Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

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Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

April 10, 2006, 03:06:11 PM

I'm putting the Sport buttstuffog in my base cluster car, it's an 88, and on the alternator lamp, and the alternator feed from ignition, circuits 904, and 687, respectivley, I don't know what to do with them.

Position 10 (plug A)
Alternator Lamp-circuit 904-light green/red
Pos. 11
Alt feed from ignition-circuit 687-grey/yellow

And also, the diagram for the buttstuffog has "AMP" for positions 5 and 6...what are these for? Premium sound amp?
POS 5-AMP-655-red/orange
POS 6-AMP-654-yellow/light green

BTW, my diagrams are from Eric's Coolcats.net

Other than that, I've got everything else hooked up...
Thanks, Beau

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #1 – April 10, 2006, 03:30:41 PM

On the original cluster you had an amp light (wiring in pos. 5 and 6). The new cluster has an amp gauge. The two existing wires (light green/red, grey/yellow) are close-enough substitutes for the amp gauge to work.

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #2 – April 10, 2006, 03:32:33 PM

do i just stick these in position 10 and 11 then? thanks

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #3 – April 10, 2006, 03:36:15 PM

They'd go in pos. 5 and 6. I don't think it matters which goes in where. I've tried both ways and in either situation, the amp gauge still didn't work properly, as usual.

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #4 – April 10, 2006, 03:52:32 PM

I got it all to work, except tach, and amp gauge, I'd modify the resistor in the tach to read the V6 correctly, but since it'll soon have a V8, why bother...oh yes, the oil pressure gauge doesnt work, probably due to the fact that the engine has a switch, instead of a sender, no?
Anyway, Thanks for clarifyin' the Amp gauge wire issue, Eric. You da man! lol

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #5 – April 10, 2006, 05:09:15 PM

Quote from: FordTruckFreeek

I'd modify the resistor in the tach to read the V6 correctly, but since it'll soon have a V8, why bother...

Don't modify it. I modified mine for my v6 and it doesn't work correctly. Its extremely Lazy. And when its cold, like on a winter day, it hovers from 2000 rpm to 3000 rpm. Works good on a hot day though. Still slugish.

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #6 – April 10, 2006, 05:31:18 PM

I am also completing the v8 anolog swap into my 87 t-bird (was a V6). Really need a couple questions answered... i have no L/blue-pink for position #7 in the A plug but i do in the B plug? and what is 12v to IVR mean? I also did not have a dark green/white for position #10? And again what does 5V IVR return mean? My next question is...can i run a wire out from the position #5 to the alternator on the battery side and likewise for position#6 run a wire out and to the alternator to the ALT side? Last questions i promise...For the Oil and temp senders (Positions 8 and 9) I am doing a 351 swap in my car and would like to know what senders I need to make these work, i would assume that positions 8 and 9 go into the engine bay with the rest of the wiring? Thanks in advance guys.

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #7 – April 10, 2006, 05:36:29 PM

You'll have to lengthen the wires on the B plug, so they'll reach over to plug A..I did, nothin to it. lol

As far as your oil & temp senders, just get the 5.0 pieces, they'll correspond to the windsor, although you *may have to get efi truck pieces, not sure if carb 302 will work on an efi engine..?

If you need any more help, just ask, a lot of follks here have done this, it's not all that bad, hell, if I can do it, anybody can! (I'll admit that my wiring skill is not up to par)

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #8 – April 10, 2006, 05:51:04 PM

I have actually ran the wires required from the B side to the A side and lengthened them but the Lblue/ pink wire was supposed to be on the A side and it was on the B side ????

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #9 – April 10, 2006, 06:50:44 PM

Actually, there should be a light blue/pink wire on each plug, but
the one you should use is circuit 295, that goes to 12 volt inst. voltage regulator. plugs into position 7, when you rewire.
How I done it anyway, and my gauges work, but that doesn't mean that EVERY base/lx car is the exact same

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #10 – April 10, 2006, 06:51:42 PM

double post-disregard

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #11 – April 10, 2006, 08:11:26 PM

Can anyone answer the few other questions i had? Eric,Claude? Post # 7. Thanks again guys.

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #12 – April 10, 2006, 08:45:12 PM

Quote from: 4mykid

I am also completing the v8 anolog swap into my 87 t-bird (was a V6). Really need a couple questions answered... i have no L/blue-pink for position #7 in the A plug but i do in the B plug? and what is 12v to IVR mean? I also did not have a dark green/white for position #10? And again what does 5V IVR return mean? My next question is...can i run a wire out from the position #5 to the alternator on the battery side and likewise for position#6 run a wire out and to the alternator to the ALT side? Last questions i promise...For the Oil and temp senders (Positions 8 and 9) I am doing a 351 swap in my car and would like to know what senders I need to make these work, i would assume that positions 8 and 9 go into the engine bay with the rest of the wiring? Thanks in advance guys.

To answer some of your questions (assuming you have a base cluster and are converting to buttstuffogue):

First, a full buttstuffogue gauge only has one plug, there are no "A" or "B".Your existing cluster has two plugs. Some wires from your existing plugs will be used, some will not (they are not necessary with the buttstuffogue cluster, such as LCD illumination, metric/imperial output, etc). Before you do a swap I highly suggest you read this page

The light blue/pink wire that goes into position 7 on the buttstuffogue cluster would come from Plug A, terminal 12 if you are swapping from a base cluster. This wire is the ignition feed to the IVR and should only have power when the key is on.

The dark green/white wire you refer to in the buttstuffogue cluster's #10 postion would come from plug A, terminal 14.

The wires in postions 5 and 6 are only for cars originally equipped with an ammeter. Running wires to the alternator will not result in a functional AMP gauge because the cars that had this gauge from the factory have special "calibrated" wiring that allows the ammeter to read the current without actually carrying the brunt of it (this is called "shunt" wiring). If you simply run wires like that you could end up sending excessive current through the dash cluster. The good news: I don't think Ford ever made an amp gauge that actually worked, so you don't have to use terminals #5 and 6 at all. Instead, though, in order to ensure that your car's alternator (which is set up to work with a light) charges, you should connect a 470-ohm 1/4 watt resistor between the wires in your existing plug A terminals 10 and 11 (these wires will not be connected to the new buttstuffogue cluster, just connect the resistor to them and tape them up)
The oil and water wires (in positions 8 and 9 on the buttstuffogue cluster) are already in the car. Any Windsor-based engine's senders will do as long as they're for buttstuffogue gauges. Do yourself a favour and get an oil sender from a pre-84 model - 85 and newer engines use a fake sender that is really only a switch (your oil gauge will always show the same pressure, regardless of actual pressure, unless it goes below a certain amount)

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #13 – April 10, 2006, 09:15:50 PM

Sorry guys i should have explained myself better...I have read and printed out the info supplied and used that info to complete the swap thus far but i have no Lblue/pink wire in my plug A from my original base cluster. Yes i'm a for going ahead and unplugging the wires from both plugs and started doing the swap without doing them individually but at first glance everything looked as they should by the supplied info. Everything else adds up now with the info i have received from the help of Thunderchicken and FTF but the elusive Lblue/pink wire. Now being as there is a L/blue and pink wire in Plug B that appears to go to the same 295 circuit will that work?

Cluster swap wiring question, help needed

Reply #14 – April 10, 2006, 09:35:10 PM

according to Eric's chart, the light blue/pink wire from plug B is the one you'll need to run to Pos. 7
The base cluster SHOULD have a light blue/pink on both plugs...and apparently they are on the same circuit, too, 295