Odometer still doesn't work

[E30_PR]

First of all, I tried looking in the search for a thread of the same issue but didn't find anything that could help me, my apologies if this is a repeated thread.

I just replaced the odometer gear set for my 1989 325i and when I put it back it still doesn't want to work. What else could cause the odometer to malfunction?. I took out the whole thing again and still can't find what's wrong. I tried the search for odometer troubleshooting but all threads talk about the gear set which I already replaced. On a sidenote, I also replaced the batteries and that issue was effectively corrected, the fuel gauge, speedometer, tachometer and temp gauge all work properly.

this is how it looks right now, everything seems to be in place but for some reason it still doesn't roll miles



Also, I replaced both of the light bulbs and I still have one half without illumination, any suggestion for this?




Thanks in advance

[e30sh]

With the small gear removed, you car spin all the other gears to verify they are in the proper order. It's possible to get the two new big gears in the wrong location.

If the bulb is good and the contacts are clean you may need to reflow you circuit board. Thumping the cluster sometimes helps turn on a "dead" bulb.

Good luck.

[itsonlygeorge]

You have a bad circuit board in the gauge cluster. Buy another one and swap the main boards. I had this same problem where only on half lit up. Some trace was burnt out and there is no easy way to find it. You can bake the board and try to reflow, chances are that youll fry it anyway. Old components dont like heat.


Sent from th

[Cephas]

You have a bad circuit board in the gauge cluster. Buy another one and swap the main boards. I had this same problem where only on half lit up. Some trace was burnt out and there is no easy way to find it. You can bake the board and try to reflow, chances are that youll fry it anyway. Old components dont like heat.


Sent from th

It's very dangerous to heat electrical components in your oven. So don't do it.

OP, do a search for Bavarian Restoration on here. I think the owners name is Greg. He can help you sort out your issue and can even restore your entire cluster if you'd like? I haven't used him for this, but have purchased other things from him (new upgraded ground cables) and can attest that the workmanship is phenomenal.

[itsonlygeorge]

Just go to a junk yard and pull a cluster and replace it. Swap your speedo in and you're good.


Sent from th

[E30_PR]

Thanks everyone for your responses

Regarding the odometer, I took out all the gears and tried to swap the order but they seemed to be in the correct order. However, the smallest gear (the white one) was not properly tight, I put it back again and I will test it tomorrow to see if that was the problem.

The only thing that bothers me is that I just did a battery change to my board but I will try to look for a used one or a refurbished one to see if I have better luck this time. Thanks again

[rustneversleeps]

So did you end up fixing the odometer cause mine is still not working after changing the gears.....i wonder if it some thing to do with the speedo unit itself..

[piwko98]

+1
Curious if you were able to get it figured out. I changed my odometer wheels and it worked for a bit then stopped and now it works at random times. Wondering if something is not on tight enough.

I also started having the light out on the right side after I did this. Haven't dug into it yet but curious if replacement is the only way to go or if you were able to replace the bulb or anything else to fix it.

[rustneversleeps]

Could be the small gear making it work randomly and did the light work before you removed it.
Isn't fun working on these...

[piwko98]

Light worked before I removed the cluster.

Makes sense about the little gear. Just trying to get my ducks (parts) in row before I pull it out.

[rustneversleeps]

ya i'm on the 3rd removal and install on the cluster and just getting pretty much fed up removing it...And the odometer reads 60 k miles

[piwko98]

@rustneversleeps - Did you get the light issue figured out?

[rustneversleeps]

All my cluster lights work no prob,still the odometer still not working.
Speedo and tach work fine,gas gauge reads half full to 3/4 full but that another topic and the temp goes up to 3/4 then goes back to less then half but again another topic..

[jgilber0]

Could be a bad set of gears. I replaced mine this week too, and the odometer is binding with the new gearset installed. It does turn freely without the new gears.

I contacted Garagistic and they cheerfully sent out a new set of gears tonight. Fingers crossed that this fixes it. I am also getting tired of installing and removing my cluster.

[reelizmpro]

Looks like your drive gear isn't all the way down. Also, Garagistic had a defective batch of Motometer gears. They had burrs in between the teeth which caused the gears to bind. The gears must turn smoothly for the motor to drive them. Inspect your gears if they are Motometer gears.