C'Outback Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Greetings from Upstate SC. This is my first post on this site. I hope to learn a lot about Subarus here. My bride has an '01 OBW "Limited" with an an electrical problem. We've had the car at the local dearlership twice. They have actually told us that they don't know what it is, they've seen it happen and don't mind looking for it anytime we can get the car to them. The problem with their eagerness to help is, they charge an hourly rate just to look around. So far they have $700 of our money and we still have the problem! This could last forever so I just broke the relationship and cut my losses. Here's the problem: When the turn signal is activated (left or right), we lose the entire instrument cluster; no speedo, no tach, no temp, no everything. Then, at some varying/undetermined and unpredictable time, it all comes back on by itself. You can also turn the ignition off and back on again to reset it as well. The guys at the dealership said the problems they were having were; Subaru won't supply them with thorough and in-depth electrical data/drawings.I find it hard to believe that a manufacturer won't supply their retail outlet with technical resources or support. They don't have but one good Subaru Tech. Two total.This is also a Ford and Saab dealership. Anyway, has anyone run across a way to get good technical service data,ie electrical drawings or troubleshooting guides? Or, has anyone every had this problem with the instrument cluster? I need help with this issue and the dealership was a total waste of time and money. Hard to believe, but true. Not really wanting to trade cars yet, Thanks in advance for any help avilable, Charlie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 they want you to pay for thier xmass bonuses. What do you mean by you "we lose the entire instrument cluster; no speedo, no tach, no temp, no everything" If you mean aall the gauges go dead when you turn on the turn signal, do they come back on when you turn it off. I think you have a bad gauge cluster that has a short that is feeding back thru the turn signal. What i would do is try to isolate the turn signal circuit. Remove the flasher relay, remove all the lightbulbs, this should isolate the circuit except for the flashers in the dash, which are in series with the bulbs (i think). Now with this done turn on the turnsignals, and see what happens. Do let me know, but my feeling is that there is short in the cluster someplace between the gauges and the turn signal indicators, as that is the only place the two cross over. Also i would call the subaru area service rep and yell. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C'Outback Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 Thanks Nipper. That make sense to me. I'm not familiar with the electrical routing, pinouts or locations of any Subaru devices. I can't even find automotive repair manuals for Subaru at local retail outlets like Autozone, Advance or WalMart. Are they available? I like your last ideas as well!!! Charlie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted December 2, 2005 Share Posted December 2, 2005 I would start by popping the cluster. It seems that could be a connection or a bad ground. On BMWs I have heard of this being a bad cluster but I would try to clean the connections first. The other thing I would do is figure out which is the ground wire and run another ground from the body to it. Isolated plastic clusters often have grounding problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted December 2, 2005 Share Posted December 2, 2005 Thanks Nipper. That make sense to me. I'm not familiar with the electrical routing' date=' pinouts or locations of any Subaru devices. I can't even find automotive repair manuals for Subaru at local retail outlets like Autozone, Advance or WalMart. Are they available? I like your last ideas as well!!! Charlie[/quote'] i dont think they can be found, i find myself referncing the older haynes manual with newer subarus and crossing my fingers. Autozone is part of alldata and may have the diagrams on thier computers. i agree with the other poster, just a swap of the dashboards may do it. As luck would have it i have one sitting here that shold work for you if you want for testing. i bought it as a project, found out it wouldnt work for me, took it apart, put it back together. WOuld make a good test bed, i think its from a 2002. Someone will chime in if they are the same, you could have it for postage.... nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C'Outback Posted December 2, 2005 Author Share Posted December 2, 2005 i dont think they can be found, i find myself referncing the older haynes manual with newer subarus and crossing my fingers. Autozone is part of alldata and may have the diagrams on thier computers. i agree with the other poster, just a swap of the dashboards may do it. As luck would have it i have one sitting here that shold work for you if you want for testing. i bought it as a project, found out it wouldnt work for me, took it apart, put it back together. WOuld make a good test bed, i think its from a 2002. Someone will chime in if they are the same, you could have it for postage.... nipper Yes, I'm interested in it if an '02 dash is usable on my '01. Let's see if some chimes in about it's compatability. The important thing is the cluster. Charlie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cannonball Posted December 2, 2005 Share Posted December 2, 2005 Hello Charlie. Good to see a fellow Greenvillian here on the board. Sorry about your experience with that dealer. I personally try to steer away from them. The only work I've had them do is the things I don't trust my local guy to do like timing belt,coolant changes, and recalls. Last time I took it there they left a couple a hoses lose on the top of my engine. Funny enough I got a call from a Subaru survey person soon after and I didn't give them I good rating. Anyways I don't have much to add to your problem. I have thought about going to Prestige or Hunter Subaru in Asheville since they have been around alot longer. It's just the logistics of getting the car there. I am in the search for a local independant shop with Subaru experience. If I ever find one I will post back. Good luck getting that short fixed. Electrical problems are a ***************. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted December 2, 2005 Share Posted December 2, 2005 Yes' date=' I'm interested in it if an '02 dash is usable on my '01. Let's see if some chimes in about it's compatability. The important thing is the cluster. Charlie[/quote'] cool i can get something else out of my room email me at lthrpup@optonline.net and we can spare people boring details about our transaction nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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