OK, I picked up this 95 Neon back on Christmas Eve, and its been an awesome car, but I did buy it with a few problems and now I'd like to fix them, but one has me stumped. 1. Gas gauge doesn't work. Its been inspected before and its said to be the sender. How much does a repair like this usually cost ballpark? 2. Reverse lamps dont work. Bulbs and new, but the reverse lamp switch is said to be out. Never heard of one of those, again, ballpark, how much does this repair usually cost. 3. Now to the one that has me stumped. The speedo sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. I know how fast I'm going by gear/RPMs, but I would like to have the speedo working all the time. If it stops working, I can push in on the right side of the gauge cluster and just keep pushing and poking at it, and it'll start working again. I thought maybe it was a loose connection on one of the plug ins on the back side of the gauge cluster, but if there was a loose connection, I'd think the tach and temp gauges wouldnt work either (they ALWAYS work), but then if it isn't a loose connection, that doesn't explain why pushing in on the gauge cluster makes the speedo start working again. I have to put alot of pressure on it, and sometimes poke it with my fingers to get it to work again, but it will work if I hit it a little bit. Anyone ever seen anything like this? Is it the connection? A bad gauge cluster? A bad speedo sender unit? What could it be and ballpark again, what are the prices I'm looking at to fix whatever this problem man be. Note that this didnt start up until after I took possession of the car, the previous owner, someone I've known for a while, never had this problem. Its also a problem because when the speedo stops working, so does the odometer and tripometer, so I really need to get this fixed to keep the mileage true on the car. I'm needing ballpark numbers because I'm on a limited budget and want to know what I should/could have fixed ASAP and what I can/have to wait on. Thanks for any help from anyone. Its much appreciated.
The gas gauge sender shouldn't be any big deal, nor should the reverse switch, although I haven't replaced either in any of my vehicles, so I won't say for sure. But what I do know is that with small cars, usually the top of the gas tank is acessible by removing the rear seat cushion, and the sender usually just drops in the top. The bummer would be if the Neon had it integrated into the fuel pump or something... I've never seen one like that, but my experiences with the Neon haven't exactly been stellar (I won't get into that). The speedo was intermittantly working on my Nissan truck when I got it, and I decided to solve that by installing digital gauges into the truck. A side benefit was that it didn't have a tachometer stock, and I wanted one since it's a 5 speed, so I added one of those too. Since your speedometer is likely cable-driven, you'll need to pick up the sending unit for the digital gauges too, which just screws in where the cable used to go. Check out the Summit or Jegs catalogs for the digital units, if that sounds cool. Otherwise, you're likely looking at picking up another gauge cluster at the junkyard to fix the problem. An intermittent problem wouldn't make me think it would be the speedo cable... although you should check to make sure it's tight at both ends. Or, you could just "go lowrider"... those guys don't need gauges. Lowriders don't go fast enough to get tickets. B) Lowrider magazine is a fun read.
If it is the sender they are typically pretty pricey on Chryslers. On many of the new Dodges they are a huge integral unit with the fuel pump. Typical customer cost on these units is about $400, plus labor (figure an hour or 2 labor as the tank will have to be removed). If you are lucky, it will be one of the older smaller units that is not integral (not very likely though) and it may run about $250. The Dodge trucks and Caravans eat up fuel pumps, but I think I may have only changed 1 on a Neon, so I am just generalizing... if it is a stick, it will simply be screwing the switch out of the tranny. I have seen several Dodge trucks that have autos where the back up light switch is similar to many manual switches, so the auto transaxle may (and likely does) use the same switch. It is VERY common for the switch to shit out on tthe trucks, so I don't doubt that for a second. On the trucks I get under $75 for the switch and labor. I assume maybe $100 for the Neon as transaxles are harder to get around than a transmission. The speedo. My guess is the head has taken a shit. The way you describe pushing on the dash leads me to believe a connection issue. It seems to me like I had a Sebring where I needed to bend the contacts in behind the speedo head. Also it is possible that the printed circut board my be jacked up. I have seen several of them, more commonly in GMs, that get crappy. The circuts are generally $100 os so and a couple hours to put them in. A head, it is anybodys guess. I have seen them for $15 and I have seen them for a grand. I estimate the Neon's head at about $80-100 with an hour or 2 labor.
Head being the cluster or head being the "plug in" on the back of the cluster? Everything else seems ballpark of what I was thinking I'd have to pay. Its a manual, and I have heard Neon owners say that the reverse lamp switch is on the transmission, so if I can get that fixed for $100, and hopefully the sender on the gas gauge wont be too bad, then get the speedo fixed I'd be a happy camper. geo, I could do other gauges, but I'd rather not just because there is nowhere to put them that would look good for one, and like I said, when the speedo isn't working, neither is the odo or the tripometer, so I want to fix it even though I maybe lose 1/10 of a mile banging on the dash to get it to work again. Seth, whats the quickest fix here you think? I pulled the gauge cluster and the plug ins seemed a little loose, not super firm in the dash, didn't pay attention to where they go in on the back of the gauge cluster though. Should I maybe look at picking one up out of a junkyard Neon, plugging it in, and seeing if that helps? If that did fix it, is there any way I could have the new cluster's mileage set to where the car's actual mileage is? How would I have to go about this and how much does something like that usually run? Thanks so much for the help thus far guys, and for any more.
I took my gauge cluster apart, removed the speedo VERY easily, and made my own black panels to cover the spot where the speedo and blank spot where the more expensive version's tachometer would have been. I just mounted my digital gauges right there. They look very cool, because when they shut off, they just go black, and they look pretty much OEM, black gauges on a black background panel, my stock gas gauges, temperature gauges, idiot lights, etc... still stock, still there. But if it's an electronic speedo, then like Seth said, it's probably a crap connection that is causing the problem. If you pulled it out and it was loose... see what you can do about that! That very well might be the issue right there! B) With the other stuff, I'd advocate the DIY route whenever you can. I try to let as few people touch my car as possible... I don't think I convey "sucker" to people (heh.. anymore anyway ), but I'm still afraid of the old customer/mechanic trust relationship that has to be there... When you make eye contact, and feel like the mechanic is giving you a "I'm feeling you out" type of evaluation in processing your responses to his questions and suggestions, there's reason for concern, IMO. I just DIY whenever I can, and never bring my car to a mechanic without thoroughly understanding the issue and fix myself first. Hey, if you get into it, and find out that you can't solve it yourself, then you can always take it to a mechanic. The switch in the tranny, definitely something you could pull off yourself. Put the car on jackstands, get under there, and unscrew the thing... should be an easy replacement. Same for the fuel sender, even if it does turn out to be the monster "all integrated" thing that I feared earlier. Easy replacement. I wish Seth lived near me... because honestly, I've got more problems with my own cars than I have time to actually deal with myself! I'd pay someone if I could trust someone, you know what I mean? Finding a mechanic you can honestly trust is unfortunately difficult in my experience... I've even heard horror stories of people who's own relatives led them down roads that shouldn't have been travelled...
Geo, if you replaced the speedo cable on your Pathfinder, that would take care of your problem, LOL... I had the same thing happened on mine (the grease in the instrument cluster attachment part dried out from the cable being heat up by the exhaust manifold): the end of the cable wears out and strips, and the speedo does not work.... Very easy fix actually since the speedo cable is readily accessible... I do not know the Neon but I doubt it has electric speedo, it is probably the same mechanical gear driven deal and either the gear (they are usually plastic) in the speedo itself or the end of the cable wore out... should be easy fix either way... And I am very surprised with these Chrysler prices... sounds like they charge Mercedes prices for Chrysler parts, LOL... :ranting:
It wasn't on my Pathfinder, it was on my little Nissan minitruck. The minitruck is gone now.. the Pathfinder is really a replacement for it. If the speedometer on my Pathfinder went out, there's no telling what I'd do... ...that might just motivate me to remove the entire dashboard completely, and 'glass up something more acoustically flattering... maybe a dashboard that only protruded outward significantly at the very center console area, so the sides of the dashboard wouldn't block sound waves... that would definitely help my line-array concept, anyway... I could push it way forward, off the doors even! Actually, did you see the pictures of the JL Mini Cooper? The dashboard is nonexistant.. just heads straight down from the base of the windshield, the front three channels of the 5.1 setup are recessed into it from there. Really nice sounding car... I'm going to say the best I've ever heard, in fact. B) For the minitruck though.... digital gauges look cool anyway.
don't kid yourself... judging after how much time you spend on the forums and other related activities (and assuming you sleep only on the weekend), it would take you a few months even to install a dashboard cover, LOL... Just forget about it and keep improving the subs... and digital... anywhere but in the car... it makes it really boring... most important, it shows you only where you are... naaah... analog all the way... none of that Knightrider stuff, LOL... :lol:
