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Problem with custom gauges...

1.5K views 10 replies 7 participants last post by  Ninety-Nine SE-L  
#1 ·
I made up some custom gauges for my '96 Sentra, everything went pretty smooth, but when I put the needles back on and started my car, I realized that they were going to the wrong positions. i.e., The speedometer was at 20mph when I was sitting still, the car appeared to be idling at 2k RPMs, and the temp meter was all the way up. Of course, those things weren't actually happening, it was just how I put the needles in.

I should be able to eventually fix it through trial and error, but does anyone have any faster ways for me to return the needles to their right places?
 
#2 ·
One of the most important things to do when doing gauge mods is to see where the needle rests w/o the needle stop piece in place BEFORE removing the needle. I normally use my digi camera to keep track exactly where it stops so this doesn't happen. Since it's too late for that now, I would suggest getting a friend w/ a cellphone and going to a parking lot or something and follow him/her at various speeds. Just be carefully trying to place needle on while driving :rolleyes: Also, go fill up to the top then place fuel gauge to F. Don't know what to tell ya about RPM or temp. Maybe drive for a while then place temp in middle? And place RPM while at idle (if you know what it was before)
Sorry, wish I could be more help. Good luck
 
#3 ·
For the speedo turn the key on then put the needle on 0
For temp warm the engine up then put it pretty close to where it usually runs warmed up.
And for the tach you are going to have to hook another tach up to get the one you already have right.
 
#4 ·
SKD_Tech said:
For the speedo turn the key on then put the needle on 0
For temp warm the engine up then put it pretty close to where it usually runs warmed up.
And for the tach you are going to have to hook another tach up to get the one you already have right.
Do you know where the rev limiter is? If so, tach it up in neutral till it hits the limiter and place the needle. Just be quick about it, hehe.
 
#6 · (Edited)
why be a dick? It isn't that hard to fix once you know how...
the 96 sentra ga16de usually has a rev limit set at about 6900 but that would be stupid to do
I just found that out the other day when I forgot to shift from 3rd hehe
and besides shouldn't it sit at zero when just the key is on???
 
#7 ·
captain_shrapnel said:
Do you know where the rev limiter is? If so, tach it up in neutral till it hits the limiter and place the needle. Just be quick about it, hehe.
Damn a useless post if I ever saw one.

Don't post this useless crap.

Chuck has a good suggestion though
 
#8 ·
Seems to be working fine now, just took a lot of trial and error to get them back in the right spot. Thanks for the help guys.

I think it was more of a pain in the ass than it was worth it though. :dumbass:
 
#9 ·
apachewoolf said:
...and besides shouldn't it sit at zero when just the key is on???
Yes and no. Don't forget that the needle rest on that little "stick" just below zero. If you carefully lift the needle over that, you'll see that needle actually stops below zero. At least, that's how it is on my 91 Sentra.

Glad to hear you got it figured out :thumbup:
 
#10 ·
gonzojoey said:
Yes and no. Don't forget that the needle rest on that little "stick" just below zero. If you carefully lift the needle over that, you'll see that needle actually stops below zero. At least, that's how it is on my 91 Sentra.

Glad to hear you got it figured out :thumbup:
got ya... I have never took it apart before so I wouldn't know
but I'm glad I do now cause I'm plannin on tearin into it soon
 
#11 ·
I really wish people would read up on things before they mess with something that thay don't know about. There are like 200 threads about people messing up their clusters.

No, it's not hard to fix now that the mistake has been made, jus takes a little trial and error to get them back in the right place. Had he taken the time to read up on this PRIOR to messing this up, he'd have known that a 30sec calibration with a marker could have saved him the trouble. He'd also have known that 50% of all people who remove their needles end up perminently breaking the entire speedometer unit. If it's still working, you got off lucky, but keep in mind, the speedometer will be even less accurate now than it was in stock form.