CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.
Gage cluster ?
- Thread starter rockmad
- Start date
What do you mean by "basic dash"? Every blazer i've seen has a speedo, fuel, oil pressure, water temp, volts gauge. Some of the early blazers had a tach as well.
I've never seen a cluster with just idiot lights before. Must be pretty rare to find.
Why not just keep that cluster and install some aftermarket Autometer gauges under the dash below the ashtray?
I would guess that the inside wiring harness is different. I doubt GM used the same wiring for both dash's and i know the printed circuit piece would definately be different.
shaun89
1/2 ton status
ya, my brother has the idiot lights in his, i think you have to switch your sending units for the oil pressure/temp and volts to switch it over to analog (needle with numbers) gauges.
buffblazer
1/2 ton status
my 86 k5 has idiot lights and as stated above you need the sensors. the gauges should IIRC plug right in to the factory spots but you need the sensors
chevy wrangler
1/2 ton status
does anyone have pics of "idiot lights"??
buffblazer
1/2 ton status
these are the only two pics i could find. came mostly on custom deluxe, a few scottsdales and never seen them on silverados
Every single CUCV has the idiot lights.
I've got the speedo, world's-biggest-fuel-gauge, and then four idiot lights to the left with a voltage gauge on the right in a custom mounting that only the CUCV's got in the dash vent delete panel. Oh, and the glow plug and water in fuel lights that the diesels got.
From what I've heard from the CUCV guys you have to put in the appropriate sensors and wire it yourself. However it supposedly isn't a hard job all the sensors have a factory mounting point.
I've got the speedo, world's-biggest-fuel-gauge, and then four idiot lights to the left with a voltage gauge on the right in a custom mounting that only the CUCV's got in the dash vent delete panel. Oh, and the glow plug and water in fuel lights that the diesels got.
From what I've heard from the CUCV guys you have to put in the appropriate sensors and wire it yourself. However it supposedly isn't a hard job all the sensors have a factory mounting point.
buffblazer
1/2 ton status
Honestly it doesn't look like anything special but here goes:
buffblazer
1/2 ton status
man i wish i could find a set up like that, where you could fit 3 gauges in the hole and still be flush. i cut out the pocked and widened the dash a little and bought a 3 pack gauge holder and mounted it, the edges stick out a little. i will post a pic when i get a chance.
I don't think you could fit three gauges there - even the smallest 2 1/8" ones.
buffblazer
1/2 ton status
ya that was my problem i bought the gauge pack from napa and was able to fit all three in by just notching a half moon on each side of the ac vent hole just enough to clear the vents and then the metal cover they sit in, covered up my cut out.
Ah, gotcha. Definitely get some pics.
You can, but it's not straight plug and play. YOu'll have the swap some senders for the gauge version, and re-pinout the the plug on the back of the gauge cluster. That is, pop the pins and re-organize them.
You can tell which pins go where by *carefully) tracing the printed circuit board on back of both the idiot and guage version, then pop them and re-organize. Watch some the idiot lights are negative switched, so they have 12+ all the time to the light, and the switch is the thing in the block that just grounds out when. The senders can reverse that.
I did this exact swal on my '86 P/U 2wd v6 daily driver it can be done, just take it slow and before you pop any pins from that connector, make sure you have written down exactly what each one does and where goes.
BTW, idiot light versions are just as common as gauges if not more so, I would guess the numbers to be around 50/50. I've looked in many a junkyard, most around here have idiot lights. It was standard eqiuptment, guages were always an option and came default only on upsacale trim in the latter 5-7 years.
This might help (post #43), but is for a med. duty truck version with air guage as tach/fuel combo which only came on med. duty truck.
You can tell which pins go where by *carefully) tracing the printed circuit board on back of both the idiot and guage version, then pop them and re-organize. Watch some the idiot lights are negative switched, so they have 12+ all the time to the light, and the switch is the thing in the block that just grounds out when. The senders can reverse that.
I did this exact swal on my '86 P/U 2wd v6 daily driver it can be done, just take it slow and before you pop any pins from that connector, make sure you have written down exactly what each one does and where goes.
BTW, idiot light versions are just as common as gauges if not more so, I would guess the numbers to be around 50/50. I've looked in many a junkyard, most around here have idiot lights. It was standard eqiuptment, guages were always an option and came default only on upsacale trim in the latter 5-7 years.
This might help (post #43), but is for a med. duty truck version with air guage as tach/fuel combo which only came on med. duty truck.
Wasatch K5
1/2 ton status
DJ,
When you say that you found one at a Pick and Pull why not take the gauge cluster and cut off about six inches of that harness. That way you can match up the color coded wires correctly.
There's also a quartz clock option which keeps surprisingly good time. That fills the fourth hole, and looks better than the hole being empty.
I went the factory tach cluster method, but made some changes as opposed to the method in the post 43 link above. It was quite a process and won't go into it unless someone asks.
When you say that you found one at a Pick and Pull why not take the gauge cluster and cut off about six inches of that harness. That way you can match up the color coded wires correctly.
There's also a quartz clock option which keeps surprisingly good time. That fills the fourth hole, and looks better than the hole being empty.
I went the factory tach cluster method, but made some changes as opposed to the method in the post 43 link above. It was quite a process and won't go into it unless someone asks.
