97 Caravan, Shift (Gear) Indicator Problem

[mcetmc]

I am going to buy a 97 Caravan. When I move the shift lever to neutral, the dash display does not show an "N" or an "N" with a box around it.

Also, sometimes all the shift positions (P, R, N, D, 3, L) light and all have boxes around them.

Is the above caused by a mis-adjusted or bad switch connected to the shift lever?

Does all the positions lighting suggest a problem with the dashboard PC board or circuitry?

How do I get to it to adjust it or replace it?

I assume that the above will not affect the transmission or any other part of the van. True?

[RickMN]

When all the gears have boxes around them, it an indication of power backfeed due to a poor ground. Start by cleaning battery terminals with special attention to the negative terminal. Also clean batt neg to body, batt neg to engine, engine to firewall.

[mcetmc]

I have bought the Caravan and have not cleaned the ground path but I have measured the voltage drop from the battery negative terminal to the engine manifold withe the engine idling. The drop was 0.070 V. That seems to suggest a good ground circuit.

Comment?

[RickMN]

You just spent more time getting out your meter and measuring the voltage drop than it would have taken to clean the terminals and the grounds. Trust me on this one, it's always the first step in diagnosing these trouble prone instrument clusters. I've seen more of these gremlins disappear after cleaning "positively clean" terminals than you would believe. If you're still having problems, then you can start looking for more expensive causes. On the other hand, if you really like tearing into the dash panel.....well, please try my suggestion first.

[bklauk]

I have a 96 Grand Caravan 3.3L w/180k miles. All gear positions have boxes around them. High RPMs (no thrid or fourth gears). Keyless entry lock no longer activates horn (horn still works through steering wheel). I will try loose connections or dirty battery terminals/grounds. If they are clean, what's the next step? Thanks.