HELP!!! Electrical

I have a 2000 accord v6 ex. My problem is this. The backlighting on my instrument cluster is out. I have checked all fuses and relays and they are fine. Also it does some weird things. When the lights are in the off position i have backlighting on th eradio, auto climate control and the display for mileage. When i turn the lights to the on position all backlighting everywhere goes off as well as the shift lights on the dash (the ones that tell you what gear u are in p d n d4 d3 etc... I have even gone as far as to remove the stereo and climate control and locate the illumination wire and light test it. When these items are unplugged and light tested everything seems normal. I even called honda, they said that a pin on one of the connectors on the backside of the instrument cluster could be out of whack or that i have a wire that is grounding out in which they said they could look at for $60.00 an hour. I am about to just say screw it and bypass some things and run new wires. I need help. Has anyone run into this before or have any ideas. Also the engine temp gage is not working, I am not sure if this is related or not.

Thanks to all who can help.

sounds like you have a bad relay for the instrument and lighting. check the relays. Also, what all did you or someone else do before all this happened? You never know it could be something you or someone else put on or did. try to back track.

I have not installed anything on the car nor has anyone else, it is completely stock. No aftermarket stereo or anything. Where would i find that relay. I pulled all the ones i could find even if they were not related and i checked the continuity. Is there another way to check the relays. Thanks for your reply.

For those interested I fixed the problem. It was a combination of a bad instrument cluster and a bad ground. Thanks to all who offered assistance.