# 93 Altima problem, looking for advice



## Amitla93 (Oct 24, 2005)

Hello out there. My name is Butch and I live in southern Maryland and have a
slight problem ( ! ! ! ) with a 1993 Altima, GLE equipped with the "heads up" display that reisters the speed of the vehicle on the windshield. When the car
is idling, in Park, with the emergency brake on and of course sitting perfectly still; the speedometer registers between 35 and 45 miles per hour. This appears on the heads up windshield display, as well as on the analog speedometer in the dashboard gauge cluster. Also, the speedometer mileage
is increasing as if the car were really doing the 35 or so mph. After numerous calls and e-mails to Nissan USA, and various Nissan dealership repair departments..................I am still dumbfounded ! Does anyone out there know the following. Can a "regular gauge cluster" from a salvage yard (without the "heads up" display) be installed in place of the present "heads up" type
of gauge cluster ? I am not worried about the mileage being different because the current mileage on the odometer does not accurately reflect the true mileage anyhow. I'd really appreciate any help, cause Nissan isn't offering any !


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## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

Amitla93 said:


> Hello out there. My name is Butch and I live in southern Maryland and have a
> slight problem ( ! ! ! ) with a 1993 Altima, GLE equipped with the "heads up" display that reisters the speed of the vehicle on the windshield. When the car
> is idling, in Park, with the emergency brake on and of course sitting perfectly still; the speedometer registers between 35 and 45 miles per hour. This appears on the heads up windshield display, as well as on the analog speedometer in the dashboard gauge cluster. Also, the speedometer mileage
> is increasing as if the car were really doing the 35 or so mph. After numerous calls and e-mails to Nissan USA, and various Nissan dealership repair departments..................I am still dumbfounded ! Does anyone out there know the following. Can a "regular gauge cluster" from a salvage yard (without the "heads up" display) be installed in place of the present "heads up" type
> of gauge cluster ? I am not worried about the mileage being different because the current mileage on the odometer does not accurately reflect the true mileage anyhow. I'd really appreciate any help, cause Nissan isn't offering any !


im thinking this has something to do with the Vehicle Speed Sensor. its a sensor on th rear of the tranny and does just that - senses vehicle speed. start easy by removing the harness and cleaning it out. what does the speedo say when the vehicle is off?


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## Amitla93 (Oct 24, 2005)

*Thank you*

This forum thing is brand new to me. Hope this gets back to you ! Thanks for the reply to my question, someone else had mntioned that part as well. Just can't seem to pinpoint its exact location. Thanks again, Butch.


AsleepAltima said:


> im thinking this has something to do with the Vehicle Speed Sensor. its a sensor on th rear of the tranny and does just that - senses vehicle speed. start easy by removing the harness and cleaning it out. what does the speedo say when the vehicle is off?


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## jserrano (Oct 27, 2004)

*Heads Up Display (HUD) Info*

I will try to answer your question since I have some experience on this. That is, I retrofitted a HUD off a '93 automatic into my '94 SE 5-speed.

First off, the HUD and non-HUD clusters are NOT electrically interchangeable into the stock wiring. There are a number of differences, such as,

1. A non-HUD cluster has four (4) plugs with a total pinout count from 1 to 44.
2. A HUD cluster has six (6) plugs with a total pinout count from 1 to 64.
3. The VSS signal on a non-HUD enters the speedometer  directly on pins 3 and 19. It exits the speedometer on pin 5 for the ECU and cruise control.
4. The VSS signal enters the HUD control module  on pins 55 and 61. It exits the HUD control module on pin 58 for the ECU and cruise control.
5. On a non-HUD cluster the speedometer is directly signaled by the VSS.
6. On a HUD cluster the speedometer is signaled directly by the HUD control module.
7. There are also a number of electrical conflicts in the instrument cluster between an automatic (AT) and manual transmission (MT). For instance, pin 3 is used by the VSS in a MT but the same pin services the OverDrive (OD) light in an AT.

The only way to make you car accept a standard cluster is to rework some electrical wiring around. That takes time and patience with the help of the electrical wiring diagram.

HUD are expensive both new and used. I picked mine up as a used HUD cluster on eBay. This item is a hot sell on eBay but try your luck there.

If all else fails, I can do the repair work for you for about $100 if you'd like. PM me and I'll give you details on that. If you prefer an established business then Mr. Whizard (http://www.mrwhizard.com/services2.cfm) is one of the leading repair depots and are charging about $189 to repair the Altima HUD. I haven't used their service but I've never heard anything bad from them either.

Finally, as mentioned, make sure the VSS is working properly as described in the service manual. It is unlikely the problem since it would have given you a Check Engine light. The great mayority of speedometer problems are instrument cluster related.

Good luck.


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