Odometer Getting Dim

I have noticed in recent weeks the odometer indicator on my gauge cluster is getting dim. So dim that in bright sunlight it can hardly be seen. At night and in dim outside light it is ok. I have noticed at night when I first start the truck the odometer is very bright, but as soon as I adjust the brightness of the cluster it immediately drops in brightness. It does dim with the other parts of the cluster, but it will never come back to the initial brightness.

Any idea of an easy fix for this or am I looking at a replacement cluster?

When towing I use the Manual mode a lot and this indicator is so dim during the day I have a hard time seeing the gear numbers.

Ed, it's been five days, or so. Did you get any resolution? Was the next older thread any help for you? It seems like there might be some relation to some of those fuse/dimmer issues.

If the dimming problem only affects the odometer, it is likely due to a gauge cluster problem. On the other hand, if the odometer dimming problem is shared by another display, like the PRNDL display or the radio, then the problem is more likely due to a faulty dimmer control.

It is just the odometer. All other gauges seem to work fine with the dimmer. I'm thinking it is about time for a cluster repair/rework. There is a lot of info on the net about clusters up to 2006 with this same problem or worse. I read the other day new ones aren't available any longer for this truck and there is lots of info on companies that rework old ones for a lot less money. If I go the rework route I will definitely have all of the gauges done so I don't have to go through it again.

I will be in the Atlanta area in a few weeks and there is one company that advertises same day service with an appointment. I can take it out and take it to them.

Any thoughts?

Just for what it's worth, my son has bought a bunch of little motors/drivers for his instrument panel and solder-sucked and changed all the bad one's with good result. I'd bet that the outfit that sold him those would deal with other aspects of the IP, too. If interested, let me know and I'll give him a call and get his data for you.

DW

I don't have any interest in attempting to replace the parts myself Dick even though I am relatively good at soldering, etc. I had rather it be done by someone that has done it many times.

This is the company I have found in the Atlanta area: http://classicspeedo.com/. I haven't spoken with them yet, but since I will be in that area for a few next month it seemed like it might work. Any thoughts on this company would be appreciated if you have any experience. I have a home base (I full time in an RV) in central Alabama and there isn't a repair company closer to here than Mobile that I have found.

There's several places out there that will completely rebuild the dash with a good warranty for about $130. They will replace the stepper motors for the needles, change all the bulbs with upgraded ones, and fix dim displays.

Worth it. I fixed our Envoy myself and while I may have saved $40, but it took me two days to get everything right and I had to take it back apart twice to get the needles in the right spots.

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Originally Posted by AKMark

There's several places out there that will completely rebuild the dash with a good warranty for about $130. They will replace the stepper motors for the needles, change all the bulbs with upgraded ones, and fix dim displays.

Worth it. I fixed our Envoy myself and while I may have saved $40, but it took me two days to get everything right and I had to take it back apart twice to get the needles in the right spots.

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That is what this company in the Atlanta area does. I'm pretty handy with electronic stuff, but want to "get 'er done" right the first time and not take a bunch of time to do it. I will remove the cluster and take it to them and hopefully their same day service will be accurate. But I do have my daughter's spare car to drive if it takes longer than expected.

Thanks for your experience.

Speaking to one of the shops, it took him less than 2 hours to completely rebuild the cluster.

Of course, do something enough times and you become a master.

The company in Atlanta turned out to be either out of business or at the very least not interested in answering their phone or replying to emails, soooooo

I'm off tomorrow morning for Mobile, AL to get it done. There is a company there that rebuilds them also and I have an appointment tomorrow. He said it will take him an hour or a little over and I had rather drive it down there vs shipping and I get it done same day. And if it isn't right I'm still looking him in the eye. Mobile is only 200 miles from me.

Out of curiosity I checked with my local dealer, which I don't like anyway, just to see a benchmark. They said GM doesn't make these clusters any longer and they get reworked ones from Seattle, WA and my cost would be $425.00 plus their programming charge of $165.00. No thank you, I'm off to Mobile for less than $185.00 plus the cost of fuel.

Road trip sounds positive. And a chance to find one of those really good hole in the wall restaurants.

A nephew is from Mobile originally and I have the name of his favorite seafood joint. That will be done tomorrow also.

I'm curious about your results. Let us know how it goes, and if you like what happened then post up the name of the shop that did it for you.

It was agreed that the odometer was a bit dim. He removed the cluster and tested it. He said all looked fine other than the dim odometer LED. He did not recommend replacing all of the light bulbs and stepper motors since they were all working fine. He did tweak something to do with the odometer and when he put it back in the truck it was a little brighter. He also looked a the dash dimmer control and said it seemed to be worn. He removed it and worked on tightening it up and cleaning it a little. No change so I went to a local GM dealer and bought a new one. I wanted to eliminate all possible issues and this part wasn't that expensive. The gauge guy installed it and it made a noticeable difference also.

So after the trip, the odometer is brighter. The gauge guy didn't charge a thing so all it cost me for the improvement was a new dimmer control and the trip. Was it worth the trip and cost? I think so. I could see the odometer better on the way home.

www.gaugedoctor.com

They are located in Mobile, AL and he does work for most of the car dealers in south Alabama.

The cluster on my '05 is doing exactly what yours was. Everything works smoothly, the lights all light and the guages all do what they should without exception. The DIC fluorescent (LED?) readout is dim though. The shop you got yours fixed by might be the answer - if I don't make it better on my own. I can live without the cluster for some time; Torque Pro pretty much fills in any missing info I'd otherwise be without.

Do you feel like the DIC is as bright as new?

As bright as new? After 9 years I'm not sure. My eyes are older and don't work as well as they used to either....haha. One thing you might check before you think about removing the cluster and shipping it, would be to replace the dimmer switch. The one I bought from a dealer was $87.XX plus tax and it just snaps in/out and one plug. It improved my LED a little also. My old dimmer felt like it was rough when rolling the wheel up and down. The replacement is smooth.

The Gauge Doctor guy said it was bright as it should be and since he didn't charge me anything I certainly didn't want to disagree with him. Maybe he felt sorry for me after driving 200 miles to get to him shop? But I did have a nice seafood lunch while in the area so all was not lost.

I drove my truck last night for the first time after the repair and the odometer it is definitely brighter. I also noticed when adjusting the light level of the dash the new dimmer makes a big difference. No more fluctuating light levels as you move the dimmer. It is nice and smooth now. As with most things, it was a couple of issues when combined created a single problem.