Where in Bangkok

[DannyS1951]

What areas in Bangkok are good for finding used car parts? I have a 12 year old Nissan Frontier pickup and the instrument cluster is not working. Reading American Nissan Frontier customers online it seems this is a common fault. I have tried some of the DIY fixes, but it's still bad. I have been quoted 12,000 baht for installing a new one, but I can swap it out myself. I would rather buy a cheaper used one if they are available.

 

Thanks

Danny

[DannyS1951]

Answering my own question for anyone looking for used car parts. On Bangna-Trat Road coming from the Chonburi direction on the frontage road just after the King Kaeo Road intersection (the major junction before you get to the ring road and Mega Mall Bangna and IKEA intersection), there is a soi on the left full of used car and truck engines and gearboxes. If you drive up this soi and over the khlong at its end the area opens up into multiple sois with hundreds of shops selling car parts, again mainly engines and gearboxes. You have dodge fork lift trucks moving the stuff around. I couldn't find my Nissan instrument cluster there unfortunately.

 

Now for anyone caught like me with a failed instrument cluster on a Nissan Frontier pickup, and possibly Big M pickups which have a similar looking instrument panel, the DIY fix talked about on the US Nissan forums is good. The re-soldering of joints needs to be done on the small circuit board behind the speedometer which isn't easy to get to. Also it will need someone like my friend with a fine tipped soldering iron and a steady hand as the pin spacing on the microcontroller which runs the instruments is tight. Still it saved me 12,000 baht getting a new instrument cluster installed. there cwasn't anything too obviously wrong with the joints, but one did look slightly suspect.

 

Once you have the instrument cluster out (look on youtube on how to do this) the speedometer is held to the cluster by 4 screws and the main ribbon cable connector of the blue flexible instrument cluster circuit board. With the speedo and its circuit board out you have access to the back of the board to solder.