clock light

I'm guessing that your clock has stopped working; as in you can't see the display any longer? Don't know about the '04 models, but if it's the same clock as in my '99 Forry, my wife's '02 Forry, and _probably_ every other Subaru for several years prior, it is a common problem. There isn't a "light" per se, rather the clock has a fluorescent display that generates it's own light. There is a relatively simple fix, if you know how to work a soldering iron. (At least it has repaired the clock module in both of our cars, plus a couple of other ones I fixed for my buddy at the salvage yard.) You'll need an iron with a fine tip, and probably a magnifying glass of some description. Basically the problem is caused by poor solder connections on a couple of chip resistors on an internal circuit board; re-work the solder, and hey, presto, your clock is back. Rather than trying to describe the entire procedure here, email if you're interested, and I'll send you a copy or the write-up. Wish I could claim that it was _my_ discovery, but nope; it comes courtesy of the internet :-)

ByeBye! S.

Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101

Here are the instructions for an older Forester. Like the man says, it probably applies to the '04.

Hi John!

Thanx for posting the link. Not the same one I found, but the same nfo. I would like to inject two comments. One, be real careful when you remove the clock module. On my car, the "510" resistor had actually detached from the PC board, and was lying loose in the plastic housing. Drop that sucker into the carpet, or worse, into the driveway gravel . . . Also, be careful of the little rubber thingies (how's that for descriptive :-) that make the pushbutton contacts (you'll see when you get that far); they too will take a walk when you're not looking. Two (the article mentions this, but I'll reiterate), rework the solder on _both_ of the large chip resistors (the other one is "300"). Use a toothpick to hold the resistor in place while you work the soldering iron, or the surface tension of the solder will cause it to adhere to the iron tip instead of the PCB. An extra set of hands is helpful. Have fun.

ByeBye! S

Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101

I like this link because it has really good photos.

All of the above is true.

By coincidence, the clock in my wife's '99 Forester had stopped working a couple of months ago and this thread reminded me that I needed to go fix it. So I did, before I posted to the thread.

I had fixed the 510 resistor several years ago, and had freshened the solder on the 300, but hadn't done the inner end of the 510 because it's so crowded in there I was afraid I'd melt something that shouldn't be melted. This time when I went to reheat the solder on the 510 the damned thing slid off. The inner end was completely loose.

Having only two hands, I couldn't weild the soldering iron, the solder coil, and a toothpick (as you recommend) all at the same time. So I used a dot of Krazy Glue to hold the resistor in place while I soldered it.

Three times. It took three tries at soldering before I got both ends of the 510 right, but now it's working and should be good for a few more years.

Supergluing SMDs (Surface Mount Device) is accepted practice. Been dere, dun dat.

Isn't surface mount technology FUN? And those resistors are _large_ components; what, perhaps 2mm X 3mm? Modern manufacturing regularly uses 402 series components with dimensions of .04in X .02in, or about

1mm X 0.5mm; even smaller form factors are available for some applications. Surface mount integrated circuits generally have lead spacings of 0.5mm; again there are smaller schemes available. Have a look at the guts of a dead cell phone sometime! These assemblies are produced robotically, and are very difficult to impossible to rework by hand. This is largely why modern electronics are considered disposable; how are you going to trouble-shoot, much less repair or replace defective parts? FWIW, wikipedia has a pretty good write-up on this stuff, interesting reading even for non-technical folks. Otherwise it's simply magic (as in ju-ju) for most users. And there's always a "new" technology right around the corner. A current trend for fabrication of microwave and mixed signal circuits (ie cell phones; simply _amazing_ how the cell phone market has driven modern electronics technology) is called LTCC, Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic, which features components actually embedded within the printed circuit assembly.

ByeBye! S.

Steve Jernigan KG0MB Laboratory Manager Microelectronics Research University of Colorado (719) 262-3101

Thanks "S" and John!

All the info I need and then some. Fixing electronics is what I do for a living - cold solder joints and thermal stress just don't mix. Right now, it's -10C in Nova Scotia (or 15 American!), so I'd better wait a while before prying on any plastic bits.

Thanks again