Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications General Mods svt speedo install???

i have a '96 v6 atx contour. i recently bought an svt gague cluster to install. i went to install it today and the speedo didnt register at all and the car shifted pretty hard. also i couldnt get the o/d off light to go away either. any help here guys, im stumped on this one.

I'll ask the most important question:

What year SVT was the cluster from?

the guy i bought it from said that its from a '98. but from what ive read that doesnt help too much since there were two different versions for the '98 svt. im thinking its newer though because it doesnt say normal on the temp gauge like my stocker does. i guess ill go and put it back to stock right now and try to figure it out after class.

i really couldnt find anything worthwhile from searching.

That's the problem right there. 98.5-00 clusters do not work on 98 and lower Contiques. You have an E1 cluster from a 98.5. You have to get a 98 (E0) and nothing else.

Tip: 98 clusters will say NORMAL across the temp. gauge.

well thank you, that saved me a lot of time and heartache. i guess this is off to the classifieds.

No....you actually have the right cluster...you just need to modify it. clicky

EDIT: Just noticed you have an ATX. May be a different situation that what's in the link.

well, dont i need a speedo that says normal on the temp gague for a '96? the svt gague i bought doesnt say normal like the stocker does.

I was able to modify a E1 cluster (one that doesn't say NORMAL on the temp gauge) to work in a '96 car. It required using some parts from the original '96 cluster and some parts (namly the faces, needles, and speedo gauge) from the SVT cluster. If you want to try this route, you may want to buy a '96 V6 cluster so that you don't risk screwing something up on the one that is already in your car.

I tried to use a E0 (one that says NORMAL on the temp gauge) cluster baised on the above advice but it didn't work in my car and resulted in buring two of the tracks off the circuit board on the back of the cluster. It may be that there was something wrong with the cluster it self, so the only advice I can really give is what happend in my own experience.

I may investigate this further.