tachometer, just to the right of center in the instru-
ment cluster. The speedometer consists of a movable
gauge needle or pointer controlled by the instrument
cluster circuitry and a fixed 210 degree primary scale
on the gauge dial face that reads left-to-right either
from 0 to 120 mph, or from 0 to 200 km/h, depending
upon the market for which the vehicle is manufac-
tured. Each version also has a secondary inner scale
on the gauge dial face that provides the equivalent
opposite units from the primary scale. Text appearing
on the cluster overlay just above the hub of the
speedometer needle abbreviates the unit of measure
for the primary scale in all upper case letters (i.e.:
MPH or KM/H), followed by the unit of measure for
the secondary scale in all lower case letters (i.e.: mph
or km/h). The speedometer graphics are white (pri-
mary scale) and red (secondary scale) against a black
field, making them clearly visible within the instru-
ment cluster in daylight. When illuminated from
behind by the panel lamps dimmer controlled cluster
illumination lighting with the exterior lamps turned
On, the white graphics appear blue-green and the
red graphics appear red. The orange gauge needle is
internally illuminated. Gauge illumination is pro-
vided by replaceable incandescent bulb and bulb
holder units located on the instrument cluster elec-
tronic circuit board. The speedometer is serviced as a
unit with the instrument cluster.
OPERATION
The speedometer gives an indication to the vehicle
operator of the vehicle road speed. This gauge is con-
trolled by the instrument cluster circuit board based
upon cluster programming and electronic messages
received by the cluster from the Powertrain Control
Module (PCM) over the Programmable Communica-
tions Interface (PCI) data bus. The speedometer is an
air core magnetic unit that receives battery current
on the instrument cluster electronic circuit board
through the fused ignition switch output (run-start)
circuit whenever the ignition switch is in the On or
Start positions. The cluster is programmed to move
the gauge needle back to the low end of the scale
after the ignition switch is turned to the Off position.
The instrument cluster circuitry controls the gauge
needle position and provides the following features:
• Message Failure - If the cluster fails to receive
a speedometer message, it will hold the gauge needle
at the last indication for about four seconds, or until
the ignition switch is turned to the Off position,
whichever occurs first. If a new speedometer message
is not received after about four seconds, the gauge
needle will return to the far left (low) end of the
scale.
• Actuator Test - Each time the cluster is put
through the actuator test, the gauge needle will be
swept to several calibration points on the gauge scale
in a prescribed sequence in order to confirm the func-
tionality of the gauge and the cluster control cir-
cuitry.
The PCM continually monitors the vehicle speed
sensor to determine the vehicle road speed, then
sends the proper vehicle speed messages to the
instrument cluster. For further diagnosis of the
speedometer or the instrument cluster circuitry that
controls the gauge, (Refer to 8 - ELECTRICAL/IN-
STRUMENT CLUSTER - DIAGNOSIS AND TEST-
ING). For proper diagnosis of the vehicle speed
sensor, the PCM, the PCI data bus, or the message
inputs to the instrument cluster that control the
speedometer, a DRBIII
t scan tool is required. Refer
to the appropriate diagnostic information.
TACHOMETER
DESCRIPTION
A tachometer is standard equipment on all instru-
ment clusters. The tachometer is located to the left of
the speedometer, just to the left of center in the
instrument cluster. The tachometer consists of a
movable gauge needle or pointer controlled by the
instrument cluster circuitry and a fixed 210 degree
scale on the gauge dial face that reads left-to-right
from 0 to 7 for gasoline engines, or from 0 to 5 for
diesel engines. The text “RPM X 1000” imprinted on
the cluster overlay directly above the hub of the
tachometer needle identifies that each number on the
tachometer scale is to be multiplied by 1000 rpm.
The tachometer graphics are white against a black
field, making them clearly visible within the instru-
ment cluster in daylight. When illuminated from
behind by the panel lamps dimmer controlled cluster
illumination lighting with the exterior lamps turned
On, the white graphics appear blue-green. The
orange gauge needle is internally illuminated. Gauge
illumination is provided by replaceable incandescent
bulb and bulb holder units located on the instrument
cluster electronic circuit board. The tachometer is
serviced as a unit with the instrument cluster.
OPERATION
The tachometer gives an indication to the vehicle
operator of the engine speed. This gauge is controlled
by the instrument cluster circuit board based upon
cluster
programming
and
electronic
messages
received by the cluster from the Powertrain Control
Module (PCM) over the Programmable Communica-
tions Interface (PCI) data bus. The tachometer is an
air core magnetic unit that receives battery current
on the instrument cluster electronic circuit board
through the fused ignition switch output (run-start)
8J - 30
INSTRUMENT CLUSTER
AN
SPEEDOMETER (Continued)