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Cluster cable plug / wiring


delly82
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Good morning all, hoping for a bit of advice. I have a 2.0 diesel 2009 kuga. Thought to have had the usual cluster issue! It has since been repaired twice in the last few weeks as the suspected first repair did not work. As of now I'm completely convinced the issue is either with the plug that connects to the cluster or a certain wire / wires that run to it. As soon as I start the car, engine malfunction and esp light up. Running live data, app_d is a steady 0% until pressed, But app_e fluctuates...until I gently manipulate the wires that connect to the plug on the rear of the cluster. And can occasionally get it to read 0% which is where it should be! I know it not the accelerator pedal, as I fitted a new one. And spent countless money on repairs it didn't need! So was wondering if anyone had experienced this fault, with wiring behind the cluster, not the cluster itself. And if so, common wiring issues in this area. Many thanks in advance.

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Hello Dale, the Mk1 Kuga is not generally known to have issues with the soldering of the instrument cluster unlike the Focus and the Fiesta.

Are you using FORScan on a windows laptop to read the DTC's ?

It is possible that you might have an issue with the connector pins of the instrument cluster and so worth checking each and everyone. It can happen that a pin gets slightly pushed back in to the connector housing and makes intermittent contact.

Below is the wiring schematics for the Kuga

 

Kuga_Mk1.pdf

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19 hours ago, unofix said:

Hello Dale, the Mk1 Kuga is not generally known to have issues with the soldering of the instrument cluster unlike the Focus and the Fiesta.

Are you using FORScan on a windows laptop to read the DTC's ?

It is possible that you might have an issue with the connector pins of the instrument cluster and so worth checking each and everyone. It can happen that a pin gets slightly pushed back in to the connector housing and makes intermittent contact.

Below is the wiring schematics for the Kuga

 

Kuga_Mk1.pdf 12.35 MB · 1 download

Thank you very much for that, sorry I didn't get beck sooner, I was waiting for an email notification. Which I didn't get haha! Unfortunately no, forscan is on my list of things to get at some point. As I mentioned, my cluster was sent off twice for repair,  as when it was pushed, pulled on the dash was bashed, those actions impacted my errors. I can only assume that when the pins were all re soldered,  they should have checked them to make sure they were all of the right height? Most of my fiddling has led me to believe the fault may be with the plug itself, or one or more of the wires going to it. If I have the cluster out, but plugged in, and I gently move a wire with the end of a screw driver, it plays havoc with APP_E percentages. Just trying to save some money, as I've already forked out a shed load of money on the car!! Thanks for the pdf I'll take a breeze through. Thanks again for the reply. 

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On 5/16/2023 at 11:07 AM, unofix said:

the Mk1 Kuga is not generally known to have issues with the soldering of the instrument cluster unlike the Focus and the Fiesta.

People don't always tell me what model they have when they send them to me for repair, but one from the other day was from a 2010 Kuga. It was the same design as used in Focus M2.5s. The joints in this case did have cracks, though not as prominent as I typically see.

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11 hours ago, delly82 said:

they should have checked them to make sure they were all of the right height?

No. The pins are all fixed into the plastic mold of the connector socket, which is done during manufacturing of the socket before it's fixed to the circuit board by soldering the ends of the pins to the board. It would take a lot of force to change the height of one of the pins, and if it were soldered to the board at the time, significant damage would occur. So unless due to an unlikely manufacturing defect, the heights should all be the same and do not need such a check during repair.

I think you're just misunderstanding what unofix said though. A common fault that can occur with connector pins **in general** is that the socket (female part) does not get a good grip on the pin (male part). This is not due to a "height" problem with the pin. The sockets have to accommodate tiny differences in pin size, due to manufacturing tolerances and effects of temperature, and sometimes they can just fail to get a good grip and require adjustment. I've watched multiple youtube videos of automotive mechanics where they've discovered that this was the cause of an electrical fault and they just had to squeeze certain parts of some of the sockets to adjust them to solve the problem. A common technique to figure out which socket(s) of a multi-pin connector needs such adjustment is to take something like a paper clip and stick it into each socket to get a feel for tightness/looseness.

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On 5/16/2023 at 9:48 AM, delly82 said:

I know it not the accelerator pedal, as I fitted a new one.

New does not always mean good. I've watched many, many videos of automotive mechanics doing their jobs, and occasionally brand new parts are found to be faulty from the get go.

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On 5/16/2023 at 9:48 AM, delly82 said:

So was wondering if anyone had experienced this fault, with wiring behind the cluster, not the cluster itself. And if so, common wiring issues in this area.

No, I've fixed more than 30 units suffering from cracked solder joints now, but never encountered or heard of anyone suffering such problems due to the connector not gripping the pins properly.

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The point I was trying to make but perhaps not clearly is that the crimp in the connector housing can become unlatched/detached and is able to slide in the connector. When the connector is removed from the IC then the crimp is pulled towards the front and all looks well. However if it has become unlatched then as the connector is pushed on to the IC then the pins of the male part will push the socket crimp further back in the plastic housing which leads to only the very end of the crimp and the pin touching.

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2 hours ago, rd457 said:

No. The pins are all fixed into the plastic mold of the connector socket, which is done during manufacturing of the socket before it's fixed to the circuit board by soldering the ends of the pins to the board. It would take a lot of force to change the height of one of the pins, and if it were soldered to the board at the time, significant damage would occur. So unless due to an unlikely manufacturing defect, the heights should all be the same and do not need such a check during repair.

I think you're just misunderstanding what unofix said though. A common fault that can occur with connector pins **in general** is that the socket (female part) does not get a good grip on the pin (male part). This is not due to a "height" problem with the pin. The sockets have to accommodate tiny differences in pin size, due to manufacturing tolerances and effects of temperature, and sometimes they can just fail to get a good grip and require adjustment. I've watched multiple youtube videos of automotive mechanics where they've discovered that this was the cause of an electrical fault and they just had to squeeze certain parts of some of the sockets to adjust them to solve the problem. A common technique to figure out which socket(s) of a multi-pin connector needs such adjustment is to take something like a paper clip and stick it into each socket to get a feel for tightness/looseness.

Thank you for that tip, I may see if I have a paperclip?!! Hopefully have an auto electrician coming tomorrow.  Maybe a fresh set of eyes will find something I couldn't. I only suggest that it couldn't be the cluster, as I said it has been repaired twice. On live data, APP_D  is 0%....and APP_E fluctuates. Manipulating the plug on the rear of the cluster can sometimes get E to read 0% , where it should be. Just need to determine if it's a HS Canbus fault, or a dodgy connection. It's baffling me, and I'm at my wits end. Thanks for all the advice...👍👍👍

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