Intermittently my odo will blink off for anywhere to a few seconds to a few minutes. I've heard it's a bad solder connection on the gauge cluster itself. It also makes me wonder how accurate it's being by going dark. Anyone had this problem? Figure it's an easy fix once you get the cluster out. Thanks!

 

The odometer display is just a little LCD module with a built-in backlight, so it quite possible that a fractured solder joint is causing it to sporadically black out. The flexible circuit board is not an ultra tight, high density layout so repair should not be difficult.

It is also just and only that, a display module--the actual mileage is stored in non-volatile RAM in the instrument cluster's microcontroller...

 

As long as I don't have to replace the cluster. I just have to find the time to do it. Thanks!

 

Your 2000 has the type C PATS in which the PATS module is located in the instrument cluster (actually a function of the cluster microcontroller AFAIK), and the cluster and the PCM are married via a shared security identifier (SID). If either the cluster electronics of the PCM are changed out they need to be remarried using the Ford IDS and special dispensation from the Pope, or the car will not start.

Some have disabled PATS in the tune to get around this, however there are a whole host of other issues that can arise when that is done--not the least of which being that the THEFT light will blink continuously. Also it has been reported that sometimes turning PATS back on creates no-start problems; I have not personally observed this however I can think of no compelling reason to disable PATS on a DD...

 

Thanks Cliff, you're scaring me! I've only had the car two weeks now.....