QuestionQUESTION: Roland, still can't get my fuel gauge problem resolved with the 2000 sebring convertible. I pulled the harness from the BCM under the dash and checked the dark blue wire to ground and got 868 ohms, so apparently it isn't grounded out. Now what? Thanks, Greg
ANSWER: Hi Greg,
If that is also the resistance that it currently reads at the tank, then the problem is not the wiring between the float and the body computer. I presume that you also have checked resistance with the tank at different degrees of fullness and found it to vary as appropriate, but if not you might check that out.
Otherwise, it seems to me that, along with the fact that you tried a second cluster with the same result, then about all it could be is the bcm that is failing to convert the resistance reading into an appropriate digital message to the cluster, which implies a replacement body control module is the last thing to try. If you would like to open the bcm and re-heat the solder joint between pin 15 of that 20-pin socket and the circuit board, that might be why it is reading full because it would be like a very high resistance reading at the tank if the joint were 'open'. I am not familiar with whether the bcm can be opened up easily.
Roland
PS Thanks for the rating/nomination. You can do it again if you would like.
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QUESTION: Is their any way to test between the the BCM and the plug in to the back of the gauge cluster?
ANSWER: Hi Greg,
All the digital signals that operate the gauges in the cluster go down the same pair of wires, so if all the other gauges work then it has to be a problem inside the body control module.
Roland
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Roland, maybe I'm missing something here, but my gauges are analog gauges. Are you saying that they should be digital readout gauges? There are two plugins in the back of the cluster that have multiple wires and I was wondering if those could be checked with an ohmmeter. Thanks
AnswerHi Ryan,
What I am saying is that all of the voltages (signals) for the oil pressure/coolant temperature/fuel level/battery voltage/speedo and tach are carried on a pair of twisted wires at pins 7 and 8 of the cluster blue plug and they come from pins 11 and 1 of the 22 pin natural color plug at the bcm, respectively. So I can't believe that the other 5 digital signals are getting through properly to the cluster but somehow only the fuel gauge doesn't work. Therefore I would have to think that there is a problem between the bcm input wire from the tank at pin 15 and the twisted outgoing pair of wires to the cluster. It just doesn't ring true that there could be a wiring problem between the bcm and the cluster that only takes 'out' one of the 5 signals that go on the wires.
But I have listed the pin numbers at both ends of those twisted wires so feel free to check them out for continuity and for not being shorted to ground. They will show a polarizing voltage of +2.5V and -2.5V when the system is 'on'. If pin 15's wire of the 20-pin bcm plug isn't securely attached to the input circuit board of the bcm that would be the only other reason why you don't have a good reading OR the bcm has an internal problem with digitizing that signal.
Roland
PS Please consider giving me another 'nomination' for this reply. Thank you
