Hi, I've just joined this forum specifically after finding this thread so this is my first post here. Firstly, a massive thanks to everyone who contributes their knowledge to these forums. I've previously owned a classic Alfa and I know first hand how valuable the collective knowledge of enthusiasts can be. I've now got a '91 8v with a Motometer cluster that has exactly the symptoms you describe and i'm desperate to get it working again! Would you be able to give me a little more info on the transistor that potentially needs to be replaced? Have you got full functionality back to warning lamps and MFA read-outs with this repair? Huge thanks again, Joe
Hi Joe, welcome to the forum! I've been meaning to update this post for a while now with more details and just haven't got round to it although that should hopefully change in the next day or two! As for the fix, yes it restores full functionality! On the 3 boards I've repaired the only thing that I needed to change was that single transistor. I have however replaced all of the transistors with modern equivalents that are either rated for the same current or higher. I also replaced the 3 capacitors that are present on the board with new Panasonic low ESR "Gold" capacitors as a precaution and once I get the parts I will be replacing the 5-volt regulator too. I'll try and provide all of the part numbers and locations when I update the post, however I would also be happy to repair/fully refurbish your board if you liked! Also for anyone else I now how a surplus of working MotoMeter boards/parts so if anyone needs anything feel free to message me and I'll see what I can do!
Hello! I've got a '90 MK2 GTI with the exact same problem! I've taken the PCB out and it is indeed exactly the same as described. Now I want to replace the transistor (the one with 'B1' written on it) but I can't manage to find a correct one for sale. Do you have an article number or some more specs to help me find one? I am so thankful for this post!! Thank you!
Hi Nate. This is my MFA board i have taken apart. The car it is from is a 1989 Jetta GT 16v with 260km/h clock and 8k tach. Issue is that it only display time right now and nothing on the MFA functions. My tach and everything else work like normal except for the water level light will flicker quite often. Do you think it is also one my transistor is burn out. And my Motometer board looks different from the one you have shown. Here is what my board look like.
hi, the pictures dont show up unfortunately, you can upload to the forum direct once you get a few more posts. if the clocks have 2 plugs on the bottom they are CE1 type and different to the ones shown hin this thread, the fix is probably the same its just figure out where the faulty component is on the earlier board type. if they're single plug clocks compare your board to the one I've shown in my earlier posts, if it looks the same then what you have isa VDO board which would need a different kind of fix heres the board in a set of pre-90 16v clocks I have in the 1st pic can see a couple capacitors bottom right which I guess one or both of which could go faulty the same way the later type does
Thanks, this is the same type of board that I have. At least u give me a clue to where to start. Funny is that this board is also used on a single plug CE2 clock.
the ce1 and ce2 boards are not the same, just look similar. most obvious change is that on ce1 clocks the oil pressure warning circuit is on a separate L shaped board clipped to the speedometer but on ce2 its all built into the main board
Hi Ward, certainly, I keep meaning to update this thread but I haven't got round to it yet! I replace the 1B part is BC846 NPN transistor. You'd need a decent soldering iron with some small tips and lot of flux helps massively with this repair, due to the size of the components. I've just done a full refurb on a set for @J0e90 so if you'd don't feel confident doing it yourself or you want any more information just drop me a PM or email nathan@biltechnik.uk!
@rubjonny were those pictures in your last post were of a Motometer CE1 board? Mitchell, If you do have the CE1 instruments, I'd be very interested in taking a look at them! The design shown in John's pictures is far more "discreet" than the CE2 variants, using far fewer components too, so it should be fairly easy to develop a fix for them. You can PM me or email nathan@biltechnik.uk if the PM's don't work.
yep the pic above is a main board from a set of late CE1 16v clocks theres another L shaped board clipped to the speedometer which contains all the logic for the oil pressure warning circuit, the rev counter motor is off on its own and coolant level warning is taken care of by a relay mounted above the fusebox as well so a little less logic needed on the main board for that too
Mine got fixed too! I replaced the transistor and everything works fine now Thanks a lot for the help, this way i can keep my car as original as possible and everything working fine! Thank you!
Hey guys, recently i bought a mk2 90' and the tacho did not work, after a small research i found out that my mfa doesnt work too. But in recent days they did work for some small amount of time and i am thinking that maybe its some bad ground or anything else that isnt that hard to fix.
Intense stuff! May I ask a quick question while on the subject? My LCD display is really faint when viewed from driving position. If I move forward and look down on the display the digits appear much bolder and as they should be. Not the end of the world but if there’s a fix I think it’s worth a go?
Antons: if the clock and warning lights work fine then the ignition, live and earths are all ok. so it does seem like you have an internal cluster issue if it intermittently works. you can try pulling the fuse for 30 seconds, htis can sometimes fix a ropey mfa/rev counter Rustbuster: sounds like the lcd may be going faulty, or its had a new screen at some point which isnt great quality. could be the diffuser screen on the lcd I suppose
As rubjonny says, try the fuse fix but if that doesn't work, and they're MotorMeter, then 99.9% you have a dry joint issue internally. The screens do fade out somewhat overtime, and unfortunately there's no way to adjust the contrast to make them brighter again. If the digits look bolder it is possible that the screen might have started to leak, does it look alright in the dark with the lights on?
