Troubleshooting

It is our hope that every installation of our instruments is straight forward and trouble free.  If it should happen that you have an issue at start-up, we’ve provided this trouble shooting guide to help you identify and correct any problems you might encounter.

You will minimize the time and effort required to find the reason your instruments are not working properly if you check and confirm these two items first.

    1. You have a dedicated 12 VDC power source coming from the accessory side of your ignition switch for your instruments.  It should have a separate fuse that is independent of other functions on your fuse panel.
    2. You have properly grounded and connected the wires for each of the sending units.  If you haven't, your gauges will not read accurately – or possibly not at all.

In most cases correcting power input, providing proper grounds and creating proper wire connections will eliminate the issues with improper function.

General:  Electrical

When you turn the ignition on, all the needles in your set should move to their “zero” or lowest value position.

If none of them work, check your power source and ground for the PCB to make sure that they have been connected correctly.

If some needles move and some don’t, check the power, ground and wiring connections for each gauge with a voltmeter or continuity tester.

If your electrical connections have been made correctly and the gauges still do not function properly, the issue may be programming.

General:  Programming

Our PCB controls the motor movements by taking input as electronic signals from the function senders, interpreting them and then sending those command signals to the stepper motors.

If the programming values in the PCB do not match those generated by the senders, the needles will not move correctly.

Correcting the programming requires we know what senders you are using to ensure their output matches the programming values loaded onto the PCB.

Speedometer

Speedometer is not accurate:  The programming values for the pulses per mile are not correct.  This could be caused by:

      1. The sending unit pulses are not the same as used for the programming values. If so, a new administrator programming file needs to be created and loaded onto the PCB.
      2. The values for the rear end ratio, tire diameter, and drive and driven gears in the transmission are not correct.   If this is the case, follow the Quickset recalibration directions in the installation manual to correct the values.

Needle is fluctuating: The PCB is receiving an intermittent or “dirty” signal.  This could be caused by:

      1. RF interference from non-shielded EMI/ignition wires. If this is the case, an RF choke needs to be installed to shield the speedometer signal wire (white with a blue trace) from possible interference.
      2. A GPS sending unit not maintaining a consistent connection. If this is the case, the GPS sending unit needs to be moved to a different location with as little interference as possible, such as the bottom of the hood or the roof of the vehicle.
      3. An intermittent connection in the wiring. If this is the case, the bad connection needs to be located and repaired. It is recommended to solder and insulate all connections.
      4. If none of these are the problem, a new administrator programming file needs to be created with a lower moving average filter set value and loaded onto the PCB. A lower moving average filter set will decrease the sensitivity of the needle’s movement.

Speed is accurate to a certain mph but then drops to zero until the speed goes back below that point. 

This is caused by a sending unit creating more pulses per revolution than our PCB can read accurately.  It can be fixed by using a sending unit with a PPR of less than 32 to lower the number of pulses being sent to the PCB.

Tachometer

Needle moves to zero with power on, does not move when RPM increases:

The PCB is either not receiving a signal or receiving a signal it cannot interpret.  This could be caused by:

This could be caused by an input frequency is less than 5V. If this is the case, you will need to install a pull-up resistor.  Note: Our PCB can only interpret square wave forms.

Needle is fluctuating: The PCB is receiving an intermittent or “dirty” signal.  This could be caused by:

      1. RF interference from non-shielded EMI/ignition wires. If this is the case, an RF choke needs to be installed to shield the tachometer signal wire (white) from possible interference.
      2. A “dirty” input signal. If this is the case, the internal signal suppressor will need to be turned on by using the con2r_c.csv file on the included CON2R thumb drive.
      3. An intermittent connection in the wiring. If this is the case, the bad connection needs to be located and repaired. It is recommended to solder and insulate all connections.
      4. If none of these are the problem, a new administrator programming file needs to be created with a lower moving average filter set value and loaded onto the PCB. A lower moving average filter set will decrease the sensitivity of the needle’s movement.

Fuel Gauge

If power, ground and wiring have been checked and the gauge still does not read properly, the correct ohm values need to be entered into the PCB.

Common sender ohms are shown below.

    • GM before 1964 = 0-30 will read full or high if the sender has a bad ground
    • GM after 1966 = 0-90 will read full or high if the sender has a bad ground
    • Ford before 1986 = 10-75 will read empty or low if the sender has a bad ground
    • Ford after 1986 = 16-158 will read full or high if the sender has a bad ground
    • Dodge/Chrysler before 1989 = 75-10 will read empty or low if the sender has a bad ground
    • Universal = 240-33 will read empty or low if the sender has a bad ground

Temperature / Oil Pressure

If you have a 5-volt oil pressure sending unit it will not work with our system.

Tape or other sealants on sender threads can cause a bad ground.

Poor grounds may cause a gauge to read high or low

A fan or warning light connected directly to the sender may cause improper gauge function

An air pocket around a sender in a manifold or bushing may cause a temp gauge to read high.