Trip button doesn't work

[tadpole]

Originally Posted by Mike Dabrowski 2000

Looks like it is a tact switch, which is about $1 to replace, and is different than what I expected. Internally it works the same.

I think Mike is onto something. The circuit boards (as I understand it) for the trip button and for the dash dimmer buttons are the same item. They are interchangeable. You could diagnose the problem by swapping the left for the right and see if your problem is corrected. Replacing one of them is not cheap. I would try the pencil eraser first. Hope this is helpful. The cheapest solution is to just leave it alone unless you like to rip open your dash display yourself. Jim

[Artric]

I just got mine. Wow, great company and fast shipping!

Here's a question: Is there an orientation needed for the button when soldered in? How do I know which side is up, or does it even matter? I see some markings on the underside of the button... will they match up with the stock button for orientation?

[Artric]

Any feedback on my question above? Haven't had a chance to pull it out yet.

[randerson0248]

Originally Posted by Hybrid-Battery-Repair

This may be the reason for the failures. The two pairs of buttons appear to use the same exact circuit board, but nobody complains about their brightness buttons failing.

The quoted post is several months old, but I will comment.

Last night I tried to change the brightness of dash, and it seems my "+" button does not work. The "-" button does work.

[Artric]

Thanks everyone for the info. I was able to fix mine successfully. The unfortunate part is that the SUPER WEAK dash bezel was cracked in the process. Oh well - I'm looking for a replacement on eBay.

Anyway, I ordered the button from DigiKey. I got two because they were so cheap - just incase. After taking everything apart, I attempted to de-solder the switch. No luck. My soldering skills are limited to installing modchips on the surface of boards, not with things that go THROUGH boards.

So I ended up using my dremel to cut off the legs of the button, then cut the legs down of the new button to match. I was able to solder it on with no problems.

At first, I was going to switch it with the dimmer buttons that I barely use, just incase it wasn't that great of a connection. But after trying it out, I found that it was MUCH BETTER than stock! Instead of being mushy, it now has a tactile response! If I wasn't tired and frustrated from other stuff that day, I would have considered replacing other buttons.

Funny part of the story (though not very funny at all to me at the time) is that I tried to remove all four nuts from the steering column without removing the bottom plastic from the steering column. Dumb move. I was able to get three of them no problem, but the fourth ended up getting rounded off, etc. I must have messed with it for 2 hours before I realized I should have taken off that lower cover. So the new nut is on my to-order list from Majestic!

Thanks again for the info - I'm so happy to having working trip meters now! I can see why they get worn out - I'm using them a ton! Although I wouldn't really need to if I hadn't used my trip section portion of the FCD for my first fill up. That wouldn't be a problem if this car didn't get 800+ miles to a tank!

[joecvt]

Originally Posted by randerson0248

The quoted post is several months old, but I will comment.

Last night I tried to change the brightness of dash, and it seems my "+" button does not work. The "-" button does work.

There have been far more complaints about the trip button not working but there are exceptions.....For example, if the previous owner drove the car with the headlights on during the day, the dash brightness would be too dim so the driver may have often used the mode to turn on the dash brightness to daytime level by keeping the + button pushed in until it changes. If this event occurred daily, that button would end up being used more than the trip button. It is a matter of usage and how hard the driver would press down on the button.

When the buttons are new, it only takes light pressure to activate. However, these buttons serve more than one option via a short push and a long push. In short push mode, the driver sees the change right away so they don't push down hard on the button. In long push mode, a driver gets impatient waiting for the change and thinks that he / she has not activated the switch yet and pushes down on the button even harder to make sure. That is when the damage occurs.

A better quality and better tactile feel switch would have been a more appropriate design choice by Honda but with a little more patience, these switches will probably last a lot longer as well.

By the way, when you tested the + and - buttons, since you say the "+" does not work and the "-" did work, how did you get your brightness back to the level that you had before the test?

JoeCVT = Just your average CVT owner

[Delta Flyer]

Originally Posted by Mike Dabrowski 2000

Looks like it is a tact switch, which is about $1 to replace, and is different than what I expected. Internally it works the same.

So it would be getting a replacement switch, then tearing into the dash, removing the old switch, soldering the new switch?

[randerson0248]

Originally Posted by joecvt

By the way, when you tested the + and - buttons, since you say the "+" does not work and the "-" did work, how did you get your brightness back to the level that you had before the test?

JoeCVT = Just your average CVT owner

Sorry for the delayed answer, I just saw your reply.

The brightness is not back to the same level. It is very dim. It is OK for ditch dark, but at dawn or dusk, it is pretty much not visible.

It should bother me more than it does. If I ever run out of other projects, I will fix it.

[mikemo]

Thanks to mdawley4 for the digikey part number for the switches and Ron for the instructions. I replaced all four switches with the new switches. I'm back to having a working trip button and it is much easier to feel when the button is pressed. $5 to digikey (I bought 6 switches just in case) and about an hour of time to do it.

A few things I learned.

1) Before doing anything, disconnect the negative battery terminal. If you short something out you'll be glad you did.

2) Remove the three screws holding the steering column bottom cover on and remove the cover before trying to remove the four nuts that hold the column up.

3) Be careful de-soldering the old switches. Don't damage the traces on the circuit board.

Thanks again guys! Now I can reset my "maintenance" indicator.
Mike M.

[randerson0248]

Originally Posted by Artric

I just got mine. Wow, great company and fast shipping!

Here's a question: Is there an orientation needed for the button when soldered in? How do I know which side is up, or does it even matter? I see some markings on the underside of the button... will they match up with the stock button for orientation?

Artric, what was the answer to the orientation question?

I ordered 4 buttons, I may replace all four.

Now my trip button is not working; in addition to the + button not working.