What would cause gas gauge and speedometer to quit working on your '95 Plymouth Neon?

Answer 1

sounds like you instrument cluster is acting up. You can either try to get one out of the junk yard or fix the one you have. It's really simple if you've got the right tools and have patients. First you need a Philips head screwdriver, and a soldering iron you may need extra solder but not always. Take the instrument cluster out. Not that hard. Just put your hands on the steering wheel at 10 and 2 like in drivers ed. Now slide them off the wheel towards the little lip of the dash that shades the cluster. Now push up, not real hard no need to punch the windshield there are just some spring loaded clips that hold the front of the dash. Once the clips are un done slide the dash forward to get the mounting tabs out of the slots at the back and set it aside. Now if you look at the cluster the are either 1 or 2 screws per side holding it in. Just undo those (a screw driver with a magnetic tips helps here) and pull the cluster out the plug will come undone on their own. If you look at the back of the cluster the 2 black plugs on the bottom are what is giving you trouble. Sometimes the solder joints there from the factory go bad (happened to 3 neons in the family so far). T get where you need to fix you need to get to the back of the printed circuit board (green board). take off the black crad board potective cover. Then the rest of the screws in the back are for the board. If I remember right there is also one 3 wire plug(clear plug grey wires) to undo for the speedo module itself. Turn board over and with a hot soldering iron touch each end of the pins that where in those 2 plugs. You may need some more solder for some of them but use VERY little as you don't want to make contact with any other terminals. I also looked over the rest of the terminals on the other cars. On mine I did the same steps to the spingloaded terminals that slide around the gauge posts, use you best judgment. That's it. It reads alot harder than it actually is. By the 3rd time I could do it faster than what I just typed here. Too bad you don't live in Vegas I could do it for you in about 10 20 minutes. Seriously it's not that much harder than putting in a car stereo. Just take your time.

Additional info. - Thanks to Vegas person! I was going to spend $30. for a used one at the salvage yard, but I tried your re-solder the pins fix and it worked great!!! I did not add any solder, just touched each pin with a hot soldering iron to reflow the original solder.

Re- Glad to help. Reads a little scary and when you flip the cluster around you might have second thoughts but it's really simple. Trust me. It's hard to mess up a board like that.