A novel climate control display fix.

[Bushbasher]

I had a few minutes to spare today and put my mind to a solution for my climate control display. I've been having ongoing issues with my CCs' after I bought a replacement for my original failed one . The replacement was one of the "fixed" ones you can get off of Ebay although I bought it from a third party out of a wreck and only discovered it was a modded one when it also failed and I pulled it apart. Anyhoo, I have been hunting high and low for conductive membrane tape with no luck and have approached many an electronics repairer only to be told it can't be re-glued and to bin it. But being the stubborn pr!ck that I am I wasn't going to give up that easily and tried to think outside the box for a solution. To this end, I noticed that when I pressed on the tape where it joined the circuit board with my fingers I could get the various elements to on the display to light up so all I needed to do was find a way to press the full length of the tape to the board all at the same time and make it stay there and the display should work. So this is what I came up with -




The smallest bulldog clips I could find and a thin strip of swede leather (or inner tube rubber would work too I reacon, I just happened to have a scrap of leather). Line up the tape over the contacts, wrap the leather over the tape to protect it and clip the whole lot down then remove the wire levers -



I plugged it in and tested it and it worked perfectly so I chopped out the fascia and back cover to allow for the clips then put the whole unit back together and slipped it back into place for a perfectly working climate control display. Who knows how long it will last, maybe indefinitely maybe not but at worst only a clip can come adrift which can be easily and quickly reattached, all for less than $5. It would seem to me that original untouched units that are starting to fade can also benefit from this method by just attaching clips as above to re-enforce the join without the expense of replacing or reconditioning them.
Only time will tell how long it will last but, hey, it didn't cost me anything to do and it's working perfectly.

The one in the pics is the second unit I just removed from the car and did up for the pics. The tape is completely stuffed as it was the "fixed" one and there's not enough tape left to fold over the board but you get the idea of what the other one is like.

Cheers
Bushbasher

[K_Man]

This. Is. Awesome!

Thats real macguyver stuff there, I love it! Might give it a go in coming weeks, my climate is starting to go poo.

[mik]

very impressive mate, old school engineuity ..... i like it !

[InfernoSR]

So all in all, its the actual conductive tape thats the issue?! and yet people want a couple of hundred to repair the units... might look into doing a repair rather similar...

[FGII-XR6]

if you use the paper holders that you use for binding small bundles of paper , you use a small hand tool to put them on ( the ones that look like bulldog clips without the handles) these things you could do this without having to cut the housing as they are quite low profile

[Bushbasher]

These are a great idea and much better than my bulldog clips. If I'd known of their existence I definitely would have tried them out. The method is sound though so maybe the next person to try this out can use them and tell us how they went.


Bushbasher

[martos]

Good post Bushbasher.I might try this myself.Mine only fails when car is parked in hot sun,once it's parked in garage for a night or few days it works fine again.

[Bushbasher]

Well it's been a week now and I thought I'd show everyone that the climate control is still working 100%. In fact it's working better than it ever has. Sorry for the quality of the pic but it was taken with my old phone.



Bushbasher

[Silver']

I'd always assumed that the boards needed reflowing due to dry solder joins. I've a spare faulty TE50 unit that I'll have a look at myself now - cheers!

[auIILTD]

Well done Bushy. Great thread.

Cheers
Stu

[KR1STO]

Yeah top thread..!
Might try something similar myself..

Cheers

[Vincenzo]

Bushbasher - you ability for thinking outside the square (lateral thinking) is amazing to say the least - brilliant.

Cheers Vincenzo

[auIILTD]

Originally Posted by Vincenzo

Bushbasher - you ability for thinking outside the square (lateral thinking) is amazing to say the least - brilliant.

Cheers Vincenzo

Yeah, Bushy is living up to his username isn't he. Very creative, very Aussie!

Stu

[Polyal]

SO how is this going mate?

I might try it on the weekend before resorting to the ~$150 repair job by a "pro".

Anyone else confirm the procedure?

[Bushbasher]

I can tell you that 2 months on my CC is still working perfectly and if you don't disturb the circuit tape and it's still stuck down to the board then it should be an idiot proof job as long as you're not too heavy handed. All you will need to do is fold the tape back over the board and put something over it to protect the tape then attach the clips. Those Nalclips look like they'll do the job well. Just make sure you put the clips hard up against each other so ALL the tape in pressed down. Any gap might leave a weak spot with no pressure. Once the clips are on plug it back in to test it and if all is good just reassemble and refit the CC, jobs right.


Bushbasher

[Bushbasher]

Just so you know. The circuit tape is glued to the circuit board and all the "pro" will do is cut the tape back, peel back the protective clear coat and re-glue the tape down. The one that I got hold of wasn't a particularly tidy job either and it also failed after a time. I don't know how old the the repair was by the time I got it but it failed on me after less than 18 months.

Bushbasher

[Polyal]

OK so I have the unit out, Ill have a crack at the tape tonight and report back.

I bought those clips from Officeworks so hopefully all goes to plan. I did snap on of the clips on the clock surround though...

[Polyal]

Right so those clips are not that easy to use unless you are an octopus.

If its a matter of getting the tape to stay down then I am thinking glue gun?

Is this issue getting the membrane to sit flush against the front and back sections where the circuit board are?

[Bushbasher]

Whatever you do don't use a glue gun, or superglue or any other glue you might care to think of. Been there, done that. I tried that and all it will do is stop the CC from working because the glue isn't conductive. If your tape is still stuck down all you need to do is press the tape down to the board to create a good contact. Take the guts of the unit out to the car and plug it in and press the tape down with your fingers where it's glued to the back of the board and watch the LED segments come alive as you press. What you are trying to do in press the whole tape down together. DON"T un-stick the tape from the board unless you absolutely have to and only then if the segments don't come back with the fix. That'll mean the tape filaments have died from fatigue. If that's the case as it was with mine, remove the tape and trim it back at the point where it was glued down,(approx. 6mm of tape). Then start picking at a corner till you can get the clear coat to lift then peel it back to expose some fresh tape. Don't try to glue it down, it doesn't work. Very carefully line up the filaments with the connectors on the board, (this must be exact), and clip it down to the board. There should still be enough tape to fold it over the board and attach the clips.

You DID buy the little tool to spread those clips didn't you? If you didn't you're never going to get them to spread.

In short, what I've described is exactly what I did as I had to shorten my tape and after trying various glues I had LOTS of fun trying to get the board connectors and the tape clean of glues without killing either one which is why I'm saying to not try to glue it cos you'll just make it worse.

Sorry about the surround clip but maybe you can superglue it back together before you put it back on. And if all else fails, take comfort in knowing mine has been broken since I've had it and it's never moved once sat in place and you wouldn't know there's anything wrong with it.

Bushbasher

[blownv8au]

Bushbasher is the speed alert and tripmeter part of that circuit. I bought a te50 today and the tripmeter side is stuffed. If it is I'll use your tips and have a crack tomorrow.

[Silver']

Originally Posted by blownv8au

Bushbasher is the speed alert and tripmeter part of that circuit. I bought a te50 today and the tripmeter side is stuffed. If it is I'll use your tips and have a crack tomorrow.

Congrat's! It would be great if you could add or update it in the club registry.

[Bushbasher]

Yup, it's all in one. Once you take the fascia off it's just 1 screen, have a look at the pics, 1 tape, 1 screen and 2 plugs coming into the unit. I'd guess that one is the A/C controls and the other is the trip/fuel usage/speed alert controls.

Bushbasher

[blownv8au]

Cool, i was looking on my phone before and couldn't see it real well. I really need to go and get some glasses.
Thanks I'll see if it's repairable tomorrow.

[Polyal]

Bushy, all good I havent got the glue gun to it but naturally I didnt buy the tool to open those clips. Ill see if I can swing by tonight and grab it.

When you say make it connect..Im assuming you are talking about the vertical sections on the lip of the board? as there is slack in the top (horizontal) section??

Hope that makes sense.

[Bushbasher]

Originally Posted by Polyal

Bushy, all good I havent got the glue gun to it but naturally I didnt buy the tool to open those clips. Ill see if I can swing by tonight and grab it.

When you say make it connect..Im assuming you are talking about the vertical sections on the lip of the board? as there is slack in the top (horizontal) section??

Hope that makes sense.

What I'm talking about is the copper tabs circled below



your tape should still be stuck down to that. Plug it in to the car (without the casing) and press on there and you'll press the circuit tape back down onto those tabs and the LED elements should start coming back to life. What you are going to do is fold the loose tape over the edge of the board then put the clips over the edge of the board effectively pressing the tape to the tabs. Just make sure you put the clips hard up against each other so you don't miss any connections. Just find something to insulate the tape from the clips so you don't risk damaging it, I used a thin piece of chamois leather that you wipe the car down with. with all the clips in place you should have a solid connection across the full tape. Plug it back in and test it and if it's all good put it back together and reinstall it. Mine is still 100% after 3 weeks now with just the bulldog clips. If any of the elements don't come back you may have broken tape. If that's the case you'll have to heat the tape (with a not too hot iron) and release the tape then cut it back, peel back some of the clear coat and then clip it back down like I described before. If after all that you still can't get it going give me a couple of weeks and I should have a working one available to exchange.

Cheers
Bushbasher

[Uncle_Ken]

Well done, might need this in the future.
UK

[Polyal]

yeap...so you only have to do the backside?

Also after zooming in have you got slack/excess on the bottom edge of the clips on the backside? When you say have the loose tape over the edge you mean the back edge, noty towards the center?..sorry :/

Even if this doesnt work for me thankyou!..Im off to get that tool for the clips in 10mins

[Bushbasher]

Ok, After buying another Sportsman I now have a second climate control, but of coarse the LED display was flaky and had a mind of it's own and was coming and going as the mood took it. So I pulled it from the car today and saw that it's a virgin unit so I went and got some Nalclips and the fitting tool and set about fixing the display. After a little modification to get the tool to fit over the circuit board the way I wanted it to I had the display sorted out in no time using some inner tube rubber from an old bicycle as insulation. As soon as I find the camera I'll put up some pics but in the mean time, if anyone needs a working unit I'll be happy to exchange it for your faded unit, so long as yours is fixable, for no more than the cost of the postage and any donation to the cause that you'd like to contribute as I still have to buy the clips and replacement bulbs so all the display and buttons light up correctly. If anyone's interested just PM me and we'll work something out.


Cheers
Bushbasher

[mif73]

Hey guys, i had a couple of segments intermittently die so i pulled my mdc apart and fixed it with some foam tape and offcuts of pvc "c" channel extrusion to clamp over the ribbon cable and pvc.

It works well and does not require mods to the mdc case.

I did drill a hole on the back cover to allow replacement of the clock globe at a later date though.(funny its the only globe without an access hole in the back of the mdc).

I can supply pics if anyone is interested.
Cheers.

Ps: thanks go to bushbasher for the motivation to fix it.

[Polyal]

Yes pics please. Mine is still 85%