Ok I have question, I would like to eliminate and replace the current insturment cluster on my 1996 F250 with a 351W and E40D. I would like to build my own pannel with Auto Meter gauges and put in place of the orignal.
My question is will the truck function as normal without the orignal cluster installed or will it mess with the computer ect...


Richard

 

The gauges of your truck just monitor sensors so them not being there isn't a big deal at all.

The speedometer/odometer however is a key component because it's between the speed sensor on the rear axle and the computer and serves two purposes - it adjusts the pulses in to compensate for tire diameter changes, and it also cleans up the signal for the computer. So if you just yank it out the computer won't know how fast your truck is going anymore.

What I did was remove the PSOM module off the back of the speedometer, and attach it to the firewall behind the dash using stick-on standoffs, and leave the harness plugged into the PSOM module. It's just a little circuit board. Then, everything works and I was able to put other clusters into my truck. Like this one, from a windstar:



Installing dakota digital or autometer speedometer/odometer is then just the matter of tapping the speed output BETWEEN the computer and the PSOM module, where the signal is nice and clean. If you don't want to hack up your cluster to get at the PSOM module, you can buy yourself a used cluster at the local junkyard and hack that one up, so you can return the truck to stock if you want at some point down the road. Because you only need the PSOM module, you can use any cluster from 92-96 F150-F350 without a hitch, or the PSOM module from a 90-95 windstar/aerostar, and any 89-94 full size ford (Crown Vic, Marquis, Town Car) as the modules are the same. The rest of the clusters are radically different but you only need the PSOM module.