Hi all,

Here's a bit of a tricky one for ya!

So sometime ago I bought a TL clock and fitted it to my TJS2. This was a fair bit of work and because the TJS2 exec loom does not have the right cables for the clock I needed to do alot of excess wiring including finding a constant power source, finding out how to wire up for the dimming function, wiring seperate cables for the oil & charging warning system and of course - wiring up buttons to change the time.

I've ended up replacing my loom with a Verada Ei one for the climate control conversion and now the clock cannot be changed as per the normal way for a Verada Ei - i.e. using the ^ and v buttons while the car is in "ACC" mode. I know this was the same way to adjust the clock in the TL as well. The clock will not respond to any of the Mode and directional buttons when the car is in acc mode - which is a bit frustrating. Disconnecting the battery at 1pm is a not a fun way to adjust the clock!

Anyone have any suggestions on what could be the cause? I know which wires control the time (i.e. hour, minute & reset) so if I have to I could just cut and wire in some buttons. I didn't like this las time around as I could only wire the buttons into the glovebox which wasn't ideal. I'll do it if I have too but I'd prefer the factory way. Could it be the actual mode buttons on the dash surround? Or should I look into getting the Verada Ei clock? (they're a little bit expensive :( )

Appreciate any suggestions! :)

Thanks,
TheKovac

Is the loom a KJ2 loom or a KL loom? Maybe only a KJ2 loom works?

Can you scroll through all the information on the trip computer using the ^ & v buttons? Surely this would rule out the buttons being faulty, just maybe not wired correctly to use with the clock?

Its actually a KJ2 Ei loom. I checked the car it was inserted in. All else functions in the loom work though.

The trip computer can be adjusted with the buttons when the car is on - so it must be the wiring? What is interesting is that the clock works otherwise - it dims when the lights come on, turns off the light when the car is off etc but I just can't adjust it. I remember from my TJS2 clock install that the three wires that control the time need to be connected to a push-button, and then to a grounding point. Maybe I missed a ground wire somewhere along the loom? I only know of one grounding point on the passenger side of the car and this has definetely been connected. That being said I have no connected up my ciggie lighter & my ashtray light so maybe these need to be wired up first?

While on the topic of looms - does anyone know if the Verada KJS2 Ei has the oil, seat belt & charge warning in the clock or in the dash? If its in the dash which wires are these as I'd like to wire them up to some led globes I have and insert them into the spaces in the backing of the clock. I'm not fussed about the seatbelt but the oil & charge lamp I beleive are important.

You need to check the colour of the wires at the oil pump and the alternator. From memory the orange is the oil wire and maybe the yellow is the battery light. You need to be careful using LED's. If the oil light for some reason is flickering (due to low oil or faulty oil pump) with a normal globe, you would not see that with an LED as it is either alight or not.

Is strange as the upper dash loom (in so far as cluster and clock) will work pretty much the same, given that Magna has no clock

Have you tried to adjust it when only switched onto acc, as this is when you are meant to adjust the clock, when you turn onto on position is when the trip comp adjustments are made

Also, what upper dash loom did you use, was it all out of the KJII or did you mix and match

I tried putting just the clock into my TJ2 a couple of months ago.

I am pretty good at wiring (I think anyway:happy:) and the wiring diagrams for that model and the TL require the clock to be wired to the instrument cluster. This is because of the trip computer also being in the instrument cluster.

Now, when I wired it in as per factory, the cluster in the base models (not a Verada one) appear not to have the ability to allow a clock to be adjusted through their internal circuits. You may need a Verada cluster or a TL cluster to make it all work. If you have access to one, try it. They are plug and play for that TJ2 series see if the clock will adjust.

I am keen on this result too. I wired my TJ up so both the original centre display with lights and a clock unit can simply be plugged in, so depending on your outcome, I will know what to do with the my TJ

KJ2 Clusters/Loom should be what you're chasing..

They come with the centre clock.. Changing to blackout in my TF and we couldnt get the clock sorted unless we had the KJ loom

SuFz

Thanks everyone for all the help and responses.

TeeJay: Thanks for the advise with finding the right wire for the warning lights - so the only way I can get the warning lights for these functions would be to go straight to the actual part in the engine bay itself? The factory hole where the wires pass through has been siliconed up by a lpg installer so it'll be a pain to try and get cables through the engine. I might have a go at studying some wiring diagrams. Does anyone know if the factory Verada had these warning lights in the cluster or in the clock? I know the TL's had them in the cluster.

Also TeeJay - I did have led's wired previously and they did actually flicker before the car stalled a few times. I know led's flicker when they don't get enough power but I was under the impression that the globes need more power than led's anyway. Should I look into trying to wire globes instead? With the old TJS2 loom I had to wire the warning lights seperately so I settled for some led globes at jaycar because I could not work out a way to wire the back of the globes as its covered in plastic. Any suggestions?

Mal: I have fully replaced the dash with a KJ Series II Ei loom - i.e. both dash loom and instrument cluster loom. This was done for the climate control conversion. I have tried to adjust the clock using the trip meter buttons while in ACC mode. No change in time whatsoever.

Mcs_Xi: I've successfully modded my previous TJS2 exec loom to run a TL clock and wired up warning lights. Unfortunately I could not get it to work with changing the time as per the factory way. Instead worked out the three wires that are responsible for changing the time and I hooked this up to a three buttons that I mounted in the glove box. This did work flawlessly but obviously isn't the most ideal way to do it.

Sufz: I'm not really keen on replacing the cluster. Doing so would make the car quite hard to sell as few would beleive the car has genuine km's. I'm unlikely to find one around my km's and I'm not paying $250 to get one reprogrammed to match. Its also too costly to buy a cluster when for $5 I can just wire in some buttons. I know it isn't perfect solution but for me its far better than replacing clusters.

Just wondering does anyone think that not having the ciggie lighter & astray light wired up might cause the issue? I haven't got around to wiring this in as I've got diferent plans with the lower end (mounting a gps permanetely). There was a dark green wire with a light green stripe that was cut during the install - this is for stock headunit illumination right?
So it looks like I might need to consider wiring in some buttons instead. I've already got the mounting holes in my glove box anyway.

Thanks everyone for all the help and responses.

Mcs_Xi: I've successfully modded my previous TJS2 exec loom to run a TL clock and wired up warning lights. Unfortunately I could not get it to work with changing the time as per the factory way. Instead worked out the three wires that are responsible for changing the time and I hooked this up to a three buttons that I mounted in the glove box. This did work flawlessly but obviously isn't the most ideal way to do it.
.

The cluster is the key thing preventing the changing of the clock using the facotry method of the speed alarm buttons. If you want it factory, the cluster must be replaced with a Verada blackout one from a KJ2.

The lights are easy. For a TL clock, go and get a TF speed alarm. The lights are cut on a panel on the speed alarm and the clock opening is the same size as the speed alarm in the panel. (The panel is the thing in the clock/speed alarm displays that have the openings and symbols for the battery&volt lights.)

the TF cars have battery and volt lights as well as a fuel light that can be be the seatbelt one. I have done this previously.

The ciggy lighter and ashtray would have no effect on this whatsoever. It is the internal circuitry of the instrument cluster that prevent the clock from being adjusted with speed alarm buttons.

Using a small momentary switch to earth the adjustment wires is all you need. Heaps of other blokes have done the same thing.

Mike

Thanks for the response mcs_xi

In that case I will resort to re-wiring the buttons in the glove box as I did in the past. I'm not replacing my cluster - it is actually illegal and would make my car look very dodgy when I try to sell it.

Re: the warning lights on in the TL clock - I did use a TE speed alarm facia that had the cutouts on the panel for for the warning lights. The issue I have is regarding actually lighting up the warning light. On the wiring diagrams for the clock I cannot seem to see any cable dedicated to the warning light globes. Instead I wired the warning light cables (charge & oil) directly to a led that had its terminals exposed and would fit in the opening on the back of the clock. Is this necessary or are one of the wires in the loom already feeding the warning signal but there is globe that responds to the signal? Or are the missing pins on the plug where they normally would go? I have not had much luck removing/inserting cables in the clock harness without actually breaking the harness :/

Appreciate the help everyone! :)

If you have a TF fascia panel (TE didnt come with a speed alarm), then you have to get the pin locations from the TF plug. There is no online wiring diagram for it trust me.

Easiest way to do this is to visit a wrecker, get the plug, photograph the location and cut the pins out of the TF plug to insert in the same location on the TL clock plug. This is how I did it and it worked just fine.

If you have a KJ2 EI upper dash harness then you shouldnt need to change the oil/volt lights at all!

Mike

I have a set of factory genuine TF/KF manuals here with all the wiring diagrams

One question though, you have the KJ set up but a TL clock (I am a little slow today, did not see that before) and that is what your issue is, pretty sure the set up as you have it will not work full stop

PM VRX_MY02, he has done something like what you have had and had it working in his VRX but aside from that, why not just use the KJII centre display?

If you have a TF fascia panel (TE didnt come with a speed alarm), then you have to get the pin locations from the TF plug. There is no online wiring diagram for it trust me.

Easiest way to do this is to visit a wrecker, get the plug, photograph the location and cut the pins out of the TF plug to insert in the same location on the TL clock plug. This is how I did it and it worked just fine.

If you have a KJ2 EI upper dash harness then you shouldnt need to change the oil/volt lights at all!

Mike

I probably do have a TF speed alarm facia panel then. They look so similar the wreckers I can't tell the difference. Plenty at the wreckers so i'll duck back and have a look at the plug and all its connectors. You mentioned you've done the same - do you remember what colour they were?

Re: your comment regarding having a KJS2 upper dash harness - why would not need to have oil/volt lights? I am using a TL clock and my stock TJS2 cluster - I do not beleive the cluster has the warning light in it so I should have this function in the car. I don't want to find this out the hard way!


I have a set of factory genuine TF/KF manuals here with all the wiring diagrams

One question though, you have the KJ set up but a TL clock (I am a little slow today, did not see that before) and that is what your issue is, pretty sure the set up as you have it will not work full stop

PM VRX_MY02, he has done something like what you have had and had it working in his VRX but aside from that, why not just use the KJII centre display?

I suppose I wouldn't be able to have a look at that manual one night/afternoon?

Yes - correct I do have a TL clock. I used it for when I had the stock TJS2 dash loom. I have reused it again as I have been unable to source a KJS2 centre display. The car I stripped for the KJS2 loom had this missing, you don't sell centre displays, almost none of the wreckers around S.E. melb have KJS2 rada's and Mitsy ask over $70 for the centre display (and thats dealer trade price! - retail is well over $100).

You mentioned that the TL setup will not work at all. I have had the warning lights and the clock being adjustable in the past. For the TJ loom I needed to wire this seperately (seperate push buttons in glovebox & seperately wired globes for warning lights) and the clock did work. I was hoping since I had a loom that worked with a clock that my car would behave the same way as a KJ but I believe it will not due to not having a KJ cluster and maybe also because I do not have a KJ centre display.

Anymore insight into this problem? Thanks so much fella's for all the reponse so far! Really appreciate it!

I probably do have a TF speed alarm facia panel then. They look so similar the wreckers I can't tell the difference. Plenty at the wreckers so i'll duck back and have a look at the plug and all its connectors. You mentioned you've done the same - do you remember what colour they were?

Re: your comment regarding having a KJS2 upper dash harness - why would not need to have oil/volt lights? I am using a TL clock and my stock TJS2 cluster - I do not beleive the cluster has the warning light in it so I should have this function in the car. I don't want to find this out the hard way!



No, I didn't mean do without the lights, I meant, the wiring should be in a KJ2 harness as the KJ2 is the only model to get a clock and the backlights the way you want. So logically the wiring should be already present in the KJ2 centre message display loom.

I don't remember about the wiring colours mate. I don't have a great memory to begin with and the TL clock went into my TE in about 2004 and another into the TJ2 in about 2009. So it'e a while now.

Having said that, just get the plug from a TF with heaps of wiring. The wires for the speed alarm are really really similar to the TL clock anyway - adjustment buttons, power, earth, backlights and then the warning lights. (I think the wires are solid yellow, red and white or brown)

As for it not working, the TL clock will work fine as I have said I have had one fully funtional in my TE (but also I installed the speed alarm buttons - TE doesnt have them), I installed the clock into my TJ and the warning lights functioned as they should, the clock worked just fine - I just couldnt adjust it like the factory with speed alarm switches. So I took the clock out again.