Have you ever driven a really old car? If you have, there are a number of things that you may have noticed as being considerably different from what we are used to today. Engine power, fuel consumption, ride comfort, gear changing, speed and acceleration being some of the differences.
Instrumentation
It may have been that, with so many differences, you did not really notice how that old car’s instrumentation was laid out and installed. Basically, as a set of separate dials and gauges each occupying its own space around the central speedometer; most of the gauges would still be recognizable today; but, nowadays, they have all been incorporated into a central unit or instrument consol. Such a cluster of instruments is the basic norm for today’s automobiles.
Electro-Mechanical Vs. Electronic
Early car instruments were very much mechanical devices that did utilize some electricity for their respective functions; but, as the world grew into the digital, electronic age, printed circuit boards and transistors took over the automobiles’ instrumentation requirements. With a console filled with old style gauges, etc; an Instrument Cluster Repair was simply a matter of taking out the malfunctioning instrument and either repairing, recalibrating or replacing it.
However, once that consol became effectively computerized and began to serve many other functions not necessarily relating to monitoring the vehicle’s moving parts; we entered the age of printed circuit boards (PCB’s) and, while everything functioned more efficiently; problems in the electronics could throw everything out and Instrument Cluster Repair might require high tech electronic trouble shooting; or, even total replacement of the printed circuit board.
Obsolescence
Personally, I doubt that the car makers deliberately set out to use parts such as instrument clusters that are incapable of being repaired and I am convinced that they do not deliberately under stock on replacement clusters for their older models; but, the world of digital electronics is constantly improving and upgrading. Therefore, the makers will only install the latest technologies and, it stands to reason that; just as instruments will fail in time; so stocks for older models will also run out at some point.
This does not mean that we will have to throw away an older vehicle just because its instruments are malfunctioning. Fortunately, even in this somewhat throw away age; there are experts around who have the knowledge to successfully undertake Instrument Cluster Repair to suit most makes of vehicle regardless of age.
Instrument-Cluster-Repair
