I just bought an instrument cluster on ebay, Tach, etc. all allegedly work. However, my '86 240 DL has a clock located where the tach is in the new cluster. There is a three pin connector on the back of the tach, but no three pin plug on my wiring harness. Plus I have an orphan red/yellow wire in the harness that supposedly connects to the tach. My questions are:
1) How does one wire the tach?
2) If and when I get a new (smaller) clock, how do I wire it?
3) What is the red/white wire in the wiring harness which I assume goes to the pin at the lower left (rear view) of the cluster? and last
4) Does anyone have an understandable wiring diagram for an '86 240? I have a Chilton manual and frankly, the wiring schematic looks like something I would have drawn in college electronics class - useless! Thanks, Carter
The red/white wire is for the tachometer the red/yellow goes to the cluster single connector if you hook up the red/white wire to the wrong place you will blow out the speedometer head if you can wait until Monday night I can exactly tell you the answers you need Glenn ASE Certified Technician Volvo Certified Technician
I changed out the cluster on a 1987 240 DL - twice actually as the speedometer on the first replacement was broken. Get the Bentley manual. It is much better than either the Chilton or the Haynes. Having looked at several Chilton manuals, as far as I can tell, they're all the same with different covers. They are pretty useless. I bought my Bentley manual on Ebay for about $10.
Volvo sold a tach kit that that included a small clock as well. I saw them on Ebay but never bought one. I have seen the clocks listed seperately as well. The small clock goes to the right of the cluster. Remove one of the square hole covers to install it. Or you can take the working clock from your original cluster and put it in the new one. This is an easy operation. I seem to remember a couple of outher small optional gauges as well. You can choose any two as there are two holes in the dash for them.
While you are at it, check out the light bulbs. They tend to burn out a lot on Volvos. Since you have 2 clusters, you should have enough bulbs to make one good set. At least the cluster is easy to remove and install - unlike the ones in my 850s where you have to remove the windshield wipers to remove the dash cover - including the passenger side airbag.
If you are changing the cluster because the odometer stopped, you may want to go to
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I have had three Volvos and each one outlived its odometer. In each case, it was a little plastic gear in the odometer itself. Jeff (Odometer at Odometer Gears Ltd) makes these gears and sells them for $25 each. There are two gears in the odometer, so it will cost you $50. I mentioned earlier that I changed my cluster twice. In both cases, the gears in the replacement clusters were broken as well. I have also changed the gears in an Olds van and a Saturn SC. It's not just a Volvo problem.
After you remove the instrument cluster, remove the screws for the clock. The clock sits on a few pin connectors. Pry the clock free from the cluster. Install the Tach using the screws removed for the clock. The is a three spade connector on the back of the tach. Fish the cable from the new clock through the hole and to the area behind the tach. Locate the three rubber sliding wedges with a "T" shaped end view and slide them into the matching openings on the periphery of the auxilliary guage opening that you revealed when you first removed the dummy cover.
Slide the new clock into position in the hole. Install the clock cable connector on the tach. Locate the red-white wire that was previously unused in the cable cluster that comes to the combined instrument and connect it to the single terminal on the tach.
Reconnect the rest of the wires to the combined instrument. Install the
four screws securing the instrument cluster. Fit the new guage cover over the new clock and one of the old covers over the other opening. Make sure the metal bracket for the dimmer and rear fog light switch is
under the mounting screws for for the cluster. Refit the left hand cover and switches.
Done the swap a while ago; I can't get the lighting in the new, little clock to be bright enough, my attempts so far have consisted of replacing the bulb in the clock with new ones a couple of times. It lights, but it's like the location of the bulb vs. the glass is such as to not illuminate it as intensely as the real instrument cluster. Any ideas?
The little guages never were as bright as the main cluster, but you can see them in the dark. You might try soldering a super bright white LED and resistor into the base of a dead bulb.
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