I feel like the number of independent homeshop mechanics that will open up an instrument cluster and check out the solder joints in North America is probably not in the dozens.
Many years ago I had a CRT TV that was making a noise and displaying intermittent images. Opened it up and carefully avoided the high voltage bits and resolvered all the solder joints and low and behold I repaired the TV. Dry solders with that lead free crap caused many more problems than it was worth. There was an HP 1500 series laser printer that needed the logic board removed when the printer stopped working and placed in an oven preheated to *180°C* (356°F) for exactly 10 minutes which fixed the printer back to new working condition. Lead free crap...🤢🤮🤮🤮
I'm told United Radio in Syracuse New York will repair clusters. You must speak to the manager in advance and you must ask nicely. I believe South Main Auto sends some of their clusters there for repair.
I did the instrument cluster resistor solder test (pushing on partially disassembled installed cluster resistors with pencil eraser) and fix on my 2004 Silverado 1500 LTZ. pretty simple fix once the youtube wisdom universe showed me how.
Ex autozone employee here, if the battery light was on he probably had them test it with the battery testing tool. The tool just hooks up to the battery, checks it then has you start the car. It has 3 fail states, bad battery, bad starter, bad alternator. The only thing it measures is voltage drop/current draw from the battery. If it thinks the battery is good, but there's a large current draw, it'll say it needs a starter. Probably how he got that "diagnosis". Could be malicious from the autozone employee, but more likely just poor training/they were just reading what the machine told them.
AutoZone employee here the only way we can make a profit is by ripping off customers sell them b******* that they don't need they only hire Psychopaths
@@Dr_V I actually kind of had this experience yesterday. My battery kept dying on me, so I jump started it and got battery back up to 12.36v, put my cheap battery tester on it, said bad battery. Went to auto place and there tester said voltage needs to be higher before they can say. Drove it more, got it up to 12.6v, went back there and now they said my battery was good, tested it again with my battery tester, it now said it was good. So moral of my story is making sure your battery voltage is 12.5v or higher before testing the battery with your battery tester.
Diagnosing a transit bus can be fun. They use a multiplex system to run everything. I got a bus last week, doors not working. Supervisor thought I was jerking him around when i said it was a bad sensor in the transmission. Short version-transmission sends signal to multiplex to let it know bus is stopped. Bus must be stopped (along with other conditions) for doors to open. No transmission signal=doors stay shut. Transmission tech came over and replaced the sensor. Now everything was working. Bus had been not going into reverse, nor did the brake interlock work, which were other issues, all leading back to that one transmission sensor, and which worked fine after that one sensor was replaced.
Wes, your reasoning, your explanations, including the old engine and 85 fuel, diagnosys and execution, totally amazing. Taking pictures of the dashboard's needles, what a great idea. Thank you for the tutoring.
I'm so glad I stopped selling auto parts over 25 years ago. As I used to tell customers in the 90s, we are a parts store, and we sell parts. If you don't know what's wrong with your vehicle, maybe you need to take it to a mechanic who can properly diagnose and repair it for you. Then you have the customers that think they know everything i.e. a small block chevy is a small block chevy. It makes me sick even walking into parts stores these days.....line at the counter wanting the parts clerk to guide them in the right direction, no one at the cash register for the select few who find their own parts without help. Absolute joke the parts industry has become.
All industry has become a joke. Case in point, today's brats can't read an analog clock or sign their name in cursive. EDIT; OR BE BOTHERED TO LEARN!!!
@@BryanPhillips-tk1km I'm old, but I recognise those as dead technology. I can't use a slide rule, and my calligraphy is worse than useless. I can read old English a bit though. Time has passed us by, but that's normal.
@@BryanPhillips-tk1km Time goes on, and all you can do is move forward or get stuck in the past. As what you'd probably describe as a young brat (25), I can read an analog clock and write in cursive just fine, but it's not really something that you need in todays world. I have never needed those skills, and I kind of wish school taught me something more useful in todays world and leave those things to be learned ourselves if interested or need be. You are right about industries going downhill though. So much plastic and nothing lasts.
You and Eric O are great at diagnosing these electric issues. I had a 98 motorhome on a Ford chassis. The speedo stopped working, but everything else was fine. I found a similar used model on ebay and replaced the control module in the cluster itself and it fixed the issue.
Helpful tip when taking the cluster apart is put a small piece of masking tape at the bottom stroke of each dial and mark a line on the tape. Makes it super easy to line them back up after reinstall.
I love the title, with your face on it. You can immediately sense something is very wrong, generally when something is wrong but your face is plastered next to it bewildered, the opposite is true
I'm beginning to think that Max is the brains of your shop, and once he explains the problem to you, you than replace the defective part(S). lol Always great to watch one of your interesting videos... Thumbs Up!
Max would do it himself if he had thumbs. Wes is too slow , he barks too much and pees on all the tires. You just can't get good pet humans these days.
Just quit.. I quit 10 years ago.. and I don't miss it at all. Imagine how much cash you have spent on it in the past 10 years.. I bet you would be embarrassed to read that number. Just quit.. It's worth it.
The information I've heard about lead-free solder is that it tends to grow tin whiskers, these whiskers become high impedance shorts between adjacent pins. If you have a design that has high impedance inputs or floating outputs then these can start to interfere. As the whiskers grow over time their impedance will drop.
@@dont-want-no-wrench Many cycles of hot and cold will make lead free solder crack or let loose. Many VP44 injection pumps used lead free on their internal computers. That contributed to many 2nd generation Dodge Cummins engines quitting. The other issue was bad location of the junk fuel pumps to the injection pump. Ask me how I know.
I used to repair electrical problems and electronics on boats in the Caribbean, and you'd be AMAZED about how often a quick scrub of a PC board with alcohol and a toothbrush fixed this kind of partial short/leakage problems. About 90% of the time, I'd say. Cracked solder joints, which just required a quick remelt with a soldering iron, were the other main problem.
Hi Wes. Good to see another video. Your systematic approach to trouble shooting is admirable, and your avoidance for firing the parts cannon to save your customers money also admirable. Be Well. David
Would love a video someday that just focuses on O2 sensor data reading, and fuel data reading. Would be even more awesome if it was using Torque (android) since a lot of home people use that program. I know I constantly get lost in what everything should look like and when, and you are probably one of the best at explaining it.
Labor costs are the reason why I became a mechanic before I got my degree. Ain't giving those overpriced techs my hard earned cash when I can study for it, and use it to my advantage. Haven't spent a dime in labor in well over 14 years.
A lot of trades divided up into "technician" levels as a way to deal with unionization effecting labor costs. Its a time barrier to people who are smarter and work harder. If you are in a trade that does this beyond 5 years to journeyman excellent wages you need to start your own business or switch to a trade that hasn't been fkd in order to earn a decent living. Many trades get you into 6 figures as a 1st or 2nd year apprentice with a little overtime or prevailing wage work.
I have a 2004 Trailblazer and the battery light was on real dim for as long as I can remember, even when the key was off. I sent the instrument panel in for a rebuild as most of the gauges quit working over time. Ever since then, no more battery light.
I don’t know how I missed the Patreon notification but watching on UA-cam allows me to big tv screen it!! The only downside is that it was only a 20 minute escape from humdrum!!
The instrument cluster was a big problem for that generation of trucks. I found that out when I had to replace mine at around 100,000 miles. They also had problems with the brake lines rotting out right under the cab. My Truck was garage kept and they still went prematurely. There were also alot of ABS and wheel bearing problems
I've got 275k Miles on my 03 and never had an gauge cluster issue. Got really lucky because 3 other Chevy's in my family had issues with them around the same vintage
40 years ago when a ford ignition module would go bad I had all 3 color connector “known good” versions in my bottom tool box drawer. It made it quicker to diagnose the problem.
i think that is a wife's way of saying "you better know what you are doing because if this goes wrong I will have a headache every night for the next 3 months'
As soon as you showed that battery light on even with the key off, I thought “cluster problems “. BTDT! I had all sorts of weird warning light and intermittent gauge issues on my Sonoma. Replaced the cluster with a good used one and the problems went away. Somebody had already been in mine as most of the soldered components had been potted.
Hi Wes and wife and son just finished watching you’re video learning some thing from you how you explain everything and as always you the families be safe 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Car companies will make better cars, make them easier to repair if governments charged them for landfill / trash due to broken parts. Keep up the good work, glad at least some out there keep fixing old but perfectly usable cars.
i had to take out my cluster and resolder the resisters, i guess the boards flex over time and just touching it fixes cluster issues. But i touched up the solder joints on a few resisters i saw in an online picture and worked like a charm...oh, and it also fixed it being the cluster being in German all of a sudden, hahah
@@Boga217 right? I mean, what if he had bald tires and one of them was worn through to the belts leaking air, making the tire light come on? He would in fact need new tires.
Dude I laughed so hard at this video I had a 2006 rav4 to run into the ground for work that. Did the same thing with the battery light staying on very faintly with everything off!!!! I looked everywhere and actually had to disconnect the battery while I worked and when I got home ....I looked on forums and everywhere and couldn't find anyone else with s similar problem so one weekend I dug in and tried to fix it . What I found was on the the passenger side under the kick panel there were a bunch of electrical connections that seemed wet , as I took them apart and dried them with the wife's hair dryer I found one connection that was green. I cleaned it all up put it back together dry and never ever had that issue again !!!! This video made me laugh remembering me going nuts trying to figure this same problem our!!!
Thank you Mrs. Wes for the Johnny on the spot quality control, followed up by Shop Supervisor Max the puppy rigorous oversight. Their can never be enough eyes on the (McDonalds) fries.
Replaced the cluster in my '02 avalanche at 335,000 miles. At about 338,000 miles now. Went through ISS automotive. Needles would wig out when I hit a bump. Was the solder connections.
Every one of your customers are lucky to have you. I don’t feel most mechanics go above, and beyond as much as you do most of them throw parts at it and send it down the road. I wish you were my neighbor and you could work on my rusty shitboxes😂
I like that little prying implement. If I remember correctly, I used a plastic fast food knife and maybe a small flat screwdriver, to pry off the needles on the gauges of my 2005 Mustang GT, when I replaced the stepper motors. That car's connection to the cluster board employs a locking lever, which reminded me of a computer processor! And those fast food plastic knives are very good back scratchers - oh, the serration!!!
I always enjoy your videos. I had to laugh that you defended not doing more. I can honestly say I’ve never known at tech who knew as much about electronics as you. And I damn sure never seen someone open the cluster. But you are 100% right about the cost of trouble shooting. So replacing a cheap part is cheaper for the customer than trouble shooting the entire system. I think you are a great mechanic. If you had a shop by me I’d sell my tools. I don’t know how you are feeling with peoples personalities, but you’re skilled enough to have several mechanics working for you
Last week my 2007 Chevy Silverado did this. It's a classic mode. The l Key wasn't fully releasing at the end of the tutn back to shut it off. It was intermittent and driving me nuts. So, I replaced the key cylinder. Problem gone. And so is half of my parasitic power draw! Great video. Remember Occam's Razor! Lol
Excellent Video Wes :) also some vechiles find on computer checked or mind and running in park to driveing! My late parent's had car Check Engine light coming on also off lots even ABS .light to when drive on cold start to hot start! When took in dealership put O2 sensor then took 6 sensors before I found problem one Fuel line from tank to filter to Engine had slit in from tank to filter leaking from corrosion so new line cure that plus ABS ground issue plus fault brake booster plus pedal plug worn out ! Then found Ground pig tail to fender rust up and fell off need replaced! Then Water Pump proller inside motor quit after years and outside pulley turned okay! Pure BS vechile was and so many problems !
If you think it's bad now Look what they elected When the 40% tariff is set, the real screaming will be wasted energy.... They are raising prices right now in ANTICIPATION OF IT Big Business loves Republicans and huge tax cuts Yet they keep electing them The definition of insanity,literally
My 2001 silverado 1500 6 cyl, recently was having the battery light on and autozone told me he wouldn't do anything until that belt was changed. Already had the new belt waiting to chg the leaking water pump. Did the pump and pulleys and tensioner and belt and fan clutch at 200,000 miles and the battery is charging fine now, no more battery light. Good mechanic at autozone. After changing the belt I can tell that the belt was way loose. Just couldn't tell for sure before.
I just watched your brake lathe rebuild and you mentioned derecho and I noticed the video was from 4 years ago….. didn’t know you were from around these parts. I live just north of CR
"I know you guys closure'. Almost as much as you Wes, almost as much. :) Good job. No way I'm pulling an instrument cluster to get closure on that light!
Nice job. That whole alternator thing started in 05 I think, in GM stuff. My 05 Envoy had it, My Dad's 09 Savanna Van has it... It's basically a computer that tells the alternator "If the battery seems like it's pretty charged up, take it easy and generate less voltage".... I'm told this is some kind of misguided attempt to save .00005 gallons of gas per year.... Seems like a dumb idea to me, but... On GM clusters, I usually very lightly put a piece of painters tape on the face, and draw a line for where the needle was. Then I take a dinner fork and very gently pry the needle off.... Seems to work. I don't know about corroded solder.... For me, it was always stepper motors that drove the needles dying.... And lights going dead.... And I don't mind soldering, but to be honest, it's way easier to just send the cluster to Dr Speedometer, or one of those places, and they'll replace all the lights and all the stepper motors, and you're done.... Between me and friends & family members, 03 to 06 GM trucks, every cluster would develop dead stepper motors... Notorious....
Thanks for another great video. It blows my mind the complexity in vehicles, and what’s needed to support the misery of ethanol fuel. I don’t know whether it’s a triumph of engineering that a car works at all, or technology for technology sake run amok! (and I’m a retired Engineer too)
Went to autozone for a CEL read (my OBD tool broke) and they got a scanner that wouldn't output a code on the screen. They hooked the thing up to their computer, and the guy told me that the code was for a "bad evap purge valve," but wouldn't tell me the code number. The guy then tried to keep me from seeing the actual code by pulling the monitor away, before another guy waiting in line saw it and told it to me. Turned out it was a slightly leaking gas cap.
Wes, high silver solders will bridge under high humidity conditions. Rubbing alcohol and a toothbrush will often clean them up. After a good scrub, blow it off with compressed air.
Another thing, very old circuit boards, (10,000 hrs use) will have dying electrolytic capacitors in them. These can be removed and swapped with known good capacitors. Sometimes cheaper to find a boneyard display unit replacement. It all depends how much time you wish to invest in a given project.
Resetting the alcohol content calculation can and will take care of many HO2S issues that may not seem "right". Some vehicles measure the content directly and some calculate alcohol content via HO2S monitoring.
Nice job on the truck Wes! That was a gremlin for sure with the dash light. lol! You Eric O and the other Eric the car guy who just posted a recent video. I watch you guys for excellent information. Keep up the good or my friend.
Concerning the starter being fresh out of the box no good, I've got a 1957 Chevy that I rebuilt the original Carter four barrel carburetor on. Leather accelerator pump (made in West Taiwan) did not operate well, caused me (for the first time ever since family ownership of the car from 1968) to be stranded and towed home. After diagnosing the issue, paid for an accelerator pump with upgraded non-leather seal. Aces. Replaced the fuel pump as well since ethanol fuel did the diaphragm dirty (showed a date code of 1960!). Running good. Now to use it enough to burn half a tank of aged fuel, drain the tank, drop it and inspect for rust/dirt/water and replace the sending unit since it gets wonky under a quarter tank. 200,000 miles, no rust, I look forward to reliving my teens and putting on some miles using other than ethanol tainted fuel.
I worked NAPA parts counter for 10 years. I would have customers leave a license or card and let them use the scanner themselves. I was not there to diagnose their problems or install their parts.
I feel like the number of independent homeshop mechanics that will open up an instrument cluster and check out the solder joints in North America is probably not in the dozens.
Many years ago I had a CRT TV that was making a noise and displaying intermittent images. Opened it up and carefully avoided the high voltage bits and resolvered all the solder joints and low and behold I repaired the TV. Dry solders with that lead free crap caused many more problems than it was worth.
There was an HP 1500 series laser printer that needed the logic board removed when the printer stopped working and placed in an oven preheated to *180°C* (356°F) for exactly 10 minutes which fixed the printer back to new working condition. Lead free crap...🤢🤮🤮🤮
@@josephking6515 Eh, rather have problems with the product than lead poisoning for the hundreds of thousands that deal with solder everyday.
the "you touch it you own it for life" attitude of customers and lawyers makes it impracticle to mess with them unless its your own
I'm told United Radio in Syracuse New York will repair clusters. You must speak to the manager in advance and you must ask nicely. I believe South Main Auto sends some of their clusters there for repair.
I did the instrument cluster resistor solder test (pushing on partially disassembled installed cluster resistors with pencil eraser) and fix on my 2004 Silverado 1500 LTZ. pretty simple fix once the youtube wisdom universe showed me how.
I'm impressed at how fluent you are in taking instrument clusters apart! Nicely done.
Man you get some crazy cases in your shop. This kind of problem takes an insanely talented and patient mechanic.
He's so good.
Ex autozone employee here, if the battery light was on he probably had them test it with the battery testing tool. The tool just hooks up to the battery, checks it then has you start the car. It has 3 fail states, bad battery, bad starter, bad alternator. The only thing it measures is voltage drop/current draw from the battery. If it thinks the battery is good, but there's a large current draw, it'll say it needs a starter. Probably how he got that "diagnosis". Could be malicious from the autozone employee, but more likely just poor training/they were just reading what the machine told them.
Never trust AutoZone 😂
I bough a cheap tester and did this at home, it said I have a bad battery but my mechanic checked it and told me to throw away the crappy tester 😄
AutoZone employee here the only way we can make a profit is by ripping off customers sell them b******* that they don't need they only hire Psychopaths
@@Dr_V I actually kind of had this experience yesterday. My battery kept dying on me, so I jump started it and got battery back up to 12.36v, put my cheap battery tester on it, said bad battery. Went to auto place and there tester said voltage needs to be higher before they can say. Drove it more, got it up to 12.6v, went back there and now they said my battery was good, tested it again with my battery tester, it now said it was good. So moral of my story is making sure your battery voltage is 12.5v or higher before testing the battery with your battery tester.
@@samholdsworth420 What ? Did the car not need a starter ?
Thanks for the outro Mrs. Wes.
It really made a great video even greaterer
anyone who works with people and has a good sense of humor like yourself is an excellent person good job
Diagnosing a transit bus can be fun. They use a multiplex system to run everything. I got a bus last week, doors not working. Supervisor thought I was jerking him around when i said it was a bad sensor in the transmission. Short version-transmission sends signal to multiplex to let it know bus is stopped. Bus must be stopped (along with other conditions) for doors to open. No transmission signal=doors stay shut. Transmission tech came over and replaced the sensor. Now everything was working. Bus had been not going into reverse, nor did the brake interlock work, which were other issues, all leading back to that one transmission sensor, and which worked fine after that one sensor was replaced.
I squinted and held my breathe when you blew out that fuse box lmao force of habit
Safety squints
@@kge420 OSHA compliant too
Wes, your reasoning, your explanations, including the old engine and 85 fuel, diagnosys and execution, totally amazing. Taking pictures of the dashboard's needles, what a great idea. Thank you for the tutoring.
I'm so glad I stopped selling auto parts over 25 years ago. As I used to tell customers in the 90s, we are a parts store, and we sell parts. If you don't know what's wrong with your vehicle, maybe you need to take it to a mechanic who can properly diagnose and repair it for you. Then you have the customers that think they know everything i.e. a small block chevy is a small block chevy. It makes me sick even walking into parts stores these days.....line at the counter wanting the parts clerk to guide them in the right direction, no one at the cash register for the select few who find their own parts without help. Absolute joke the parts industry has become.
All industry has become a joke. Case in point, today's brats can't read an analog clock or sign their name in cursive. EDIT; OR BE BOTHERED TO LEARN!!!
@@BryanPhillips-tk1km I'm old, but I recognise those as dead technology. I can't use a slide rule, and my calligraphy is worse than useless. I can read old English a bit though. Time has passed us by, but that's normal.
@@BryanPhillips-tk1km Time goes on, and all you can do is move forward or get stuck in the past. As what you'd probably describe as a young brat (25), I can read an analog clock and write in cursive just fine, but it's not really something that you need in todays world. I have never needed those skills, and I kind of wish school taught me something more useful in todays world and leave those things to be learned ourselves if interested or need be. You are right about industries going downhill though. So much plastic and nothing lasts.
@@itsnetts Wait till you see VW's plastic engine- KIA 's got something similar
@@itsnetts analog clock is definitely a useful skill, as they'll still be around for a long, long time
You and Eric O are great at diagnosing these electric issues. I had a 98 motorhome on a Ford chassis. The speedo stopped working, but everything else was fine. I found a similar used model on ebay and replaced the control module in the cluster itself and it fixed the issue.
I learn so so much everytime I watch your channel Wes. Many thanks for taking the time.
Helpful tip when taking the cluster apart is put a small piece of masking tape at the bottom stroke of each dial and mark a line on the tape. Makes it super easy to line them back up after reinstall.
I love the title, with your face on it. You can immediately sense something is very wrong, generally when something is wrong but your face is plastered next to it bewildered, the opposite is true
At this time the video has aprox 94k views and only 12k thumbs up. Come on guys give Wes some thumbs up! He deserves it.
I'm beginning to think that Max is the brains of your shop, and once he explains the problem to you, you than replace the defective part(S). lol Always great to watch one of your interesting videos... Thumbs Up!
Max would do it himself if he had thumbs. Wes is too slow , he barks too much and pees on all the tires.
You just can't get good pet humans these days.
Thanks for the video Wes, a great way to start my week off..... Monday 6.30 am here in New Zealand.... have a great Sunday with the family....
Most of my problems have been due to increased alcohol content.
Or not enough...its a delicate balance.🤞
Just quit.. I quit 10 years ago.. and I don't miss it at all. Imagine how much cash you have spent on it in the past 10 years.. I bet you would be embarrassed to read that number. Just quit.. It's worth it.
Diagnosed your own problem!
I'm going to 😂 consume some alkyhol in just a bit 😅
I’d rather a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy. 🥴
The information I've heard about lead-free solder is that it tends to grow tin whiskers, these whiskers become high impedance shorts between adjacent pins. If you have a design that has high impedance inputs or floating outputs then these can start to interfere. As the whiskers grow over time their impedance will drop.
also is more brittle than leaded.
@@dont-want-no-wrench Many cycles of hot and cold will make lead free solder crack or let loose. Many VP44 injection pumps used lead free on their internal computers. That contributed to many 2nd generation Dodge Cummins engines quitting. The other issue was bad location of the junk fuel pumps to the injection pump. Ask me how I know.
Wes, you are a cesspool of knowledge and information, a true renaissance man.
I used to repair electrical problems and electronics on boats in the Caribbean, and you'd be AMAZED about how often a quick scrub of a PC board with alcohol and a toothbrush fixed this kind of partial short/leakage problems. About 90% of the time, I'd say. Cracked solder joints, which just required a quick remelt with a soldering iron, were the other main problem.
You fixed the cluster via blowing dust away 😂Thumbs up 👍 good job 👏
Hi Wes. Good to see another video. Your systematic approach to trouble shooting is admirable, and your avoidance for firing the parts cannon to save your customers money also admirable. Be Well. David
Would love a video someday that just focuses on O2 sensor data reading, and fuel data reading. Would be even more awesome if it was using Torque (android) since a lot of home people use that program. I know I constantly get lost in what everything should look like and when, and you are probably one of the best at explaining it.
Watch Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics
Also Scanner Danner and South Main Auto cover this pretty well.
Nicely done! Always good to see your super 'Max' is there keeping an eye on you (and the Misses too)! Happy holidays!
labor costs are insane. But technicians wages are the same.
I know. Like how oil prices go down but gas prices go up.
hmmm
Labor costs are the reason why I became a mechanic before I got my degree. Ain't giving those overpriced techs my hard earned cash when I can study for it, and use it to my advantage.
Haven't spent a dime in labor in well over 14 years.
@@WatchWesWork Oil goes down, gas goes down a month later. Oil goes up, gas goes up the same day.
A lot of trades divided up into "technician" levels as a way to deal with unionization effecting labor costs. Its a time barrier to people who are smarter and work harder. If you are in a trade that does this beyond 5 years to journeyman excellent wages you need to start your own business or switch to a trade that hasn't been fkd in order to earn a decent living. Many trades get you into 6 figures as a 1st or 2nd year apprentice with a little overtime or prevailing wage work.
Hey Wes, I love your work and your a major inspiration as to why I returned to repairing cars and also repair heavy equipment
Good work, Wes. Always loads to learn from your videos.
I have a 2004 Trailblazer and the battery light was on real dim for as long as I can remember, even when the key was off. I sent the instrument panel in for a rebuild as most of the gauges quit working over time. Ever since then, no more battery light.
Good fix , Wes . Nice to see the family . Hello family . SEEYA
Just watched a video from Germany where a truck had spilt 20 tons of beer - that's where you need an alcohol sensor.
Add that Battery Light to the long list of things you've fixed by unplugging and plugging back in! Greatly enjoy your work Wes.
Thanks Wes for posting this Sunday vid. Remember at AutoZone, they ask year make and model for a lil tree air freshener………..
"Will that be for the Front or rear of the Vehicle Sir?"
Ask the dweeb for a water pump and power steering hose for a Corvair, Monza 1966.Go ahead, it's a hoot
I don’t know how I missed the Patreon notification but watching on UA-cam allows me to big tv screen it!! The only downside is that it was only a 20 minute escape from humdrum!!
It's a good Sunday when Watch Wes Work uploads!!!
Dude, you're the best. Love watching and learning. Always something interesting!
The instrument cluster was a big problem for that generation of trucks. I found that out when I had to replace mine at around 100,000 miles. They also had problems with the brake lines rotting out right under the cab. My Truck was garage kept and they still went prematurely. There were also alot of ABS and wheel bearing problems
I've got 275k Miles on my 03 and never had an gauge cluster issue. Got really lucky because 3 other Chevy's in my family had issues with them around the same vintage
40 years ago when a ford ignition module would go bad I had all 3 color connector “known good” versions in my bottom tool box drawer. It made it quicker to diagnose the problem.
"You're the engineer" smh
Must be the smart alec way to say I love you.
i think that is a wife's way of saying "you better know what you are doing because if this goes wrong I will have a headache every night for the next 3 months'
Always nice to see Mrs Wes in the shop...
Chevy Cruz should have gone to AutoZone.
Would have gotten the proper "You need a starter lady!" diagnosis.
As soon as you showed that battery light on even with the key off, I thought “cluster problems “. BTDT! I had all sorts of weird warning light and intermittent gauge issues on my Sonoma. Replaced the cluster with a good used one and the problems went away. Somebody had already been in mine as most of the soldered components had been potted.
Hi Wes and wife and son just finished watching you’re video learning some thing from you how you explain everything and as always you the families be safe 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Car companies will make better cars, make them easier to repair if governments charged them for landfill / trash due to broken parts. Keep up the good work, glad at least some out there keep fixing old but perfectly usable cars.
i had to take out my cluster and resolder the resisters, i guess the boards flex over time and just touching it fixes cluster issues. But i touched up the solder joints on a few resisters i saw in an online picture and worked like a charm...oh, and it also fixed it being the cluster being in German all of a sudden, hahah
My Tire inflation light came on and the tire place told me i needed new tires 😂lol
That's not hard to believe if your tires are wore out beyond specs, old, uneven wear etc..Don't see how your laughing at such a vague statement.
@@Boga217 right? I mean, what if he had bald tires and one of them was worn through to the belts leaking air, making the tire light come on? He would in fact need new tires.
Dude I laughed so hard at this video I had a 2006 rav4 to run into the ground for work that. Did the same thing with the battery light staying on very faintly with everything off!!!! I looked everywhere and actually had to disconnect the battery while I worked and when I got home ....I looked on forums and everywhere and couldn't find anyone else with s similar problem so one weekend I dug in and tried to fix it . What I found was on the the passenger side under the kick panel there were a bunch of electrical connections that seemed wet , as I took them apart and dried them with the wife's hair dryer I found one connection that was green. I cleaned it all up put it back together dry and never ever had that issue again !!!! This video made me laugh remembering me going nuts trying to figure this same problem our!!!
This is a perfect time for a Car Talk repair.... special car talk black tape to cover the battery light
Thank you Mrs. Wes for the Johnny on the spot quality control, followed up by Shop Supervisor Max the puppy rigorous oversight. Their can never be enough eyes on the (McDonalds) fries.
You never cease to amaze me with your understanding of systems, hydraulic and electric. Very impressive!
10:16 I'm unreasonably upset they put the QR code sticker on at an angle.
Replaced the cluster in my '02 avalanche at 335,000 miles. At about 338,000 miles now. Went through ISS automotive. Needles would wig out when I hit a bump. Was the solder connections.
Hello Wes, always enjoy your program and look forward to seeing the next one. Take care and stay safe 👍
Every one of your customers are lucky to have you. I don’t feel most mechanics go above, and beyond as much as you do most of them throw parts at it and send it down the road. I wish you were my neighbor and you could work on my rusty shitboxes😂
Another great video Wes. I appreciate your explanation of what you found on the Silverado. Also giving us how you fixed the Cruze. Thank you.
I like that little prying implement. If I remember correctly, I used a plastic fast food knife and maybe a small flat screwdriver, to pry off the needles on the gauges of my 2005 Mustang GT, when I replaced the stepper motors. That car's connection to the cluster board employs a locking lever, which reminded me of a computer processor!
And those fast food plastic knives are very good back scratchers - oh, the serration!!!
I always enjoy your videos. I had to laugh that you defended not doing more. I can honestly say I’ve never known at tech who knew as much about electronics as you. And I damn sure never seen someone open the cluster. But you are 100% right about the cost of trouble shooting. So replacing a cheap part is cheaper for the customer than trouble shooting the entire system. I think you are a great mechanic. If you had a shop by me I’d sell my tools. I don’t know how you are feeling with peoples personalities, but you’re skilled enough to have several mechanics working for you
Having mechanics working on your customers equipment requires a whole other skill set.
Last week my 2007 Chevy Silverado did this. It's a classic mode. The l
Key wasn't fully releasing at the end of the tutn back to shut it off. It was intermittent and driving me nuts.
So, I replaced the key cylinder.
Problem gone. And so is half of my parasitic power draw! Great video. Remember Occam's Razor! Lol
Great video... you made that look easy! Mrs Wes always gives a laugh, she's a great sport! Thanks
My favorite repair shop. GET IN THE ZONE
More like take in the bone
That O2 sensor wrench is DA BOMB ! I love mine.
These gmt-800 trucks are absolutely infamous for all sorts of bizarre cluster problems.
Excellent Video Wes :) also some vechiles find on computer checked or mind and running in park to driveing! My late parent's had car Check Engine light coming on also off lots even ABS .light to when drive on cold start to hot start! When took in dealership put O2 sensor then took 6 sensors before I found problem one Fuel line from tank to filter to Engine had slit in from tank to filter leaking from corrosion so new line cure that plus ABS ground issue plus fault brake booster plus pedal plug worn out ! Then found Ground pig tail to fender rust up and fell off need replaced! Then Water Pump proller inside motor quit after years and outside pulley turned okay! Pure BS vechile was and so many problems !
Always look forward to another "well done" troubleshooting video!! Thanks!
The outro made the whole thing work. Good job, thank you.
Parts are expensive, labor is expensive, everything is expensive.
I'm plenty sick of price gouging. Started with big corporations.
Its not anymore expensive! Money does not have the same value because of the money printers!
Even cheap is expensive these days.
If you think it's bad now
Look what they elected
When the 40% tariff is set, the real screaming will be wasted energy....
They are raising prices right now in ANTICIPATION OF IT
Big Business loves Republicans and huge tax cuts
Yet they keep electing them
The definition of insanity,literally
So it did need a new starter - Autozone just had the wrong car
Great diagnosis!😂
Thanks for the video, enjoyed watching Wes, thanks for the update on the other car.
My 2001 silverado 1500 6 cyl, recently was having the battery light on and autozone told me he wouldn't do anything until that belt was changed. Already had the new belt waiting to chg the leaking water pump. Did the pump and pulleys and tensioner and belt and fan clutch at 200,000 miles and the battery is charging fine now, no more battery light. Good mechanic at autozone. After changing the belt I can tell that the belt was way loose. Just couldn't tell for sure before.
AutoZone probably told him it needed a starter and a gas cap.
Love the new electronic work bench! I always use an ultraviolet lite to look at circuit boards to identify hot spots
Nice video Wes. I guess it’s time to build that alignment rack you have mentioned before.
Someday...
I just watched your brake lathe rebuild and you mentioned derecho and I noticed the video was from 4 years ago….. didn’t know you were from around these parts. I live just north of CR
It's a..... phantom charge. I'll be here all week.
Hi, Wes you are a lucky guy. Many thanks.
I have taken that cluster in my 2005 at least 20 times.
That's a weird starter problem on the Cruze. Good diagnostic work, young man!
Your diagnostic skills always amaze me. Kinda makes me feel guilty for just throwing parts at trouble codes.
"I know you guys closure'. Almost as much as you Wes, almost as much. :) Good job. No way I'm pulling an instrument cluster to get closure on that light!
Alcohol and a cluster, sounds like a Saturday night
My dad used to say "Dont let your meat loaf" and I feel like that would be a decent outro when there's nothing else to say
Well ya saved the first customer a started but not the next one. Great all round video bro and Mrs bro. Safe travels. Ken
It's a good Sunday night when Wes has posted a new video Thanks Wes.
Well, the first problem the customer went to AutoZone
Sometimes, it's all you have.
Im fortunate to have the ability to look up solutions.
Nice job.
That whole alternator thing started in 05 I think, in GM stuff. My 05 Envoy had it, My Dad's 09 Savanna Van has it... It's basically a computer that tells the alternator "If the battery seems like it's pretty charged up, take it easy and generate less voltage".... I'm told this is some kind of misguided attempt to save .00005 gallons of gas per year.... Seems like a dumb idea to me, but...
On GM clusters, I usually very lightly put a piece of painters tape on the face, and draw a line for where the needle was. Then I take a dinner fork and very gently pry the needle off.... Seems to work. I don't know about corroded solder.... For me, it was always stepper motors that drove the needles dying.... And lights going dead.... And I don't mind soldering, but to be honest, it's way easier to just send the cluster to Dr Speedometer, or one of those places, and they'll replace all the lights and all the stepper motors, and you're done.... Between me and friends & family members, 03 to 06 GM trucks, every cluster would develop dead stepper motors... Notorious....
Trick I learned for removing cluster needles is to put painter tape on cluster face and mark the needle position before pulling the needle off.
That in itself can make marks though..
Great tip
To think a dummy like me used to be able fix a car. No more, but I'm not complaining. Cars have come a long way since my first one.
I love the dramatic approach
Thanks for another great video. It blows my mind the complexity in vehicles, and what’s needed to support the misery of ethanol fuel. I don’t know whether it’s a triumph of engineering that a car works at all, or technology for technology sake run amok! (and I’m a retired Engineer too)
Went to autozone for a CEL read (my OBD tool broke) and they got a scanner that wouldn't output a code on the screen. They hooked the thing up to their computer, and the guy told me that the code was for a "bad evap purge valve," but wouldn't tell me the code number. The guy then tried to keep me from seeing the actual code by pulling the monitor away, before another guy waiting in line saw it and told it to me.
Turned out it was a slightly leaking gas cap.
That’s a yikes man, I’d have written online about that employee.
Insightful content! Thanks for sharing this repair.
Not surprised about the starter on the cruze. With auto stop/start those things get a workout.
Geeze. I would have instantly pointed to a flex plate issue on the Cruze. Good work.
The gauge cluster was healed by the acupressure treatment with the test probe.
Wes, high silver solders will bridge under high humidity conditions. Rubbing alcohol and a toothbrush will often clean them up. After a good scrub, blow it off with compressed air.
Another thing, very old circuit boards, (10,000 hrs use) will have dying electrolytic capacitors in them. These can be removed and swapped with known good capacitors. Sometimes cheaper to find a boneyard display unit replacement. It all depends how much time you wish to invest in a given project.
Resetting the alcohol content calculation can and will take care of many HO2S issues that may not seem "right". Some vehicles measure the content directly and some calculate alcohol content via HO2S monitoring.
Nice job on the truck Wes!
That was a gremlin for sure with the dash light.
lol!
You Eric O and the other Eric the car guy who just posted a recent video.
I watch you guys for excellent information.
Keep up the good or my friend.
Concerning the starter being fresh out of the box no good, I've got a 1957 Chevy that I rebuilt the original Carter four barrel carburetor on. Leather accelerator pump (made in West Taiwan) did not operate well, caused me (for the first time ever since family ownership of the car from 1968) to be stranded and towed home. After diagnosing the issue, paid for an accelerator pump with upgraded non-leather seal. Aces. Replaced the fuel pump as well since ethanol fuel did the diaphragm dirty (showed a date code of 1960!). Running good. Now to use it enough to burn half a tank of aged fuel, drain the tank, drop it and inspect for rust/dirt/water and replace the sending unit since it gets wonky under a quarter tank. 200,000 miles, no rust, I look forward to reliving my teens and putting on some miles using other than ethanol tainted fuel.
I worked NAPA parts counter for 10 years. I would have customers leave a license or card and let them use the scanner themselves. I was not there to diagnose their problems or install their parts.
great video, nice to see your wife in the outro, and always nice to see max,👍👍👍👍👍