Odometer, dash lights intermittently working

[crespoh69]

Hey guys, a few weeks back, I noticed that my odometer's numbers are not always showing correctly. For example the first three numbers may have the bottom cut off but the rest of the numbers look fine. I thought nothing of it since sometimes it happened other times it was fine.

Then I started going out at night and noticed that my dash lights and automatic shifter lights will not always turn on. Again, the issue appears to be intermittent.

Finally last week someone honked at me and this guy was nice enough to tell me that my running lights were off in the rear, although my headlights worked. I parked and turned my alarm on and off and normally when I activate that, the lights will turn on for a sec to indicate it had been turned on or off.

All of this again is intermittent and I can find no rhyme or reason as to why it happens or doesn't happen. I checked the 10A TAIL fuse and swapped that out with a new one but the issue persists. About 6 months ago I swapped out my dash lights with LED bulbs but they don't all show up correctly so may even swap back to just the regular ones but this obviously won't do anything if I can't solve this issue. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[crespoh69]

Any ideas on this guys? I finally decided to pull my odometer again, thinking maybe I just needed to reseat the cables after having done an LED install a couple of months back since I noticed the lights and odometer would come back again if I hit a large enough bump like a dip or speed bump at speed. Kind of like how fixing the TV in the old days required a slap. I reseated the cables though and still nothing. I then disconnected the cables and pressed and held down the trip reset stick for a few secs and put everything back together and so far the numbers are at least showing correctly and I can cycle through trip A and B but occasionally the lights will all go out and my cockpit is completely dark. My headlights and brakelights still function though, it's only the dash and running lights that don't.

 

[Devbot]

My only guess would be a short in the body harness, whether it be from a rodent or flood damage or something, as that's really the only common denominator between all those things. Potentially a hole got chewed through somewhere and it's being grounded out on the body, and that's why a big bump makes it go away - perhaps it's enough to shake the harness from it's position slightly? I would say potentially a bad ground but it's very weird some digitals go out and others stay on. A multimeter would be your friend, but I get that isn't easy when it's apparently random... Sorry for the vague answer, just trying to bump the thread and keep it from getting buried
As for why the LEDs aren't showing in your dash, I'd take a wild stab and say their position is likely backwards. 9/10 times people have the opposite problem; the LEDs get a current bleed and won't turn off. For the sake of troubleshooting i would address them one way or another just so you know for certain if it's related or not and to help whittle down what circuits are being afflicted

 

[Rushthezeppelin]

2nd vote for getting a multimeter out. Not only do a simple continuity check but also check resistance. If a rodent has chewed stuff or flood damage has oxidized a connector it will be clear based on higher resistance. Might even just be an issue of old wire sheathing that's cracked if this has been in a desert climate most of its life.

 

[crespoh69]

2nd vote for getting a multimeter out. Not only do a simple continuity check but also check resistance. If a rodent has chewed stuff or flood damage has oxidized a connector it will be clear based on higher resistance. Might even just be an issue of old wire sheathing that's cracked if this has been in a desert climate most of its life.

Thanks, it's been mostly city living in SoCal, only been out to the desert like 3 times with it since '99. Any videos on how to a multimeter on our trucks?