96 850 Clock Backlight

[Tsquare]

The backlight on the clock in the instrument cluster has gone out on my 96 850. (This is a base model 850 and it does not have the temp gauge). I have pulled the cover beneath the steering wheel and cannot reach the back of the gauges - my hands are too big for the tight spaces.

Any ideas on changing out the backlight? Can it be changed or does the clock need to be replaced? If it needs to be replaced can I upgrade it to the clock/temp display? TIA


This has been a great car (92K miles - serviced regularly) but the last year has it has shown many of the issues on the board:
Transmission solenoid error code - living on borrowed time...
Engine mount - easy fix that cured the bad vibes
ABS light coming on - it is only time before it will not reset and I will need to get it replaced

[matthew1]

Mine went out -- then one day it was back. Since then I've learned it's the connection to that bulb, and a medium thump on the base of the instrument dash will 'fix' it -- for a time .

If that's not it, I believe the Chilton or Haynes manual details how to remove the dash -- that's what you must do to get to those.

[Tsquared]

Thumping the dash worked. I will add it to the list of things that I am waiting to go out.

My 850 is almost 8 years old with 93K miles on it. Besides normal maintenance I have replaced:
Driver side winshield wiper arm - stripped spline on the arm
Driver side window molding - started pealing under warranty and they covered it.
Rear sway bar - snaped in the middle, dealership said they had never seen that before...
Upper Motor Mount - bad vibes
Wiper fluid valve - cheap fix

I have had the Transmission solenoid problem that has been given additional life from flushing the system. I also have the ABS light coming on about every 2K miles - it has been clearing itself and staying off (and working) until it comes on again.

I am hoping to get another 80K out of this ride before I pass it along in about 6 years. I expect to replace the Transmission, ABS Box, and the AC system in the next year or two. I like the way the car handles, its relativly good power band, and the gas milage that it gets. For an 8 year old car it still looks pretty good and I havn't had a car payment in 4 years.