I have a 2001 Ranger....The other night I was driving home in the dark and notice that the right corner of my dash was out. I think it may be just a single bulb.. I'm not sure how these are put together... The light is just under the battery icon on the dash. The oil pressure (is somewhat lite up) but all other icons are well light no problem. Is there only one bulb on that side of the dash?

If it may only just be bulb.. IS this an easy fix and if so,any one have instructions for me to follow along?

 

Welcome to the forum


There are usually 6 bulbs in the dash.
3 on each of 2 circuits

If just one corner is dim then yes just 1 bulb is out, if 1/2 the dash goes dim then could be a loose wire on the back of the dash.

Bulbs are different by year/model, most replace all 6 of them while dash is out, and you can use different color bulbs for a unique look

 

Is there somewhere I can find instruction on how to take it apart to change the bulb?

 

Yes, Google: 2001 ford ranger instrument cluster removal

Looks to be a few videos and some How-tos with pictures

 

Here is a great video. This guy is real good with Rangers.

 

+1 on that video. Was about to post it, myself. I've used it as instruction plenty of times until I memorized it, and it makes the whole thing a piece of cake. It may seem intimidating, but it's a cakewalk for the Ranger (and expo) really.

 

Thank you TheArcticWolf1911

I saved the video. I have yet to use it. When I open that up I need to realign the shifter indicator, tighten the shifter, install my light switch. As well as replace the lights. So it will take me some time.

Thank you for the 1up.

I also recommend everybody to check those other things while you are in there. Do all at once and not have the need to open it for a long time.

Jim

 

Agreed. The shifter loosening is a common problem, as is the shiftier indicator.

You ought to be able to see both the indicator adjuster and the steering column without undoing that panel.

It's easy if you sit down in an armless chair (if it has a back, angle it away from the door) and lay down in the floor, your rear still seated on the chair. Otherwise it's a real back-breaker. Any cheapie swivel chair ought to suffice. Heck, I use one that we got at a yard sale for 5 bucks!



Something else I'd like to add, it is an awesome idea to replace the bulbs with LEDs, even if you go with white. They'll last longer, shine brighter and consume less power. But, tip: Don't buy them from Ebay or Amazon. They always suck in a spectacular way. Either buy 'em from superbrightleds.com or from walmart or an auto parts store. Although I personally prefer superbrightleds.com, I would imagine that brick and mortar places like those would carry decent quality bulbs.

 

I have had the builbs for some time now. I thought LEDS won't dim? All bright on the inside is not what I'm looking for. I usually dim them when the dash is all lit. Right now they are at full power so I can see things in there. Not a fan of bright lights inside at night. Great idea for LEDs. If I didn't dim I would use them. I thought about tail lights and head lights. I want them as bright as possible. Just bright enough in the cab.
Jim

 

Yeah, LEDs dim. The range you get isn't quite as wide as with incandecents, but they do dim.

It's LED bulbs for your house that you have to watch for. Some are dimmable, some aren't. Not sure why, exactly.

 

Thats cool that they dim. I still want them to dim real low.

The LEDs that dim are variable voltage. That makes sense that car LEDs dim because they are on a nominal 12 volt system. So they will still work if the voltage gets near 14 volts or under 12 volts. Right now I just want to drive it. To cold. I'm still trying to get the fog lights off. Did a bad job mounting them. Need to rethink that project. Right now just remove them. They aren't powered right now. Just need to undo the wire mess. Duct tape. Really Duck tape here in ohio. After I saw that. Thats the only brand I buy. I always said Duck anyhow. Now I can point at the label. Then say Duck. Anyhow. I must remove that from all the wires in the front bumper. I did that so the wires wouldn't move. Now I want them to move out. Any way. Always up against it.
Jim

Jim

 

Easy job can be done in 20 min had to do mine twice.

 

Just lost another section last night. Really need to get the bulbs done now.

Jim

 

Fun fact, majority of the time the Ford ranger dash lights aren't burnt out they have come loose from the plastic housing socket they are in. Pull out a multi meter or DMM the resistance of the bulb should be about 14-15 ohms if it is higher push the bulb back down into the socket and test it again. if it is back down around 14ohms reinstall it on the back of the instrument cluster and bam working light again, no need to buy new bulbs if yours are just loose.

 

ATXRanger512

I wish my lights turned out that way. They were so tight I needed plyers to get them out. Only 1 was not burnt. The rest were silver. I wish I had your luck.

Jim

 

I have a issue with the lower half of the speedo lights not working and ive already changed my dash lights to led bulbs but i saw that its part of the panel on the circuit box that doesn't have the twist remove light to it any ideal on how to fix

 

Fallenone

Welcome to The Ranger Forum. With LED's some have a polarity to them. Try taking them out and plugging them in to the socket in the opposite direction they are in. Then put it back into the board. Some LED's are front firing only. Some are front and side. Some are only side. This could effect your lighting as well.

I don't know how you are going to check this. Maybe a portion of the board is blocked. Not letting all the light go to the spots.

Maybe the LED's aren't lighting in all sockets. Try pulling one and moving it. Then try pulling the LED out of the socket and putting it in another socket. Put that in were you know they work.

If that doesn't do it. I believe you have a problem with the board. Before coming to that conclusion. Swap as many bulbs as you can to see if they work.

Was the bottom always dead? Or did you remove lights that aren't burned out for an improved dash?

Hope to have helped
Jim

 

sorry for the llllllllllllooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnggggg ggggggggggggggggggg time for reply forgot i had this profile on theis site lol lol . the bulbs i removed were already burned out when i did the replacement and i had to pull out and turn around a lot of the leds so i know that they all work and the leds were just straight forward kind of bulbs no side direction to them. thought it would have been part of the dash its self meanig the board but all the bulbs work i could tell from the front its like theres some kind of bulb made into the dash panel it self for the area that's not working i played with it a few times and no luck. it being so long since i posted i just kinda learned to live with it the mazda b3k being my spare ride its not big deal just curious if there was a fix without having to replace the dash its self

 

No idea what this means????
Except a light in the cluster doesn't work, my best guess

Instrument clusters are cheap, if its 1996-2003 Ranger or Mazda
What year B3000?