'97 Intrepid gauges turn off intermittently

[teakstone]

Hey

I have posted this a few months ago but still no fix for it.

Occassionally the gauges on my '97 Intrepid go out, the odometer does not advance, but the dashboard light bulbs stay on.

This car was a fire chiefs car. The specialty electronics have been removed. In the process of removing lights, radios, antennas etc, the mechanic may have nudged something loose or not tightened a connection once they were done.

I have been told to check the ground wire, but have not been able to find the ground connection since getting my big head under there is a bit difficult.

Have any of you exeprienced guages like that?

teakstone

[nofollicles]

It does sound like a ground problem, but I've had wonky readings on the fuel gauge from time to time (3/8, then full, then nothing, then back to the 3/8 I knew was in there) ever since my radiator fans have started staying on, and I'm about ready to just call it a PCM glitch, so you may be having a similar problem.

[Tony Silva]

Remove the guage cluster...inspect and clean the two electrical sockets. Use a phillips head screw driver to remove the plastic trim surrounding the cluster. Ince all the screws are removed the trim can be pulled off, it may seem like the plastic will break but just wiggle it as you are removing it and the retaining clips will pop loose. once you have the cluster exposed, remove the screws from the lower left and right sides of the instrument cluster, next give a good solid tug on the center top of the unit, once it is loose, pop out the lower left and right sides. Remove the cluster and you will see how simple the situation is. Make sure all the contact points are clean and not folded over. Push the cluster back in and see any changes. If every thing works good then you're OK, if every thing stays the same then you've ruled out the guage cluster being at fault.