Volvo 480 Club Europe

As it seems one of the most niggling faults in the 480, I am offering an instrument cluster repair service. I have a degree in electronics engineering, but my daytime job moved into another direction, so consider me a hobbyist with professional background.

Things I can repair, and how I will do it:
- erratic behaviour of the speedometer or no working speedometer at all; properly soldering the connector pins to instrument board and/or repairing the connectors (not a botch job as I have seen too often!)
- stopped odometer; replacing the cog wheel and/or repairing the stepper motor
- faulty info centre display; tightening the connectors to the display and the Zebra strip inside the display
- burnt or blackened bulbs; replacing them with brand new ones
- wrong info centre readings; checking the version and engine selection of the info centre board and if needed, changing the board
- combining two units into one working unit, with the correct mileage

I have test equipment to check all functions and I have the original Volvo documentation. Also, I know how to work on sensitive electronics, which is usually beyond the knowledge of the average mechanic (which is OK, I know virtually nothing about engines, mechanics and body work )

I have almost all spares including new cog wheels. I do not have spares for the UK speedometer and odometer electronic boards - I only have the metric units and face plates unless someone is willing to supply me the specific UK stuff. But I rarely need to exchange parts, only if things are really broken.

All instrument clusters will be fully tested upon return.

I do however request a small fee, because for all the hours I have spent repairing instrument clusters, I want to take out the missus now and then to a good movie. And of course you have to cover the postage and the parts (if needed) used. Please PM me for details, because it may sometimes be cheaper to source a good used unit in the country of residence.

Thanks for your pm Brinkie,I will fit speed sensor and see if my mechanic can sort speedo issues,if not could be sending two or three units your way thanks to everyone else for advice on this post its much appreciated

I have a 480 Celebration. Everything works fine apart from the odometer.

I bought an instrument cluster from a dealer who assured me it was fully working. I fitted it and found that the info centre only displayed some dashes, so I put my old one back in. (It was not just a blown illumination bulb).

I also purchased a cog wheel for my odometer on the assumption that it might be easy to replace, but I cannot see how to get at it and I don't want to risk destroying an otherwise perfect unit just to get the odometer working.

I use my 480 as an everyday car so I don't want to remove my good speedo until I have another one to replace it immediately.

Would you be willing to help?

Barrie Jones, Devon, UK.

Robert what uk spare parts do you need as I can send over to you to support the work that you are doing for the 480 community.
If you can give an exact list and I have it then you can have it/them for the cost of the postage only.

glasgowjim wrote:Robert what uk spare parts do you need as I can send over to you to support the work that you are doing for the 480 community.
If you can give an exact list and I have it then you can have it/them for the cost of the postage only.

Cheers! I am currently short on SRS boards (those with an extra 2-pin connector and "SRS" indicator instead of hazard light indicator), "480 S" clusters (i.e. those without infocenter) and speedometers in miles (have plenty of those in km ). But the holiday season is coming so I have other priorities (i.e. preparations) at the moment.

In the meantime I am preparing a how-to video, but still trying to figure out what is the best setup to actually record the video. And then I will terrorise your ears with horrible Dunglish, muhahahahahah

ormolu wrote:I bought an instrument cluster from a dealer who assured me it was fully working. I fitted it and found that the info centre only displayed some dashes, so I put my old one back in. (It was not just a blown illumination bulb).

There is a simple job you can to to fix the info centre.

Remove all screws from the main board (Torx T10 screwdriver needed, you can use a flat blade screwdriver at a pinch), remove the white cover, take off the info centre computer and remove the four phillips screws underneath. Take off the main board. Take out the info centre display unit.

The display circuit board is clicked into the display unit, pry it out, carefully not to break the plastics. You will find a white strip tucked to the side, this is a so-called Zebra strip or elastomeric connector. On the flip side of the circuit board, where the board connects to the strip, you have to clean the contact row with a cotton swab and suitable cleaning agent (it sounds stupid, but winter windshield washer fluid is perfect, it contains isopropyl alcohol just like brake cleaner). Click the circuit board back in place, push it tightly.

Now build the whole instrument cluster back together. It should work now.

Hi there,

My problem is the info center information not displaying- I've changed the bulb and can see some light so I'm confident to say that that bit is working!

Ive just tried swapping my ECU for one taken from a working car and no change in the problem. No fuel, oil, engine temp info etc.

What step would you try next? I'm guessing sending an info center for a refurb be pointless as the chances are that one or both of the ecus are ok?

Many thanks

PS- Any Celeb era dashboard pods out there then let me know!

First of all: no computer in the Volvo 480 is interconnected in such a way that they won't function without each other.

In other words, a defective ECU won't cause a dead infocenter. You will get some interesting readings on fuel consumption and range, but the rest will remain functioning.

Now about your particular problem Tim: the info center is powered through the same fuse as the cigarette lighter. If some accessory caused an overload, or if you have stuck accidentally a piece of metal in it, the fuse may be blown. So you'd better check that first.

If power to the cigarette lighter is OK, then it is time to take out the instrument cluster. You will see five pins where the infocentre display connects to the main board. Spray contact cleaner on them, then use long-nose pliers to squeeze the connector a bit. This will usually do the trick. If not, take out the display and take the display apart. Solder the five pins which connect to the main board (do NOT fix the pins into the main board sockets by soldering them shut, otherwise you won't be able to take apart the instrument cluster ever again!). Push the boards inside tight into the housing and place everything carefully back together.

The infocenter displays are technically the same throughout the entire production span of the 480, only model years 1986 and 1987 have two red stripes for the last bit of fuel instead of all green ones, and the front has different texts (AIR instead of EXT for example) next to the lights. You can easily replace the display alone if it really turns out to be defective, but they go bad very very rarely.

Contact me through Facebook chat if you are stuck somewhere in the process. Good luck!

Thanks Robert, Ive given my lighter a good hoover & changed the fuse, so next step is to buy some contact cleaner! Thanks for the help. Jim is looking for some extra parts for you to fix up if I cant get things working. Many thanks!

Tim

HI Robert, I popped out my dash yesterday and did the squeeze of the pins you mentioned on the info center board- loads of contact cleaner- but still no info canter (on the upside my fan switch has started working again- but my airbag waring light has come on ) Anyhow, the next step is soldering! I was wondering if I might pass this on to you- perhaps if I buy a UK dash and ship it to you for maintenance I could just do the transplant?

Many thanks for your help!

Tim

If you want to keep using the car while the instrument cluster is away for repairs, any other cluster with the same connectors (most have green/grey which was introduced in MY 1989) will do. The main reason you need an instrument cluster in place, is that the alternator will not start charging without one. Fuel gauge and temperature gauges are all the same throughout the production, only the calculation of fuel consumption and autonomy differs, and the speed may be off by a few percent.
On the other hand, if you want to send an instrument cluster to me which is meant to replace the one currently in your car, make sure it is from the same model year with the same safety level (SRS). The electrical design didn't change from 1991 onwards (phase 2) but there are some optical differences (typeface of the front plates).

Ok thanks Robert, I'll get on this, by the way, my last foray into the dash also included some successful contact cleaning of the fan switch (which now works) and the clock bulb. My only downside is that the "srs" (airbag) light is now permanently illuminated. I just did the steps described in your last post, but stopped short of the soldering! Any idea what I might have disturbed?

Many thanks

Tim

Did you forget to plug the white 2-pin connector back in?

ormolu wrote:I have a spare 480 Celebration dash cluster that I would like checked out before I swap it over. Also, the mileage needs to be reset to the figure currently shown on my car . I can send a copy of my current MoT to verify the mileage.

Where should I send the cluster?

It is easier to use the spare cluster while the current one is away for repairs. It is a pretty difficult job to reset the mileage, takes hours of fiddling and sometimes the result isn't satisfactory.
What is wrong with the one currently in your car?

Thank you Brinkie. You fixed my odometer problem. Very Happy.

You're welcome!

I am composing a mail now for your VEM repair, should be in your mailbox in a minute, going to post that on the forum as well for others running into that problem

brinkie wrote: It is easier to use the spare cluster while the current one is away for repairs. It is a pretty difficult job to reset the mileage, takes hours of fiddling and sometimes the result isn't satisfactory.

Actually setting mileage is easier than I thought. Once the speedometer has been dismantled, you can unscrew a kind of a plastic screw which is surrounding the pin where the speedometer needle is resting upon (use long-nose pliers). Using a small flat-blade screwdriver, you can pry out the metal casing on the back, allowing the odometer mechanics to be taken out. Now you can, using your fingers, try and change the odometer setting. Just use a little force, taking care not to pass across 0 (so click back from 9 to 1 instead of forward passing 0).
This way you can prepare a spare instrument cluster with the correct mileage. I don't know how the British handle "clocking", here in The Netherlands your car loses the "National Auto Pass" certification on the mileage once a lower mileage has been detected at the annual APK (MOT) than it was registered the year before. Your car will be registered forever having an incorrect mileage, lowering the resale value considerably.

brinkie wrote: This way you can prepare a spare instrument cluster with the correct mileage. I don't know how the British handle "clocking", here in The Netherlands your car loses the "National Auto Pass" certification on the mileage once a lower mileage has been detected at the annual APK (MOT) than it was registered the year before. Your car will be registered forever having an incorrect mileage, lowering the resale value considerably.

frowned on . . . . . . (if not actually illeagal ?)

in the past you could 'lose' previous MoTs so nobody knew if it had been clocked, other than looking at worn pedals/steering wheel rim/seats etc etc now you can search a car's MoT history 'online' so any changes in mileage are easily spotted . . . .

my issue is that our 480 has only done 200 miles last year as wife not allowed to drive (yet) and been off the road again this year from July . . . . .

Hi everyone,
I need an expert opinion for my speedo trouble.
I think I did all possible to sensor, wiring and pcb, but my speedo still beeing off for almost half the time.
Road bumps, cables/connector wiggling doesn't affect the functioning, recently I noticed that in the colder weather by night/morning it's dead all the time.
The flat cable of the blue connector too seems to be in good condition, so I'm starting to think it may be a fault in the speedo instrument itself.
I have another speedo from another cluster, but when I tried it on the car it remained blocked between 20 and 60 kmh and the odo wasn't working (the same cog wheel)
Is there a way to test if my speedos gauges themselves are gone?

I'm in your hands