Hi everyone.
New to forum.
My daughter recently bought my Stilo 04 reg 1.4 a/c dynamic 5 dr 62k miles from me. Since sept to dec it was only used a few times and in dec had flat bat'ry, boyfried charged it with +/- terminals still connected.car started but had no dash/instruments at at. Got RAC out to check and after 1hr of various checks said it must be faulty component? bought new bat'ry but still no dash.weather has been really bad snow etc.could this be the cause, poor contacts behind cluster or on main connectors. have read some relaited threads on this but as car in Bristol and I'm near Portsmouth I cant check it over. Fuses look to be ok. Recently near front lights not working. Would appreciate any help to pass on as need to get car on the road soon.
Thanks

ken (pippin)

Got RAC out to check and after 1hr of various checks said it must be faulty component? Ha! Not too commital then

but still no dash.weather has been really bad snow etc.could this be the cause, poor contacts behind cluster
Could well be, I'd recheck the fuses F37 and F53 on body computer


I'd also check the cluster earth point C15 - that's shown here next to the bonnet lifter near the battery


After that it's an instrument cluster out and contact cleaner spray the two cluster connectors contacts at the rear

Thanks for advice, I've passed it on to my daughter's boyfriend.he's checked fuses near bat'ry(are there any more) and cleaned earth.also removed fuse box nr.bat'ry to check brown multi pin plug connectors,two are a bit corroded and will get some proper cleaner and do it w/end.If this does'nt work, how does he remove instr. cluster as so far taken off lower steering shroud but not sure what to do next as does'nt want to force it, also worried about setting off airbag?Is it wise to disconnect bat'ry? dash is showing 'checking ' only.
N/s lights work now due to loose connector.:slayer:
Would appreciate any advice by w/end. hope to get cat back on road soon as not happy to drive without instruments

The fuses you need to check are F37 and F53 as posted by Decks above. They are located in a fuse box behind the drop down panel in front of the driver's right knee (for RHD cars).

Be sure to get electrical contact cleaner, not WD40 to clean the contacts of the connectors.

I'm having the same problem in my 03 1.2 Stilo, if you found out what was wrong or how to fix it could you share.
Thanks alot

when you don't mind driving some days without your cluster (it doesn't work anyway so no big difference) you might send it to me (the Netherlands) - i repair lots of these clusters for a fair price - further info by pm please otherwise this would be seen as advertising....
Repair + resend time same or next day after arrival.

Same problem with me but was tole that the dead cluster would stop alternator charging???

Hi, Welcome to the FF.

Please don't make duplicate posts in different threads. I have deleted your other post.

Justwinny said:

Same problem with me but was tole that the dead cluster would stop alternator charging???

Click to expand...

This would be true for older cars when the alternator got an initial excitation current via the dashboard warning light filament.

The Stilo charge warning light is controlled by a CAN (Control Area Network) signal from the Body Computer. The alternator should continue to work if only the instrument cluster is dead.
.

Sorry about the duplicate post. I'm new to this. Could anyone shed any light as to why my voltage regulator wire would not be sending a charge signal to my alternator? Alternator was said to be fine by greenflag but he said it's not getting a signal to start charging. Are there any fuses for this wire? Any advice would be much appreciated.P's just replaced battery but fault continues

What actual problem(s) do you have with the car?

Is the battery going flat?, or is the instrument cluster not working?, or both?

How was the alternator tested to be "fine", if it didn't "start charging"?
.

Winny, I agree with Draven.

It's possible you're being mislead by the person telling you not charging and dead instrument cluster is the connected.

Ignore the problems with the instrument cluster for the minute and lets think about the battery and charging.

Do you know how old the battery is? Like is it new, a couple of years old, possibly the original battery? Batteries will fail after a while (typically a number of years). Cold weather tends to kill off old and tired batteries.

Check the battery voltage.

With the car off the battery should read at minimum 12.6v. If it's less than that then it needs charging at the very least, so you can start your diagnostics with a good strong battery.

Then, with the engine running you should see somewhere around 14v across the battery if it's got a good charging voltage. If it doesn't then you need to investigate the alternator.

Places like halfords will have a battery tester that can tell you if the battery is failed or not.

Also check the battery connections and terminals. Over time they corrode and get greasy / dirty. A poor connection can cause a multitude of issues so clean these carefully with some wire wool. Also look out for corroded terminals on any of the big thick wires going to and from the battery - these are the wires that carry the large loads. Consider cleaning as necessary. Don't go cleaning stuff with the battery connected....

It wouldnt be uncommon for your alternator to have failed.

The dash panels are also known to have their problems and it's unlikely to be connected to the charging issue but if it's struggling for power it will cause other issues, so get the power problem sorted out and see if you get any life back in the dash panel before investigating further.

90% of the time, the dash issue is caused by crap on the circuit board. I opened up my dead cluster and cleaned all the tiny green holes (front and back). When reconnected it was perfect. No need to spend money or send it to another country lol