Buick LeSabre: Instrument Cluster Diagnosis
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 ก.พ. 2019
- In a previous video • Importance Of Using Th... I had a look at a Buick LeSabre for intermittent stalling. I diagnosed it as having a bad MAF sensor. In this video I have a look at the cluster I mentioned that was failing and show you how I go about making the call on it. -Enjoy!
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Had this happen on the 2002 Lesabre. With the ignition off, I placed a magnet on the front of the speedometer, and slowly (and carefully) moved the speedo needle back to 0. With the fuel gauge I moved the fuel needle to E. When I turned the ignition back on, everything was restored, and pointing to the correct position. This was not my idea, I learned it from UXWBill. Awesome video as always!
I really like your mix of long and shorter videos Eric
Just replaced a water pump for a neighbor on his Lesabre, easiest pump change. Sooo much room to work with. Need to fix the instrument cluster. Thank you for your expertise.
120@0rpm tell the tow truck to slow down.
A Buick rocking and going 120? Pretty sure that was the way my parents conceived me.
👍
Your middle name LaSabre and they tell you it was for a French great-great grandparent?
Another great video. Thank you. Thumbs Up
Quick and easy! I know about the fuel gauge. The 86 LeSabre had gauge pin to harness contact problems. Don't remember what I did, but it fixed the problem. We didn't have the gauge test to verify it's operation. I like your test to see if there's fuel in the tank! That's HIGH TECH! LOL! Good Job.
What great deductions thank you for teaching and sharing
Interesting video because you used a term I was not familiar with. "Class two" I looked it up. If I keep watching your videos I won't need to go to training in March. :)
The more training you get the better off you'll be. Do you know about Scanner Danner? if not go to Scannerdanner.com he's an instructor at Rosedale Technical College
it's worth it to visit his site maybe even pay for the lessons he teaches.
wyattoneable that’s middle class car 😂😂
@@hammondautollc7809 Oh yeah, scannerdanner is a classic. But thanks for checking in on me.
wyattoneable...hahaha! If you keep watching his channel, when you go to training in March, you'll already know what to do with your meat nuggets, while giving the classic reach around! I can only imagine what could happen if the training instructor was a female, with a last name that begins with the letter O!
I can hear your morning greetings, already!! "WHATS UP MRS O?" Only SMA fans will get that!! Lol
Eric O. Your a great tech!!! Just to reafirm your opinion on Dorman products. I just received a check from Dorman for $1,624.00 for a defective oil supply hose. Smoked the engine.I'M done with Dorman Products. Every time I grab a can of brake cleaner I laugh and think of you. Mercurios Auto Garage Speonk NY
Dorman oil cooler hoses!? That is a death wish right there! (as you found out)
You take me back to my formative years, If the the cars a rockin don't come knockin. Ah, the good old days!
😂😂😂
Great job again like always A+
That’s funny. I’m a Kenwood Land Mobile two-way radio dealer and I just started using United Radio as a repair depot.
Gotta love them Buicks coming into the shop! Have been missing the diag videos so this was a true pleasure.
For some reason most professional mechanics love working on GM cars probably because all the problems are so well known and common across models and years. I think a lot of mechanics put their kids thru college on GM work alone.
GM has made my business very successful !
@@SouthMainAuto Old Buicks never die. They just rust through, fail NY state inspection and go to the junk yard. Eventually, Eric will loose a major income stream when they're all junked.
Professor Erik u really have a great sense of humor. ENHANCE ENHANCE 🤣🤣🤣. Thank u for all u do for us.😁
Fixed my Father in Laws 2003 LeSabre. Needed lights in instrument cluster, temp control unit, and radio. It was all dark. I purchased and soldered in all new bulbs - about 30 in total including 12 or so just in the radio. Took about five hours. All works now and the fuel sensor in the gas tank does not work and he does not care.
I agree with u about fix or repair on a cluster everyone can give it a go at it but carry on the warranty and liability and most of all your time Great to have a paper trail that’s why your successful
I agree. With the speedometer fixing. Sending it out removes you from blame if it becomes unreliable again soon. That place probably certifies the speedometer as being correct after they fix it. True for us. We could pull the cluster and see if it is stuck. Still then we won't know if it is completely right. Great video again. If i had one of those monitored i would go crazy doing stuff. 1 big fun toy these trouble shooter meters are.
Doing a fuel level sensor is easy in those 2001-2005 LeSabres. There's a small hatch cover in the trunk, passenger side, just behind the rear seat. Pull the cover and you are there. Best design GM ever came up with.
When the engineers lobby attempts for a better sending unit failed, they retreated to the "can we at least get a hole to make replacement easier?"
@@ShainAndrews Hmmm. I figured that would be the case.
MikeR...that's not the case on my 99 LeSabre!
ask me how I know this.
MikeR Yup I was going to say the same thing the Impalas do too. I think all the W body cars from 2000-2005 gave you the access panel i have a 2000 impala 3.8 that has the panel as well. First thing I did when my sister purchased it was replace the fuel level sensor 👌
Bought my 2001 lesabre 5 years ago, the guy said that the gas gauge didn't work and that it was a common problem with these cars, I just did my third one, but it's so easy that I don't mind because I love the car, she has 275,000 and runs like a top, she's never left me stranded and never failed to start except when the battery was dead, it was 5 year old interstate.
Hi Eric,
I have worked on a 97 lesabre custom instrument cluster and have found that the problem with them are the solder joints on the pc board will crack around the components. The fix was to resolder all the through holes. Took 15 minutes after removal of cluster and the repair has lasted for about 6 years so far. Buick soldering produces what is called “cold solder” and will crack with temperature change. That is why they fail. It’s an easy fix with a good soldering iron and flux. It will save the customers money and time without their car if you DIY. Just a suggestion😀
Stepper motors are probably not bad just disconnected by bad soldering
Yeah, I think you called it right. Thanks Dr. O!
Great video, thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the video.
Just a few weeks ago I replaced the stepper motor for the temp gauge in my 05 Impala. These early 00's GM's have some really cheap electronics components, sadly. On the bright side, at least taking apart the dash on that thing isn't too hard!
Stay warm, and cheers from Ontario County!
Quick note for those that want to perform a cluster/gauge sweep test without a scan console...press and hold the trip reset button, then key on.
@ kmt01
Okay, what are we looking for that to do?
Great Video Eric O
Looking forward to the follow up video on this one!
Also the intake manifold tends to leak oil in the radiator.G.M has a steel replacement (original Plastic).including strut mounts (metal end caps) and soft rubber sway bar bushings. I had the 02 Regal 3.8 L
"why don't you do that?"
"Cuz I don't"
Gotta love this guy LMAO!
good video as always
My wife had a Buick that had problems with the instrument panel. It also had problems with cruise control and the AC suddenly blowing out hot air. Dealer wanted $900 to repair instrument panel. I told my wife to bring it home and let me look at it first. All was wrong were a few bad solder joints. I resoldered them and never had any more problems.
I think on Dodges you can hold the trip reset and key on and it will do a cluster sweep.
Great video. Nice to know United Radio does repairs. Hard to find good repair electronic centers.
I learn a lot here I would not have thought you could have a remote for the dash on that older car thanks
Nice man! That classic reach around will get you every time lol
"Were sittin' in da ay doin' a buck twenty in da buick!" I freaking love it.
i had 2 bonnevilles witch as we all saw in the MAF vid i too had a MAF fail on my first one and not 1 but 2 sending units go out on me and the best of it is they are easy to get to in the trunk via a panel under the carpet and my 05 tahoe had the cluster go bad also
Every time I watch your videos I cry.
Didn't realize I was that bad...
No. You are fine. You could have earned a Ph.D in physics with your logical deduction skills.
It's my profession choice. Remember that Travis Tritt song "Where corn don't grow". I grew up on a farm pull'n calves and wrenches. I now know what that song was trying to tell me.
When my father had a 94 LeSabre the gauge cluster once started "floating" to other speeds while he was driving. He'd go 50 and it'd casually stroll to 100 and back down, or down to zero and back up. That car had a lot of intermittent problems.
From what I have learned, if you do not have an expensive desoldering gun, do not attempt to do your own stepper motors. It just rips the pads off and causes a nightmare of problems. There's a youtuber who fixes (mostly GM clusters) and that's the number one issue, the customer tries to fix their own cluster, and only makes it worse. Good call on outsourcing to a place that will warranty it and has a good track record.
I'm a GM guy and I concur on the fuel level sensor as being junk. Almost every GM car I've had needed the fuel sensor replaced. And the sad thing it's not a cheap repair. I was able to make the repair myself on a Grand Prix I had because there was access to it from the trunk. Why don't they do that on all cars...........oh yeah revenue stream.
Thanks Eric!!
Great fix
You can do it cause I am not going to mess with a dash if I can keep from doing it. Cool video
264,000 subscribers, 500 comments a couple hours after video is posted. Why bother commenting. But I just had to. This video and the one on the Chevy truck with the parasitic drain were perfect for the Tahoe I have in for repairs right now. 200 milliamperes on the dedicated ipc fuse. Guess what. I live in Calif. but it’s going to United Radio in Syracuse for a first class repair! Of course I love the channel and like everybody else watch the vids as soon as they come out. Way better than all the trash on T.V.
Great video..
Eric O. is becoming a TH-cam legend Top Gun.
I didn't take much in after you said "meat nuggets" I'm so childish ... 😂😂😂
Glad to entertain you. Does that technically make me a male entertainer!? Hmmmm
Absolutely!!!
@@SouthMainAuto Speaking of male entertainer, it was a job I did and, believe you me, I had no complaints. No. None. Nada. In DC circles, I'm known more for my intelligence. I'm a win-win.
Niamh Healy...I was actually eating a small nugget of meat, when he said that! I snorted! And yes, I finally got said meat nugget dislodged from the sinus cavity, without an E.R. doctors assistance!!
Was the meat roadkill?!! 😷😂😂
Eric,
Great video - thank you! Id be curious if you can fix thodse HVAC control backlights or do you replace the entire unit?
SMA#1
God bless
Paul
Great vid. I have owned Chevy's for all my life and agree that the fuel sending units are garbage. Sometimes a few taps with a hammer on the gas tank gets them working again.
If I remember correctly, you can individually sweep the gauges with a Tech2 or the Tech2Win software; I would not be surprised if your new Bosch scan tool supports the GM MDI interface; which means you could buy the Tech2Win software and have the same diagnostics capability that you have with 90s to mid 00s Chryslers from owning a DRBIII.
The fuel gauge will make wild sweeps from full to empty if the sensor is bad and the cluster stepper motor works.
That was interesting I didn't know you could do that with the scanner.
HELP!
I love your channel. You do a great job on keeping up with the new tech in the newer autos. I think you are much smarter than people know.
I have a snow blower attachment that I have to repair because my last person I paid to help me (2 man job), put the augers on backwards. No! It is a big deal! I have to remove the main pulley and bearing housing so I can slide the main shaft of the transmission out that has the auger shaft running thru it.
The pulley and bearing have allen screws with Loctite Red holding them to the drive shaft. I have removed them before using a pipe soldering torch to get the temp up to 450-500 degrees and wheel puller (Huge pain in the Ahole). My help person reinstalled them with the Red and I fear he was too generous with the Red. No room for impact or socket wrench.
Q: Do you have any helpful tips to getting these out easier? Maybe some thing to help loosen the threads?
Just FYI: I think it would be nice if you had a video that just went over all the lubricants, cleaners and Liquid Wrench type products you use for the jobs you do. What, Why and Where.
Thanks! 👍👍👍👍
John
20 in the shop my high beams are on! LOL Sweet video!
Its funny that you say that the Lesabre clusters are problematic because i looked at an 05 Lesabre for sale last year. Car was pretty solid, and clean for a $1800 car with 216K on it. Out of curiousity i ran a VIN check on the car, and it turns out that the mileage recorded annually seemed way off than present mileage which told me the cluster was probably replaced with one from a salvage yard. Also i was really wary about the color of the coolant in the radiator since it was brownish colored, but the oil was clean which possibly could rule out bad gaskets. No visible coolant leaks around the intake manifold either which tells me the intake gaskets were probably replaced already. I ended up buying my brothers truck since i already knew the history of it, but if i came across a great deal on a clean solid 3800 Lesabre i might consider it. FYI TH-camr bah53 has some pretty good videos on his experiences with the 3800 powered Buicks.
So many gm automobiles from the 90's on have electronics with the tiniest bit of solder on every part of the circuit boards. Everything from the gauge cluster, the wiper motor to the climate control, much of it made my ITT america.
I've seem these things stop working completely or partially, but by removing the module in question and touching each connection with an extra tip of solder seemed to fix very nearly every electrical problem associated with those modules, unless it was the body computer of course.
Thanks for the info. I fell into a Buick LeSabre over the holiday season and it's got a few problems with the instrument panel... the gas gauge doesn't work and recently some lights in the instrument panel don't turn on until maybe a minute of driving. I can feel for the gears but it's a lot more convenient to actually be able to SEE them! Is that a fuse issue or is there something else at play?
You get up as early as me. Morning.
No he doesn't, he schedules them to get posted online while he's sleeping, that explained on WUW live.
I've got the exact same issue right now same car, same year just ordered some servos
Eric, do you know if United Radio fixes digital dashes? GM specifically.
Best to call them and ask. You will need a part number for the cluster if you call..
Would like to see a follow up on the problems if it get address.
Eric O. I have had code p0455 on my 05 Lesabre for 4 years. Replaced gas cap, fuel tank pressure sensor, canister vent valve, and purge valve. Yes I know its the parts cannon( I know better now) I actually found your videos while trying to solve this problem. Code keeps coming back. Only two things I can know left is hoses or fuel tank fill tube but it looks good. But seriously WTH?! What could it be? I hear 2 clicks from the canister vent valve, and within 30 seconds the code sets. Happens that way every time.
I'm pumped up man gm makes the finest cars from Chinese parts in all of mehico!
The distance to empty reading on the driver information center (the blue display at the bottom of the tachometer) operates off of the fuel level sender, and can be used to get an educated guess of the fuel level. Gotta know the car enough to know what distance readings to expect.
Eric another informative video. Does United radio repair individual customer products or just business sent in items to be repaired? ❤️
www.unitedradio.com/consumer-electronics/customer-services/
gm claimed it wasn't them making cheap senders. it is the ethanol in the gas here in the northeast ive seen it mainly in the c and k trucks. the hvac head has those tiny solder in bulbs
Was up bud I have a 2000 7.3 and I’m have problems with the manifold bolts that go to the up pipe to the turbo try almost everything
You should’ve checked the fuses. I had this problem. It had a short and I traced it from the fuse.
I had an 05 Impala that the gauge cluster went went wonky on. Had the stepper motors replaced. GM was real cheap with those
Meat Nuggets! Awesome.
GM bashing again, at least they don't shoot spark plugs out of the motor like missiles :)
Great Video
GM are still shite though.
They're still shit for laying off 14,000 workers, shipping jobs to other countries even though the company is making good profit and taxpayers bailed them out of bankruptcy. There are more Japanese cars built and design in America then there are the big 3.
@@Deviant365 you may want to reconsider looking at your vocabulary of spelling the word shit before you judge GM..at least it's not a chrysler and if definitely not a ford..I've owned plenty of Fords and chryslers..now drive a 1993 suburban and its lasted more than my work truck which is a 2008 dodge ram 2500..
@@aspenqwerty3 Dude, he probably is English as in, from the British Isles and that's how they say shit.
@@johnhpalmer6098 and??
Great video how much was that
I'd love to see how you take the instrument cluster.. and the part of mine that's not working is the green LED multifunction on the lower left side. Sometimes it's scrambled sometimes it's readable you have to tap on it so I think it's probably just a connection that's not good
First 1 to watch drunk well alomost there but ill get there soon great work Mr. O its 3:30 AM where i'm ats.
the nighttime back lighting in my 05 lesabre custom is out in a bunch of random spots in my instrument panel/radio/hvac control. are there bulbs in these that can be replaced? if so, where do i get them?
got involved with a somewhat similar problem on an 05 Buick Century I had.The indicator for gear selection and the milege indicator wouldn't light up and because no milage was indicating the car couldn't pass its inspection and be used on the road. Did some research and found out there are four tiny diodes (poorly connected by what they called soldering,,lousy job of it) Got the diodes from an electrical supply outlet,,changed them out and,,,all good,problem solved. had to remove the cluster to the extent I could lay it down sort of on the steering column to desolder and solder new diodes in.
OOOOPs,,Correction, didn't replace 4 diodes , only replaced the one diode that was indicated in my research ,which was google :)
i predict a whole lot of cluster work will be headed your way!
my cluster did the same thing the only gauge working was the speedo, it was one of the factors as to why the car went to the scrap yard....sigh.
Eric are you videotaping the R&I on the dash
Make for an interesting diagnosis when your still not sure if the fuel sending unit isn't working properly....nice video, Eric....
If the bulbs aren't blown, that generation of HVAC controllers have a few large resisters in them that break their solder connections over time. You will see the heat discoloration around them. Usually simply reflowing the solder on these will bring the display and lights back to life.
Hey there Mr O I figured since your working on this Lesabre and have I’m sure worked on plenty in the past so I figured I’d ask. My lesabre has a hard time starting in this cold weather and takes several cranks to start and was doing this even when it was still warm out but worse in the cold. Any idea what it could be? I’m assuming the ignition coil and plugs are original by looking at them and only having 96k on the car. Do you think the ignition module is toast like in your one Lesabre video?
"Remember, if I can do it you can do it"
Not so, I would destroy everything, and fix nothing LMAO
usandthem...remember, if you can't do it, he can do it! That's how he makes his money!!
Thanks for the United Radio recommendation. Just got my my cluster back from them. They did a great job for a good price!
I have 2004 Buick Lasabre and my gauges will sometimes get out of whack. I can disconnect the battery, cycle the ignition switch to make sure all power is cleared off. Normal when I re-connect the battery it will re-set itself.
I wish I knew what bulbs were behind the ac module, instrument cluster, and radio I got several burned out on our 01 lesabre....... been a good car after sorting things out.
Video coming soon ;)
My sensor went out at 100,000 ish on my 05 Dakota and at that point I bought the whole sending unit fuel pump and all since I was already in there.
whata the name of ya scanner called cuz i want one just like it
Eric missed a perfect opportunity to sway Misses O in to helping him perform the shake test on that car LOL
"it's all a cluster duck Sir". Clint from Heartbreak Ridge.
The cluster in my 70 Satellite is also dead but I can't find the scan tool plug! What to do???
I have a 2004 buick lesabre custom and when I accelerate my fuel gauge goes up to full and stays there. Could it be the cluster or sending unit?
Remember when GM used to make good stuff? Probably only if you have grey hairs on your backside. Lol
No sorry... never knew they did 😏
More Gm junk. These issues I see are typical across their entire line.
The 1962-1967 Chevy Nova was the most practical, dependable car GM made - they even had in mind of the owner doing most of the maintenance themselves when they designed this car model. I had a 1967 that was very dependable-extremely easy to work on and got decent gas mileage (25 mpg). I want one again! No more O2 sensors/catalytic convertors/TPS/MAP sensors/EGR valves/etc/etc/....I would trust a 60's Nova to drive across the country than anything new being sold today. New cars just have way too much electronic crap on them - give me something I can trust....a good ol 6 cyl 1960's Nova!
@@creditdebitcardscostyoumon4588 The classic marketing 101 example of a bad name for Latin American sales tho ("No Go").
@@creditdebitcardscostyoumon4588 I second that. I would go with the 71 Chevelle. I had one and they were the BOMB!
@JD-iu3vip
I have a 2004 Buick LaCrosse that need to check this on. What is the easiest path to get to it without taking the entire dash off?
So where do you send it into?
Is that your New Bosch Scan Tool your using Eric O @ South Main Auto Repair
Antonio Claudio Michael newish he’s had it for some time now
@@weldingjunkie that maybe true but he been using it not stop in last several videos and before a few weeks ago never seen it in any of his videos
Antonio Claudio Michael I know you asked I figured I’d answer that’s all no biggie
@@weldingjunkie not a problem junkie it's all good I didnt know he had it for a long time just never seen him use it till the last 15 or so videos
Antonio Claudio Michael I think since nov or so I could be wrong time goes too fast lol
Hi, my daughter has a 2002 Lesabre and the dealer just replaced the ECM on. Now the gas gauge is stuck but on empty like in this video. I called the dealer and told them what it was doing and they immediately said its probably a bad fuel sensor. Can the same report be ran checking the fuel gauge sensor for an 02 lesabre? what would you recommend I do from here?
My cluster is getting there, think it needs new gears & motors also. Of course, it's a GMC.
On my 2000 Buick LeSabre once the fuel gauge goes down to a reading of half a tank of gas, it then goes back to a full tank reading and stays there until the low fuel light comes on and then the needle drops to empty. At least The low fuel light works and I know then I have about three gallons of gas left.
Had that same thing on my 05. After a year it got to me and a stepper motor off eBay fixed that.
Sometimes the needles get stuck Id try using a magnet and see if you can physically move the needle back to its resting place. Then start it up see if they move.
Thanks for the video. Mind saying what scan tool that was? You should be well compensated every time you use a tool in your vids. Maybe you should talk to the “Boss” (Mrs. O) about being your agent. ha,ha,ha, I am not going to write it here, but, I am confident that you know how other you tubers are “encouraging” manufacturers to compensate them when they use or do a review of their product in their vids. Thanks again!