Hi all,
Hoping to get some help with a problem. 1971 Cougar XR7. The instrument cluster lights do not work, as well as the gas gauge.
All worked at the start of this year. Then the dash lights started coming and going when headlights on. Now they are gone totally and gas gauge not reading.
Your help s appriecated…
The lights and the fuel gauge not working may be two different problems .
Your dash lamps may be a headlight switch rheostat problem, bad fuse box contacts, or bad dash cluster connector contacts. It can even be a damaged circuit board trace. The fuel gauge (that’s the only gauge, right?) may be due to a bad constant voltage regulator on the back of the dash, a bad CVR ground, a bad circuit board trace, or a broken wire going to the tank. An excellent test of the gauge is to put the key in ACC, remove the sending unit connector, and briefly ground it to the chassis. When grounded, the gauge should peg high. Don’t let the gauge stand at the pegged condition for more than a second or two, though. Lots of other possibilities for no fuel gauge display, but this test ensures that the circuitry is still working. Most times, a bad fuel gauge is the float itself inside the tank.
Thanks for your replies. I have replaced the headlight switch (no change). I will try the gas gauge ground test and then go from there.