Iam considering the purchase ofa 1997 E350 passenger van. Diesel.
The guages dont work, and the guy says they just stopped working about a month ago, and it has been parked since not long after.
I checked the fuses and it doesnt seem to be the problem.
Has anyone run in to this? Any ideas as to what it might be?

 

I had a somewhat similar problem with my gauge cluster and tried replacing the existing 1997 until with a brand new cluster from a 1998. They will NOT work at all---they need to be a dedicated 1997 if that's your year of production.

My guess is a connection has come loose on the back of the instrument cluster however if all gauges have failed there is something else possibly disconnected or wrong as well. There are three wiring harness connectors on the backside of the gauge cluster which essentially "divides" it into two separate circuits. If one connector is loose some of the gauges won't work but others will.

Accessing these connectors requires removing the trim panel over the gauge cluster. Remove the headlight switch and it's screw on bezel. There are two or three screws holding this trim panel to the dash pad at the very top of the clear plastic mask or lens of the cluster. Once this trim is loose you'll also need to disconnet the Power Point and Ligher plugs then it should be free. There are then 5 screws holding the instrument cluster into the dashboard. The Automatic Transmission Selector needle needs to be removed now.

Once all this is accomplished you can then check the connectors to make certain they've not come loose. It's highly unlikely they have unless this van was in an accident or similar. It's also possible the gauge package has failed and needs to be replaced but I don't think there is an easy test for this condition.

This might not help but I hope it does get you pointed in the right direction.