1994 Suburban swapping to 1999 Suburban dash.

[Tinbanger1979]

So I'm up to my neck in this interior swap. I started out with a 1994 3/4 ton former border patrol vehicle from southern California with all the HD factory upgrades. Then I bought a 1999 Suburban 1500 with a blown trans for just the seats. Then my wife said she likes the 1999 door panels and dash, so got onto it and got the door panels/door glass switched over and about 3/4 of the dash completed. I'm trying to figure out what to do with the cluster? I can either try to wire up the 1999 cluster or modify the 1994 and make it work. The problem with wiring up the 1999 cluster is mine uses the gear indicator that hooks to the steering column with the little clip and wire.

 

[AK49BWL]

I guess swapping the column is out of the question? You're already that deep into it anyway, lol.

The cluster connectors in the dash are fairly similar, and swapping the pins out of it is pretty simple. For the gear selection, you can run a couple wires from your transmission's PN safety switch oh crap, the TBI trucks don't have those. Well. Yeah I got nothing on that lol. If you wanted to switch out the cluster and not worry about the shift indications, I can get you a pin-out of each. In fact...

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Note on the seatbelt indicator - You may have to swap the little warning buzzer box because the polarity on the seat belt bulb changed between the early and later clusters.



One thing I'm not 100% certain of is the output of the VSS buffer module in the early trucks. The later trucks use a 4000 pulse-per-mile input for the speedometer from the PCM, and I may have seen somewhere the earlier trucks with the buffer module might send a 2000 ppm signal?? I need a confirmation on that tho.

 

[Tinbanger1979]

I thought about swapping the column, but wasn't sure if that would solve my shift indicator problem. I like the 94 steering wheel and the steering wheel seems closer to the driver seat. But I could just be crazy also. I have been wiring door panels and the dash for the last 4 days, so starting to loose my mind.

 

[someotherguy]

You could set up the range switch to feed the 99 cluster but you'll need the longer shifter stud in the transmission (1995-up) for it to mount up. I dunno if the other mounts are on the case though for that switch to bolt up. To swap the newer column in you're best off swapping the column support bracket which requires drilling out a few spot welds. It's not a terrible job; I've done it. It's easier when there's nothing in the way, of course..

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Richard

 

[Tinbanger1979]

https://www.intellitronix.com/

Anyone know anything about these guys? They seem about like Dakota digital, but maybe a little more down to earth on there pricing. I'm going to call them after the holiday and see what they have to say. I wonder if I can get a 1999 cluster assembly setup to accept the 1994 plug in the back? They also make a thing to display the transmission gear.

 

[Tinbanger1979]

So I ran into another stumbling block on my dash. The 1994 climate control is way different than the 1999, although my 1994 had the dual climate controls in the roof. I think I figured it out with simply swapping out the motor dampers and wiring harness for the heat/ AC zone contols to match the 1999 climate control.

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