Car: 1988 convertible 5-speed

Problem:
So the warning light panel works fine, but the clock flickers on/dim/bright/off and doesnt keep the time more than a week or so.. I've checked the back solder points and I can't see anything wrong with it. The OEM part is discontinued and no luck at any local scrap yards for a good part. Any suggestions?
Also, whenever I apply the brakes or put a lot of load on the electrical system (eg. lights up, wipers, windows going up or down, all at the same time) the instrument panel lights dim, and the revs drop a little bit. I've replaced the battery and the alternator (AVR test said they were both bad anyways), but the problem did not get fixed. I noticed all the aftermarket sites sell grounding kits, so I assume grounding is a common problem in FC's? To me, flickering/ dimming lights when load is applied to an electrical system seems like a grounding short or something. Any suggestions?

Thanks, visit my page for pics.. interior pics coming soon..

 

Resolder the idiot light cluster. It's a common problem and I believe it is covered in the FAQ. Just pull it out and resolder all of the larger solder joints.

Don't waste your time on grounding kits: http://www.aaroncake.net/rx-7/grounding.htm

And make sure the BAC valve is functioning and not clogged up.

 

so if anyone reading this with their own problems is interested in an update:
I resoldered pretty much the entire light unit including the smaller circuit board that the clock is soldered to but the clock light was still going out randomly while driving, it didn't seem to be resetting itself though which is a +1 from the state it was in before. I found that pressing in the connector from the wiring harness itself actually stopped the flickering and kept the light constant so I cleaned the connectors both male and female with some spray connector-cleaner and it seems to be working fine now. +2!! If I don't post to this thread again it means the problem is solved!!

 

You don't need to resolder the whole cluster!!! Only the internal solders of the connector need resoldering and everything will work fine. You will identify them cause they look huge when compared to the rest.

 

lol... whats done is done my friend.. i was reading some other posts on a similar thread and some people said resolder the whole thing.. obviously i didnt resolder any of the resistors or the light bulb pathways.. just anything that looked important to the clock unit lol

 

 

Resoldering the whole thing is the way I normally go and is less likely to cause problems in the future. I know because the first time I did this, it took three removals and reinstalls because I only soldered the big joints.

 

Oh well... Worked for me so far, so I assumed that should do the trick.