FL1, 2006, Td4 Speedo cluster replacement. Indicated mileage?

Having read lots of Threads concerning the FL1 speedo cluster, learning from some the recorded mileage is held in the cluster's circuit-board as well as within the ECU. Some also suggest that if the original cluster is replaced the vehicle will adopt & show the higher of the recorded mileage when compared between the new & the ECU.

I've also learned that a few have just (bravely?) gone ahead and replaced the cluster with a compatable unit, declaring the system worked fine and the indicated recorded mileage was from the new/second-hand cluster.

My question is this... Has anyone fitted a replacement cluster, taking a note of the original's and newest shown mileage from the replacement unit, before refitting the original cluster - noting if the indicated mileage had returned to the original reading shown before the replacement - or retaining the same figure from the replaced unit?

I would be very thankful for anyone & anything that can answer my question.

When I replaced a cluster (facelift), the old one showed about 113k, and the new one 115k. So the final reading was 115k, but whether this was because the dash had final say, or because the ECU and dash decide on the higher figure, I couldn’t tell.

The mileage is only stored in one location on a freelander 1 - the instrument pack

Okay, here we go...
I dismantled my replacement speedometer yesterday, including removing the indicating needles. I learned a lot.
To begin with, the needles can be easily removed. They are not glued or heavily stuck onto their spindles. But they do need to be removed in a verticle motion, directly away from the bezel. They have slim stems that can be easily broken or damaged.
I read that someone on LandyZone suggested using a tea-spoon to lever them off. That was a brilliant idea, except I used two - one on each side to maintain a straight lift and equal pressure. They come of the stem with a click.
I took photographs of the cluster before I did anything, by the way. For reference.

There are no Controlling Springs, as some have thought. The needles can be moved by hand without them trying to return to the zero, empty or Red on the guages. They do in fact act like minature rotary-
actuators, with needles instead of arms.


And when the ignition is switched off, a power supply must drive them to their power down position, it seems. I'm tempted to have the ignition ON, with some indications showing something, then to disconnect the vehicle battery to see what they do.
As I say, there are no springs to move or drive the needles.

Now, here's another thing. I have inspected the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) thoroughly and cannot locate any Eprom chip. The chips I did locate, ones that might have been an Eprom, are , 10393, A82C250 & a DS1307N
There is no Eprom anywhere on that board, as far as I can tell.

I took some photo's that may be of some help to others. I'll attach them as Thumbnails.
The cluster is back together and my next step is to slave it into position.
Watch this space.

PopRivet said:

As I say, there are no springs to move or drive the needles.

Click to expand...

All the needles are moved by stepper motors, the motors being driven from the Ipack ECU. When I plug my diagnostic in to access the Ipack, the needles do a full sweep of the dial as a kind of acknowledgement of the connection.

Nodge68 said:

All the needles are moved by stepper motors, the motors being driven from the Ipack ECU. When I plug my diagnostic in to access the Ipack, the needles do a full sweep of the dial as a kind of acknowledgement of the connection.

Click to expand...

Very polite those Rover electrical engineers.

guineafowl21 said:

When I replaced a cluster (facelift), the old one showed about 113k, and the new one 115k. So the final reading was 115k, but whether this was because the dash had final say, or because the ECU and dash decide on the higher figure, I couldn’t tell.

Click to expand...

I find what you wrote very interesting. Was your cluster your replaced a Facelift model, like the one in the photo’s? Or might it be the earlier model?

Well, it seems there is a lot of knowledge out there concerning the speedo cluster on the Freelander 1, but of course there are two very different & distinguishable types.
It would really assist me if I can have the following questions answered.

If I were to replace a Facelift type cluster with another, would the indicated LCD Mileage indicate the replacement’s or would it still show the original vehicle’s recorded mileage? And if a brand-new cluster was fitted would it indicate Zero (0) miles?

Mine was facelift/facelift swap.

It sounds like the cluster would just display its own mileage.

guineafowl21 said:

Mine was facelift/facelift swap.

It sounds like the cluster would just display its own mileage.

Click to expand...

I recently read about a guy who replaced his Freelander 1's KPH speedo with a MPH unit. He stated the indications were all over the place and had to get a garage to fix it. So I'm still a bit hesitant.

Also, how did the stored mileages compare with the new one to the removed unit?

Can you power up a display on the bench? This would show whether pack holds mileage? Dunno if it needs other modules for inputs. I have a spare pre facelift display unit, on ebay at the moment. Will look at circuitry when I get 10 mins.

I do not know which pin connects to what? And if I tried with an incorrect voltage/polarity I could some damage. If anyone might know which pins feed the LCD mileage display though, that would be helpful. Or a schematic?

Dunno if this helps. Just pulled the Engine management unit and speedo shows same mileage. Then pulled out speedo and it needs both plugs in to display the mileage. Pre facelift. Can't find circuit other than the indication lamps.

andyfreelandy said:

Dunno if this helps. Just pulled the Engine management unit and speedo shows same mileage. Then pulled out speedo and it needs both plugs in to display the mileage. Pre facelift. Can't find circuit other than the indication lamps.

Click to expand...

Thanks Andy. Every bit of info helps to complete an overall picture. At the moment it seems to be a bit of a Jig-Saw.

When a new pack is fitted the display shows zero miles. The value can be transferred over from the old pack via diagnostics and it can only be written with a higher value then the one stored.

On a second hand pack the value displayed will be whatever is stored in that pack and not the vehicles original mileage.

Hope that helps

td4van said:

When a new pack is fitted the display shows zero miles. The value can be transferred over from the old pack via diagnostics and it can only be written with a higher value then the one stored.

On a second hand pack the value displayed will be whatever is stored in that pack and not the vehicles original mileage.

Hope that helps

Click to expand...

Hi Andy, and thanks for that information. And 'YES', that helps a lot. It actually answers all my questions.
Have a nice day.

In addition to all the previous Threads and replies, I'm aware of a piece of kit known as the OBDPROG MT001 that can correct an indicated mileage on a speedo. There are other models too, but so far have not found any that can do the FL1. This model (MT001) cannot do the Freelander 1, sadly, so does anyone else know of a similar Mileage Correction Tool that does? I'm planning to replace my speedo with a unit that has MPH & KPH on the clock face, and would prefer it to show the correct mileage - if possible.

Key question is...did you manage to adjust mileage to reflect true engine mileage?