Clear Your Needles+Change Gauge Cluster Color (Pics)

SilverKnight · 09-13-2003, 07:23 AM

Things You Will Need:

Phillips Screwdriver
Nail Polish Remover
Cotton Swabs
Colored 194B Bulbs In Desired Color (optional)
Colored Touch Up Paint or Nail Polish In Desired Color (optional)
Two Hands
Patience

First remove the two screws on the guage cluster located on the top inner part and unplug the dimmer switch and remove the whole piece.

Then Remove the whole inner piece by removeing the 4 screws that i have pointed out. pull half way out and unplug the two harnesses (one on each side on the lower ends). then remove gauge cluster completely.

With a couple of cotton swabs dip the cotton swabs into some nailpolish remover and gently remove the orange from the needles. be carefull not to saturate the needle to much with nail polish remover as it sort of melts/eats the plastic on the needle i dont know why but it did it to me.

Then go to Kragens and purchase three packs of 194B bulbs in the color you wish your gauges to light up in. You will need five so you must buy three although only two are pictured.

if you would like your needles a different color this is the time to paint them. i painted mine blue two weeks after these pictures were taken with some blue touch up paint i got at pepboys that come in a little bottle with a brush attached to the cap to apply. I heard nail polish also works. put a light coat only. if the coat is to thick the light will not go through the needle making it hard to see at night when driving. also when painting them find a way so that the needles dont touch the stopper when painting them or else it will get stuck to it . i held it with a pair of tweezers while i used a hair dryer for it to dry quicker. also only paint the top of the needles not the sides and try not to move the needles alot just to prevent the needles from not reading right in the future.

Then put the covers back on and backtrack on how you took it off to put it all back together. You will end up with something like this.

And this at night.

So good luck with it and in the end remember if you mess your sh!t up i didnt force you to do this.

Airbus A320 · 09-13-2003, 08:36 AM

Good job SilverKnight!! Just to let people know you can also use LED bulbs too. Thats what I used because the regular bulbs kept losing color after a while, but the LED bulbs never fade. Silver have you had a problem with the color of those bulbs fading any?

clone2020 · 09-13-2003, 11:29 AM

Great tutorial. I never thought about clearing the needles.

-Mike.

**onlyphases** · 09-13-2003, 03:15 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Airbus A320)</div><div class='quotemain'>Good job SilverKnight!! Just to let people know you can also use LED bulbs too. Thats what I used because the regular bulbs kept losing color after a while, but the LED bulbs never fade. Silver have you had a problem with the color of those bulbs fading any?</div>

I dont recommend LED bulbs (at least not the ones off ebay). They are not as bright as the ones he used in the tutorial for some odd reason. I ended up going with the Reverse glo gauges. When I had the blue LED bulbs, they were so dim at night I could not see a thing. had to strain to see how fast I was going. LOL

Supernova · 09-13-2003, 03:32 PM

Nice.

I need to clear my needles sometime before NOPI. Right now I have the AC Reverse EL guages in, and no bulbs in the cluster, because the light from the bulbs shines trough the EL guages and looks horrible. S my needless are not lit up at all. I can see them, but..... I want some light for them. So I might get some black construstion paper, place it betwere the stock and EL guages, then get someband see what happens. 8)

**VA_LANCER_RACER** · 09-13-2003, 06:20 PM

very nice, if you want the needles to light up brighter you can get the needle kit from importintelligence.com very nice kit, had them on my 7g.

**mrjaydeeone** · 09-14-2003, 02:44 AM

very nice job

SilverKnight · 09-14-2003, 05:22 AM

Thanks alot guys i just tought that i should start helping the other members around here. By the way Airbus A320 i have not seen a fade in the color yet and i have had them for two months nowand there always on when im driving. Also supernova everything you wrote is the right way to go. You also might need to use two or three sheets of black construction paper.

**Sowndwayv** · 09-14-2003, 11:53 AM

can u fix the pics? or someone email them or aim them to me

SilverKnight · 09-15-2003, 04:56 AM

its probly because msn changes the url of the image after a while. i will try with......never mind imagestation wont let me upload photo's right now. will try again later.

Supernova · 09-15-2003, 07:06 PM

I cleared mine today. I knew how to do it all along, you just inspired me. 8)

I wired my guages wrong putting it all back in, cause my guages don't light up. At elast I hope I wired them wrong, hope they didnt' short out or anything!!!! *knocks on wood* I'll wire them up right tonight

Z · 09-15-2003, 08:29 PM

i can't see pics

**extremsprt86** · 09-15-2003, 08:41 PM

im so up for doing this, however i cant see the pics, and i would feel more comfortable if i could see the pics. thanks. any free mod is good in my book.

**FastNFabolous** · 09-15-2003, 11:28 PM

cant see the pictures too.

SilverKnight · 09-16-2003, 03:42 AM

pics should work now.

**BiGSHUN** · 09-16-2003, 10:36 AM

hey, SilverKnight, where did you get your chrome bezel? i got one but its not chrome although that was the description when i ordered it. mine is vinyly and and rubbery plastic.

VIO · 09-16-2003, 10:53 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BiGSHUN)</div><div class='quotemain'>hey, SilverKnight, where did you get your chrome bezel? Â*i got one but its not chrome although that was the description when i ordered it. Â*mine is vinyly and and rubbery plastic.</div>

i have the same one you have and i hate it! it looks like shit. you can get the chrome one off ebay for about $13. i'm picking one up pretty soon.

**BiGSHUN** · 09-16-2003, 11:38 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(VIO)</div><div class='quotemain'><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BiGSHUN)</div><div class='quotemain'>hey, SilverKnight, where did you get your chrome bezel? Â*i got one but its not chrome although that was the description when i ordered it. Â*mine is vinyly and and rubbery plastic.</div>

i have the same one you have and i hate it! it looks like shit. you can get the chrome one off ebay for about $13. i'm picking one up pretty soon.</div>

where did you get yours from? i think i got mine from summit. i have like a $30 credit w/ them and i can't find a damn thing to order. summit is not too kind to imports.

**BiGSHUN** · 09-16-2003, 11:43 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(VIO)</div><div class='quotemain'><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BiGSHUN)</div><div class='quotemain'>hey, SilverKnight, where did you get your chrome bezel? Â*i got one but its not chrome although that was the description when i ordered it. Â*mine is vinyly and and rubbery plastic.</div>

i have the same one you have and i hate it! it looks like shit. you can get the chrome one off ebay for about $13. i'm picking one up pretty soon.</div>

where did you get yours from? i think i got mine from summit. i have like a $30 credit w/ them and i can't find a damn thing to order. summit is not too kind to imports.

by the way, when searching for the bezel on ebay, would it come up under "chrome bezel"?