Just installed a Dakota Digital in my 76 FJ40

[shmukster]

Just finished up the install of a Dakota Digital instrument cluster in my 76 FJ40. Went well. Am very happy with it- gauges work nicely and the lighting is awesome. I gained a clock, and now have a functional tach and set of gauges in the cluster rather than aftermarket units on and under the dash. The install was straightforward as their installation booklet is pretty comprehensive. I mounted the control unit in my glovebox and the SW1 and SW2 switches in the dash witin easy reach of the driver. Picked up the turn signal and high beam indicator lights from the original cluster pigtail, and tied into the parking light circuit for the lighting. I was lucky enough to have a spare gas tank float unit here and tied that into the conrol box temprarily to calibrate the fuel gauge. Worked well. The speedometer and odometer were easy to calibrate. Took about twelve hours or so to get everything in, wired and calibrated. I might not be the fastest guy in the world but stayed at it pretty well and tried to make everything look neat. Overall I think it is a great improvement for my 40 and would recommend it to anyone.

 

[Downey]

PM'ed you not the glove box mounting panel.

 

[AZMoonshadow]

Any photos? I've thought about this track for some time...

 

[bj40green]

Pictures please.

 

[UZJ40]

You'll be extremely happy with it. I have about 600 miles on mine. I have a few of the extension modules as well, so I can monitor dual batter voltage, air tank pressure, and control my electric fan. I had a couple issues (not the units fault) with my install, and Dakota Digital bent over backwards to make sure everything was correct for me. If anyone else is interested, I highly recommend calling Scott Johnson at Dakota.... very nice and knowledgeable salesman.

 

[Sethro60]

pics please

 

[captcruiser]

Thinking of pulling the trigger on one ,any other opinions ? Pics please

 

[TCSTARK]

I pulled the trigger on one and added multiple add-on modules to my stash. I am having it installed by Trollhole's (and a ton of other work) on my BJ42. I like the fact that the speedo cable is going to be replaced with a GPS module. I will report on my findings when I get it all buttoned up.

 

[shmukster]

Here's some pictures. Thw two switches you need to install with the Dakota unit are to the right of the cluster, to the right of the (currently) vacant hole. These are the SW1 and SW2 switches. I picked red for the lighting- I'm told blue is the mnost popular. I like the red a lot. The processor just sits in my glove box for now, I'm waiting for a shelf unit for the glovebox from Jim. I'll tuck the processor in neatly when i get the shelf installed.

FYI, on my 76 FJ40 here are the color wires I tapped into at the round connector on the rear of the original cluster:
left hand turn green/black
right hand turn green/yellow
high beam red/yellow
Those are the only ones I used from the original harness. I ran new wires from my fuel tank sending unti (power and ground), and tied the cluster lighting into the parking light wiring. Ran a fused hot wire from the battery positive terminal and ran a fused wire from an auxiliary fusebox I have for the switched power. I also ran a dedicated ground wire for the processor.
My install uses the speedometer sender that comes with the Dakota cluster. It's not a GPS unit it's a unit that counts revolutions and sends them to the processor. It's easy to calibrate the speedometer and it doesn't matter what size tires or what gear ratio your truck has.

 

[Snowdogyyz]

Looks great! I love mine. I put the two switches in my radio delete plate. I'd rather drill holes in that than in my dash.

 

[fhawk5]

What are the switches for ??

 

[shmukster]

The switches are used to toggle through the various menus and do the setups. Also used for functions like setting the clock and zeroing any resettable readings (trip odometer for example).

 

[pipernd]

looks awesome Gary!

 

[Gotta be Geared]

Hi all, I don't want to hi jack this thread but I am a huge fan of the Dakota digital gauges and that is why I chose to be a dealer for them If anyone is interested in these please message me for special MUD pricing. I would be happy to help!

Thanks!
Bryan
Gotta be Geared Off Road

 

[mudterrain75]

Hi, I am interested in Dakota Digital VHX for FJ40, please PM me if you have any contacts that I can reach out such as skype or hangout. I am a big fan of Dakota Digital but still look for further details about the installation.

 

[David70FJ40]

Nothing against Dakota Digital gauges but I went a different route. I used a mounting plate from BTB Prod and purchased Auto Meter gauges, specifically a GPS speedometer. I don't have a speedometer cable, I didn't have to adapt the wiring, there was no calibration needed and the GPS speedometer is exact no matter what size tires I have. I checked it against the GPS I have in my iPhone and another GPS and all three agree. I don't have a clock but I have all the other amenities like GPS coordinates, max speed, time, trip meter and several other functions I can't remember. All in all I believe the set up I have was much cheaper than the Dakota Digital gauges I have priced. (The photo below was made prior to installation and shows a different speedometer which was changed to the GPS speedometer.)

 

[NCFJ]

I am looking at that same setup for an upcoming project David, just looking at a quad gauge and small tach instead. Looks good.

 

[David70FJ40]

Again, my apologies for my additions to the thread that are off topic.

Here is the finished instrument cluster.

 

[mudterrain75]

Again, my apologies for my additions to the thread that are off topic.

Here is the finished instrument cluster.
View attachment 1184223

Is this installed in your FJ40?

 

[David70FJ40]

Yes. I had the 40 rewired by a local hot rod and restoration shop and they didn't have any problem in getting the gauges to work.