Overhead computer Fix - Easy and it works

[raveer2000]

Thanks for this fix.. I have been driving my 99 for 2 years now and it hasn't worked since I bought the truck.. I pop'd out the overhead and soldered 2 chips that had came completely loose and it turned right on. This is a great fix and very easy.

[shootrmcgee]

Originally Posted by raveer2000

Thanks for this fix.. I have been driving my 99 for 2 years now and it hasn't worked since I bought the truck.. I pop'd out the overhead and soldered 2 chips that had came completely loose and it turned right on. This is a great fix and very easy.

Same here. Drove it for two years came across this thread and it is working like a champ.

[cruizer]

Does the Superchip program play havoc with the overhead console? It doesn't read right after the program install, and the direction (compass) doesn't work at all, unless I return the truck to stock.

[darrenvalente@gmail.com]

That's great info, but as my luck would have it, my chips are tight. I'm wondering if there is something else I can check? Say a fuse or perhaps a electrical test. with the board out, the extreme upper right hand of the display has a dark spot almost like it got really hot. Does anybody Else's look like that?
I see this is an old post, I hope someone gets it.
Thanks, Darren

[darrenvalente@gmail.com]

That's great info, but as my luck would have it, my chips are tight. I'm wondering if there is something else I can check? Say a fuse or perhaps a electrical test. with the board out, the extreme upper right hand of the display has a dark spot almost like it got really hot. Does anybody Else's look like that?
I see this is an old post, I hope someone gets it.
Thanks, Darren

[jbeasts10]

It sounds like the crystal display on yours may be shot.

[elibenson]

(Answering #25 and #26) Actually, they are not crystal, they are CRT. That is they have a hot Cathode emitting a Ray in a Tube full of inert gas. The free electrons from the Cathode find a ground (called an anode) on any point that is supposed to be lit, and cause a phosphorescent material there to glow when you excite them with electrons. The electrons avoid any area that is not grounded, so the rest of the dots are unaffected. Any of those little illuminated dots can illuminate, provided they have a ground. The micro controller on the board knows which ones need to be grounded for the right info to be displayed. The burned spot in the corner is just that, a burning Cathode. It's a really really basic version of what is found in a tube TV. The burned spot is nothing to worry about. It shouldn't cause a problem for it's operation for a long long time. Eventually the Cathode will "burn out" like a light bulb, and you will need a new module.

The advantage to this system is that they glow a pretty green, and they emit their own light, unlike an LCD that has to be back lit or have a light shone on it. My friend just bought a 2009 corvette, and it has an LCD display on his A/C. It looks like crap compared to the all matching green displays on my 2008 King Ranch.

[p-stroke250]

My trip computer just died last week. I pulled it down and out and found that I had one resistor working loose, and the second had completely fallen off. I went to resolder them but the one that had fallen out was missing its conductive backing. So, I used an old TV resistor of the same resistance.

Anyhow its up and running good as new.

[Strokin'NSmokin]

Great Fix... Werked fer me too

[fordmugg]

wish i could fix mine but when i took it off a year ago i didnt see that 2 of the chips were completly off and in the process i lost them so im screwed ......and i dont think thoes chips would be handy to buy by themselfs ....so i need a new one .......and also are they really chips because they look just like a little metal bridge to me