i just purchased a 2000 civic ex....

welll i love the damn car, but the lighting to my speedometer (and tach) isnt working the headlights and brake lights and etc work except for the the tach n ****. possible fuse? or something i would appreciate a response soon. thank you.

 

Hows it goin? I'm a newb to HCF but not at all a newb to cars. I'm guessing by the way you said that the lighting to the tach isnt working as well as the lighting to the speedo and other instruments so im assuming that your gauge cluster includes a tachometer? If it was an aftermarket tachometer, the wiring for the backlight must be attached to the backlight wiring going to your cluster if your saying that everything isnt working. Tearing apart the dash to see if the cluster bulbs are working is a pain in the *** (if you have a tachometer included in your cluster) but if you have an aftermarket tachometer, an easy way to check if it really is the wiring to the cluster are bad, disconnect the wiring to the tach.

all aftermarket tachs will almost always have a red, white and black wires grouped together and another wire acting as a pickup to the distributor negative lead...black is always negative and the other wires red and/or white are the tach's power and lighting leads. just connect both of those wires to a 12 volt power source (car's battery is easy to access) and see if it lights up. If it does (remember im assuming here that you have an aftermarket tach) then the wire that comes from the **** you use to turn on the driving/headlights/hibeams is broken or you have a **** with a bad connection or lead somewhere.

If the tachometer is integrated into the gauge cluster, then assume that you will have to remove the cluster. I will find out some more information for you because im not a master at removing clusters for civics newer than 4th generation (meaning screw holes and covers for screws are hidden differently). If you plan to go through with the removal, remember to set aside a day where you will have the uninteruppted time required to accomplish the removal.

If you do have an aftermarket tachometer, you can get that lighting up by running a seperate switch from a 12 volt power source located somewhere in the interior. Troubleshooting cluster lighting is difficult because there can be a number of problems such as the switch that controls the lights or the main cable to the cluster is broken. Let me know if the rest of the instruments (water temperature, gas gauge) are still fully functional. The speedometer will always work because they should be run with a cable. If they are working, it is solely a problem with the lights to the cluster and you may just need new ones.

let me know and i will try and help you as best as i can.

 

Quick other note, when i was doing a rebulid of my civic, i had a problem getting the entire cluster to work later on (about 2 months later) figuring out that is was just the fuse. Check the fuse panel under the steering column. The plastic part that you pull off should have a diagram of where specific fuses are. Just look for keywords relating to your problem (i.e. lights, instrument cluster, accessories, things like that). Just a tip before you start ripping everything to shreads like i usually do. there you go, if the fuse is your problem your new slogan can be "Fuses First"...lol....ttyl man

 

i hope not. i mean its all stock. nothing has been messed with (from what i know) . i have nothing aftermarket. so i'm wondering if there is a short somewhere. or a fuse. i pray to god its a fuse of some sort. i jsut got the car 2 days ago. i really dont feel like ripping apart the dash.
im also new to civics. so i dont know to much about them.

 

ok, so your tach is integrated into the dash. very good start meaning you only have three or four things to look at.

1. Check the fuses. Look at the back of the fuse cover for a diagram location of specific fuses. Try and find yours. The fuse box comes with a fuse puller so you dont have to kill your fingers trying to get them out. To find the fuse puller, look on the back of the cover. Remove all fuses you suspect have something to do with lighting to your cluster and inspect each one that you pull. Have a flashlight if you are doing this in the dark because if you pull the fuse that supplies power to your domelight, putting it back in is hard trying blind. The fuse is bad if the wire inside it is broken, burnt, or completely missing. This is a step in the right direction. Check these first. If none of them are bad, step two:

2. Make sure all gauges work: gas gauge, water temperature gauge, tachometer and speedometer are fully functional. If the light still doesnt work and is the only problem with the cluster, go back to step one and check the fuses again and make sure that they are truely good. If they are good and it still isn't working, step three:

3. If you are saying that the headlights/taillights work, check the main fuse panel located under the hood. There should be a black box at the top left corner of your year car that houses main fuses and relay's. check all of the fuses that keyword with your problem. The large main fuses are "large" and have a window at the top of them so you can see (with a flashlight if your in the dark) the wire condition. Remember that the fuse is bad if the wire is broken, burnt, or completely missing. If any one of these are bad, buy a new one and replace with the battery DISCONNECTED to avoid shorting and blowing the fuse again. These come out with screws. If the cluster still isnt working, step four:

4. Dirty work this time. If you've gotten to this step and it isnt working, you can now assume that the cluster is bad. Removing the cluster is a pain in the *** and if you arent a fairly heavy do it yourselfer, find someone who is and start removing the cluster. I told you before that I would be completely in the dark to tell you how to remove that type of cluster and im sure that some of the other guys in HCF would be glad to give you some advice or information that will point you in the right direction. Now if you are this far, you should have the cluster removed. First things first, check the wire group connectors and the actual cables for signs of shorts or bad conditions. If those are bad or look like they need attention, attend to them using any means necessary to get them up to proper conditions. With the cluster removed, you should get a local garage or a honda specialist in your area to actually do a physical check on the cluster itself. All he will do is put the cluster in a car that had its previous cluster working. This is really the only practical way to test the cluster besides poking around wires with a 12 volt power supply seeing if you can find the wires that go to the lights. If the cluster works, you have bad wiring to the cluster and should check all wiring coming to and from the cluster connectors for problems. If you get through all of that and the cluster still doesnt work, the last thing i can suggest before bringing it in to a dealer or mechanic is the steering column cluster switch that is on the end of the signal light arm. I've never personally played around with these switches or removed one of these arms to see is the switch was good or bad. Ask some other HCF members on info for that because I would be in the dark about these.

Of course these instructions are geared toward a do it yourselfer, but an easy way to solve this problem with no effort on your part required except on your wallet is to bring it straight to a honda dealership. If you have some money to spend, i would highly reccomend doing that instead of screwing around with it yourself if you honestly dont know what you are doing.

This is all the info I can give you man, hope it helps in someway.