If you don’t own a 1995 Jeep Grand Cherokee or you don’t have a problem with its Vehicle Information Center (VIC) then you should skip this blog post as it won’t be relevant for you.
I couldn’t find a procedure for removing the VIC on this model Jeep, so I decided to document my experience in the hope it might be useful to another ‘95 Jeep owner.
The door jamb switch tested okay, so it is unfortunately a VIC problem. I decided to pull the VIC out of the dashboard and attempt a repair. I thought I might find some cracked solder joints, especially on the connector pins. I figured if I couldn’t repair it, I could at least leave it disconnected so it wasn’t beeping at me. Then I could take my time while looking for a non-dealer replacement unit that might be available for a reasonable price. But first I had to get the VIC out of the dashboard.
Below is a photo of the Jeep’s center console. At the top is the radio, CD player, and 5 band equalizer. Below that are air vents. Below the vents are knobs for controlling air flow and temperature. Then below that is the VIC. The bezel around the VIC extends all the way to the top of the dashboard.
Step 1. Disconnect the cable to the negative battery terminal.
Step 2. Turn the ignition key and move the shift lever all the way back away from the dashboard so that you have room to pull out the bezel and then the VIC.
Step 3: Open the ashtray and remove it by depressing the tab at the top center of the ash tray. Remove the two screws behind the ash tray. Then remove two screws from the bezel above the VIC and below the air-flow knobs. Last, remove two screws located at the top of the bezel.
Step 4. Grab the bottom of the bezel and pull it out. There are wires attached so it will only come out so far. The wires attach to two light bulbs and the cigarette lighter. The ash tray bulb can be pulled out of its holder. The cigarette lighter bulb must be turned a bit before being pulled out. The connector to the cigarette lighter is held by two plastic latches. A small, flat-blade screwdriver can be used to spring each latch and then the connector can be pulled off. The bezel is now ready to be removed.
Step 5. Grasp each side of the bottom half of the bezel and pull it out firmly. You may have to twist or wiggle the bezel. There are two clips on the upper half (near the vents) which hold the bezel to the dashboard, but pulling firmly with a little twisting will release the bezel. Swing the bottom of the bezel out and upward and wiggle the bezel to release it at the top. Set the bezel aside.
Step 6: Remove 3 screws holding the VIC into the dashboard. The VIC can then be pulled out.
A thick, foam-covered cable with two connectors plugs into the rear of the VIC. The connector releases are on the bottom side of the two connectors.
Position the VIC face down on a flat surface. Photo below shows the rear of the VIC after removing the rear half of the case, which snaps into the front half and can be removed with the help of a pair of screwdrivers.
The VIC has two printed circuit boards connected by individual wires. After pulling off the top board and positioning it component side down, both boards can be inspected for cracked solder joints. Look especially at the solder connections on the two connectors.
7 comments:
Wayne - Excellent info and photos for the VIC probs. Thank you for taking the time to document your experience. Did you ever correct the original problem?
My 1995 VIC screen went blank. While the screen used to display text, it was always incorrect because I never reset the VIC after battery changed. I just ignored the blinking incorrect info. Now I have no info. I will miss the 4x4 indicator but since the shifter is in 4x4 FULL TIME, (can also tell because of the steering / handling) I suppose I should be thankful there's no beeping or blinking text. Also very helpful, I read at the "Just answer.Jeep" site about the 2 power sources to the VIC as follows:
The vehicle information center has 2 power sources. One is a direct battery feed from the batter and this is fused by fuse#8 in the inside fuse box. Use a test light or volt meter to test this fuse and at the back if the VIC, this is a red wire with a white tracer so check for power there as well.
The other power source is switched power and this comes from fuse #19 also in the inside fuse box. At the back of the VIC it is a yellow wire with a dark green tracer.
I'm hoping to drive my Jeep as is, no display on the VIC but not removing it or disconnecting the wire plugs at the rear of the VIC. Do you see any problem with me ignoring the blank VIC? I have the Jeep back into 2W drive with no handling problems.
Many thanks - Jim
Jim - I was unable to locate the VIC problem, so I re-installed the VIC but left it disconnected. As far as I know, the VIC is only an information display. Leaving it disconnected and dark will not harm anything nor affect the way the Jeep operates.
When warm weather returns I plan to pull the VIC out again and use an ohm-meter to find the connector wire that goes to the door jamb switch. I'll connect the ohm-meter to the wire at the switch, then test each pin on the connector. That should tell me which pin might be the problem. I can re-solder that pin and inspect that part of the board.
The VIC is a convenience. It's nice to know when a light bulb burns out, and which bulb it is, or when coolant is low, etc. But it's not a necessity. If I can't fix it, I'll leave it disconnected and dark.
Thanks for the feedback.
-Wayne
Its 4 years later, but I wanted you to know you just saved me SO much time. I too have the "door ajar", but mine truly is ajar! The hinges are bent, so while it latches securely it's just enough to let it think its a catastrophe.
I don't think I really -need- the VIC. I'll disconnect it this weekend. It will stop the chiming and distracting blinking every time I got a bump in the road!
I have a VIC problem with the rear tailights error.
Replaced all the light bulbs and have tried removing the LOM with same results.
Error about the rear tail-lights starts with a beeping sound and then displays a message the rear tail lights have a fault.
Error is there with or with out the LOM installed.
When I first purchased the 95 ZJ the VIC wasn't working, no display. After removing it from the dash and re-installing it works, but has the same taillights error.
Someone told me that when it works intermittently indicates that some of the solder joints on the circuit board need to be re-soldered.
Current the VIC is working but displaying a false error about the taillights. I'm wondering if this error is stored somewhere in memory either in the VIC or other module such as the PCM or BCM? Once cleared perhaps the error would go away.
It's possible I suppose there is a bad ground somewhere, however all the taillight are working just fine.
Ok I have a 1996 jeep Grand Chrokee lorado. So it’s a tad different than a 95 and a lot harder to get out. I kept getting “engine coolant sensor bad” and beeping all the time where it used to be quite and informative when it told me good stuff to know. I saw a video on how to fix it as the bone heads used aluminum solder for the joint not lead solder. Well it just quit working all together and wakes up at inappropriate times and scares my wife with misinformation. I got one from a junk yard but it did not work at all so no joy. I plan on pulling it out one more time before I go get a GCM it’s another so fancy version of the VIC but it’s way more reliable. I’ll let you know how both work out. Btw the VIC does not have any memory chips so it only remembers time and date and miles as long as there is power to the VIC. Just so you know.
Hi.
Please, I have a broken VIC display from a 1995 Jeep Cherokee. I'm trying to fix it. I found 1 transistor fired. Can't you tell me what type of transistor is? What is written on it?
Pictured in a red circle
https://ibb.co/dtVCVDF
Does anyone know of a part to fill the void of the VIC if I permanently remove it? I don’t care to have it and could use a space to hold something else.
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