past 40MPH for that matter.
Pulled the gauge cluster and tested the gauges individually. Fuel gauge works but the nuts that hold it to the circuit board were loose. The temp gauge wasnt working at all. Took the face off to find the filament was broken. So that thing is junk. Ordered a new gauge cluster from ebay. Two chances at a working gauge. Temp gauge was crispified and no bueno. Fuel gauge was in good shape, just needed the tangs tightened to make the needle make a full sweep. Since the gauges use the same cores, they function the same. I will install the temp gauge on the new working core and reassembly the dash.
Speedometer had some dried out rubber grommets on the mounting screws for the speedometer. This was allowing the speedometer (the whole thing) to wobble. I trashed those and grabbed a set of small grommets from the hardware store. Reinstalled the speedometer (after rolling back the odometer, its already titled as past mechanical limits), and reinstalled. Nice tight now.
That mess is going back in tonight, which will allow me to reinstall the steering column, column trim, steering wheel, and e-brake assembly. And then go test drive it.
Working on the gauge cluster. 3 gauges were giving fits. Temp and Fuel gauges were not working at all. Speedometer was working, but getting stuck and wouldnt drop back to zero - or past 40MPH for that matter.
Pulled the gauge cluster and tested the gauges individually. Fuel gauge works but the nuts that hold it to the circuit board were loose. The temp gauge wasnt working at all. Took the face off to find the filament was broken. So that thing is junk. Ordered a new gauge cluster from ebay. Two chances at a working gauge. Temp gauge was crispified and no bueno. Fuel gauge was in good shape, just needed the tangs tightened to make the needle make a full sweep. Since the gauges use the same cores, they function the same. I will install the temp gauge on the new working core and reassembly the dash.
Speedometer had some dried out rubber grommets on the mounting screws for the speedometer. This was allowing the speedometer (the whole thing) to wobble. I trashed those and grabbed a set of small grommets from the hardware store. Reinstalled the speedometer (after rolling back the odometer, its already titled as past mechanical limits), and reinstalled. Nice tight now.
That mess is going back in tonight, which will allow me to reinstall the steering column, column trim, steering wheel, and e-brake assembly. And then go test drive it.
