SVT gauge cluster color change

[Malakai]

I know there's a few of us who hate the "baby-poop green" color that the gauges light up with at night; conversely we DO like the silvery/white color they are in the daytime.

In my last SVT, I bought speedhut gauges and that fixed my color issue, but they're just overlays, and so you can see a "ring" around the dial with the original color coming through. Not cool. Secondary to that is that the Speedhut gauges aren't "svt". Just not the same.

On to my point: when I was mucking around with the speedhut gauges, I pulled the SVT gauges off to look at them, and they are basically the same thing... EL glow and all. I was wondering if we'd be able to get that EL material off the back of the SVT gauges and replace it with a different color (instead of the 'green'). I haven't checked it again since then, it may be white EL ... and the color has to be sanded off as well.

Has anyone looked at the gauges more closely? If this could be done, I know a bunch of us would be satisfied.

[Sponsor]

[Toolman00]

I'll take the "baby-poop green" because it's different. I couldn't imagine it being another color unless if the background was black and the numbers lit up a different color.

[davlafont]

Do you mean these Speedhut guages? They're just overlays?



source: http://www.speedhut.com/el_detail.as...=1#design_area

I was considering these for next spring. You can get the SVT logo in either "location" for $8. I would put the log on the tach and also add Piranha on the speedo (they do lettering for free). Black faces with red lettering was my thought, but not if the baby poop is poking its way through...

[davlafont]

Come to think of it, there's gotta be a way of disconnecting the original gauge lighting so that it doesn't glow underneath, no?

[Malakai]

Originally Posted by davlafont

Come to think of it, there's gotta be a way of disconnecting the original gauge lighting so that it doesn't glow underneath, no?

Yes, sorta... if you do, then the odometer doesn't light up (the same way if I were to use the dimmer switch to turn it 'off'.)

the speedhut Gauges were powered directly via another dimmer, so if I cut the power to the stock gauges, the needles went dark (which is really impossible to gauge speed) and so did the odometer.

[Malakai]

yessir.

here's some pics of two sets (mine and a friend's) i installed:
http://www.deevlo.com/photoalbum/dis...?album=7&pos=2
http://www.deevlo.com/photoalbum/dis...?album=7&pos=9

You can kinda see the ring around the black base of the needles, where you can see through to the stock gauges.

Here's some at night:

The ring "looks" blue but I haven't turned my actual lights on, I was just testing the overlays to make sure they were wired: http://www.deevlo.com/photoalbum/dis...?album=7&pos=5
http://www.deevlo.com/photoalbum/dis...?album=7&pos=4

Here's with the stock lights on underneath:
http://www.deevlo.com/photoalbum/dis...album=7&pos=12
http://www.deevlo.com/photoalbum/dis...album=7&pos=13

You can see the green a bit more. It's not THAT bad, but I'm REALLY picky.

What's worse is when those blue gauges are in, and the odometer is still green.... I'd rather it all be the same color...

I have a pic somewhere after I changed the odometer to blue.... but I can't find it. I bought some electroluminescent (EL) film/tape/stuff... and with a little soldering/sanding, I made it blue for my SVT... and red for a friend's '05 ZX3 (SVTs are WAY easier, because the gauges are already EL panels).

[HaveBlue83]

if you disconnect the AUX gauges the needles will still glow but the green will be gone ;)

just a hint...i have aftermarket AUX gauges so that would work for me!



OLD THREAD RESURRECTED!!!!!

[Pyro515]

If you sand down the color on the display glass and change out the led's you can change the color to whatever you want. That's what I'm doing on mine

[Gobliz]

Why not learn to remove and sauter some new LEDs? or is it not that simple?

[Pyro515]

Originally Posted by Gobliz

Why not learn to remove and sauter some new LEDs? or is it not that simple?

It's not hard as long as you know a little about soddering