lincolnshibuya

So this morning when I started the car I was wondering where's that check engine light icon is, I can't find it! Normally it will lit up when the key is in the ON position and then turn off if there are no issues.
I haven't noticed this out until this morning, so it could be;
1. Previous owner disconnected the light to hide something before I purchased it.
2. Bulb burned out

I did a scan and no codes showed up but this is not good long term since if there are real issues I won't know until I plug in a scanner.

My best guess is that the bulb burned out and the previous owner didn't care (car run just fine) but I'm doubtful that the bulb will burn that early (it's a 2004 with 104k miles) Possibly there was a history that it was tampered prior to the previous owner.



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jwog666

turn the key to the on position without cranking the engine, this will light the engine light, if it doesnt light, pull the cluster and replace the bulb. its burnt out, or the cluster has a fault internally

lincolnshibuya

yep, that's how I checked it and immediately scanned. luckily no codes.



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lincolnshibuya

I replaced the bulb, it still won't light. If I swap it with a cluster from a different car will the odometer show the same mileage? Kind of odd that only the SES light will not work and the rest are ok.



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lincolnshibuya

been searching the web for answers and the answer is "not possible without dealership re-programming". the PATS is incorporated into the cluster and the swap with another car is not possible until a re-program is involved.


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jwog666

yep, sounds like you need a new cluster, on the up side, its not a fault that is causing it to be undriveable. so you can budget it out a while

PNYXPRESS

I believe you can swap clusters without an issue. A friend bought the simco gauge cluster for his 02 and didnt have to reprogram anything for it to work. And it kept his mileage.

lincolnshibuya

i think the simco gauge cluster retained the original electronics, it's only the faceplate that was changed. Here's the link that I used as a reference, not sure if that's the simco white face gauge cluster on americanmuscle.com.


http://www.accutach.com/94-04-ford-c...er-information

I'm going to try clean up the contacts whenever I have time.


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jwog666

^ correct cluster needs a program, as a dealer tech i know

lincolnshibuya

it's kind of funny, so today I opened up the cluster and found out that the previous previous owner taped the check engine light with black electrical tape inside, 2 square patches!! I suspect the 2nd owner did this because when I bought it from the 3rd owner there are no codes present (3rd owner must have fixed all the issues) and just told me that the bulb might be busted.




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