AE86 Trivia: AE86 and AE85 Gauge clusters

Earlier I featured the AE86 GT-Apex Digi Dash and obviously, it raises many AE86 enthusiasts’ hearts. This time I’d like to feature the normal analogue AE86 gauge cluster versus the AE85 gauge cluster.

In case you feel you have a deja vu by now: you are completely right about that! I did post the AE86 gauge clusters earlier but reposted it once again with additional information.

AE86 gauge clusters

If you ever owned an AE86 (or watched too much Initial D) these clusters should be quite familiar. There are two types of clusters for the AE86: left-hand drive (LHD) and right-hand drive (RHD). The layout of these clusters has been mirrored: on the LHD the tachometer is on the left side of the cluster, while on the RHD that spot is taken by the speedometer. Also, the warning lights, fuel, water temperature and oil pressure gauges all have been mirrored.

JDM AE86 gauge clusters

the GT Apex cluster and the GT / GT-V cluster. They appear to be identical, however, they do have subtle differences.

AE86 GT Apex (2-door and 3-door)

Zenki (early) GT Apex cluster

The zenki (early) AE86 GT Apex gauge cluster features the speedometer on the left and the tachometer on the right. As the Japanese government mandated speedometers to be limited to 180 km/h since the 1970s, the speedometer has a different scale than all export models. The gauge cluster features a fuel meter on next to the speedometer and oil pressure and water temperature gauges next to the tachometer. On the left and right we also find several warning lights, but I’ll get into that later. In the middle between the speedometer and tachometer, we find the two indicator lamps. Below the tachometer, we find the high-beam indicator light.

On the speedometer and tachometer scales we see intermediate steps about 2/3rds width of the full steps. Also the speedometer features the scale in yellow/orange on speeds above 100 km/h.

Kouki (late) GT Apex cluster

When the facelift arrived in May 1985, also the gauge cluster was revised. In general, the layout remained the same. The major difference was the design of the faceplate and the needles. The needles changed from amber/yellow needles to white needles. The faceplate now featured small thin white vertical lines, the intermediate steps are now full width and the speedometer lacked the orange colouring of the speed above 100 km/h.

Warning lights on the GT Apex cluster

Earlier, I wrote I would get into the various warning lights on these clusters. I hope the picture above of the zenki and kouki cluster warning lights is clear enough. In principle, these warning lights are the same between de zenki and kouki clusters. On the left side, next to the speedometer, from top to bottom, we find the Fuel low, door-open, catalytic converter and handbrake warning lights. Most of these will be clear enough. The door-open indicator was a feature that was only available on the GT Apex, SR and SE trim levels.

On the right side, next to the tachometer, from top to bottom, we find the lights, check engine, rear lights and charge warning lights. The lights and rear lights warning lights are basically broken headlights and tail lights warning lights. They basically engage when the voltage on these circuits drops due to a broken lamp. If these light up and your lights are working fine, most probably your alternator needs replacement.

Chime

A hidden feature within the AE86 gauge cluster is the mechanism to make the speed chime make its dinging sound. Within the speedometer, two contacts meet at 103 km/h. This will send 12 volts intermittently to the speed chime, causing it to make the typical dinging sound. Or King-kong as the Japanese refer to it.

Digital or analogue gauge cluster?

The digital gauge cluster was a GT Apex-only option. The GT Apex analogue clusters were installed by default on the zenki two-door GT Apex, while the digital one was standard on the zenki three-door GT Apex. On the kouki two-door and three-door GT Apex cars, the analogue clusters became standard. If a GT Apex car featured an analogue cluster, the digital gauge cluster was a factory option.

Partnumbers GT Apex gauge clusters

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A230 (zenki) and 83110-1A231 (kouki)
Identification on gauge cluster: 83010-1A740 (zenki) and 83010-1A741 (kouki)

AE86 GT (2-door) and GT-V (3-door)

Zenki (early) GT / GT-V cluster

The GT (2-door) and GT-V (3-door) trim levels featured similar gauge clusters to the GT Apex. The biggest difference is the absence of three warning lights, but more about that later. Everything else remained the same, including the mechanism to activate the speed chime.

Kouki (late) GT / GT-V cluster

Similar to the GT Apex, the GT / GT-V gauge clusters also switched to the white-striped design after the facelift in May 1985.

Warning lights on the GT / GT-V clusters

As the GT and GT-V lacked the door-open switches in the doors, the door-open warning light is absent on the left side of the cluster. On the right side, the broken headlight and tail-light warning lights are also missing. Swapping over a GT Apex cluster should work without a problem as this warning light only lights up if the voltage drops on those circuits and wiring is included in the loom of the AE86.

Partnumbers of the GT / GT-V clusters

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A240 (zenki) and 83110-1A241 (kouki)
Identification on gauge cluster: 83010-1A730 (zenki) and 83010-1A731 (kouki)

Black Limited gauge cluster

A very special variant is this Black Limited gauge cluster:

It is the orange version of the zenki gauge cluster. Remember that the Black Limited actually is a kouki Sprinter Trueno with black/orange elements, so it is a bit surprising to see its gauge cluster being a zenki item. On the other hand, I would not be charmed by a cluster with vertical orange stripes… ;)

Speedometer partnumber: 83110-1A680

AUDM Sprinter SR AE86 gauge cluster

Even though the Australian Toyota Corolla Sprinter SR features the non-twin cam 4A-C engine, it remains an AE86. However, the trim level of this car is much closer to the Japanese AE85 SR than the AE86 GT trim level.

Toyota only sold the Corolla Sprinter SR (as they were called) until 1985, so Australian AE86-es only received the zenki dash. The tacho’s redline is at 6K as the factory 4A-C engine can’t go much beyond that. Also, compared to the Japanese gauge clusters the speedometer doesn’t feature the speed scale in orange above 100 km/h.

Warning lights on the Australian AE86 gauge cluster

The warning lights from top to bottom on the left side are: fuel low, door-open , parking brake and brake fluid low warning lights. On the right side, we can only see the charging warning light.

Speedometer partsnumber: 83110-1A300
Identification on gauge cluster: 83010-1A800

Big thanks to Fez for sharing the picture and another big thanks to Chris Johnston for sharing the warning lights!

UKDM Corolla GT AE86 gauge cluster

The layout of the United Kingdom gauge cluster is the same as the Japanese and Australian.

Zenki (early) UKDM Corolla GT AE86 gauge cluster

I wasn’t able to find a full photo of the UK gauge cluster, so this brochure picture will replace it. We can see the scale of the speedometer is very different from the Australian and Japanese speedometers as it features a dual scale. The speedometer in miles per hour goes up to 150mph and it features a second scale in kilometres per hour up to 240km/h. The very same cluster is available in km/h only for the Irish market, but only 44 of those were made. Unfortunately, I haven’t found a picture of that cluster (yet)…

The dual scale is still mandatory in the UK as cars still need to display their speed in miles per hour. Lockwood offers a kouki AE86 gauge cluster face plate in miles per hour to convert JDM gauge clusters to comply with the UK rules.

Kouki (late) UKDM Corolla GT AE86 gauge cluster

Similar to the zenki UK cluster, I wasn’t able to find a full picture of the kouki UK cluster. This one is the best and clearest one I could find. However, the changes were only the addition of white vertical lines and the white needles.

Warning lights on the UK and Irish AE86 gauge clusters

Similar to the Australian cluster, it’s missing the rear brake light warning light. In addition to that, the catalytic converter warning light is also missing as the 4A-GE engine for the UK market was delivered without one.

Partnumbers of the UK and Irish AE86 gauge clusters

Speedometer partsnumbers: 83110-1A280 (zenki) and 83110-1A281 (kouki) for km/h clusters. 83110-1A290 (zenki) and 83110-1A291 for mph + km/h clusters.

EUDM Corolla GT AE86 gauge cluster

The EUDM gauge cluster is an LHD cluster and was used in all European countries including Switzerland. It differs from the JDM cluster as it features a mirrored layout and speedometer that reaches 240 km/h.

Zenki (early) EUDM Corolla GT AE86 gauge cluster

The most apparent difference is that it also features two ECON and PWR warning lights enclosed within the tachometer. These ECON and PWR lights are activated through an engine vacuum sensor that will sense whether the engine is under load or not. Even though the UK AE86 is closely related to the European ones, the UK gauge cluster does not feature these two lights.

As you can see every gauge has been mirrored and the EUDM tachometer starts where the JDM ends (if you mirror it). The warning lights have been mirrored as well and not to forget the trip-meter reset.

Kouki (late) EUDM Corolla GT AE86 gauge cluster

The difference between the European pre- and post-facelift is similar to the JDM zenki vs kouki differences: white striped lines and white needles.

Warning lights on the European AE86 gauge cluster

The EUDM cluster features a door-open warning light but lacks the broken tail light warning light. In contrast to the unused spots for the warning lights on the GT / GT-V and Australian / UK gauge clusters, the European (and US / Canadian) gauge clusters have an uninterrupted set of warning lights.

The Swiss cars of 1985 and later and some of the European cars do feature a catalytic converter. They lack the catalytic converter warning light, but they do have a warning sticker on the gauge cluster that these engines only take unleaded fuel.

Partnumbers of the European AE86 gauge clusters

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A340 (zenki), 83110-1A370 (zenki) , 83110-1A341 (kouki) and 83110-1A371 (kouki) for km/h clusters. 83110-1A380 (zenki) and 83110-1A381 (kouki) for mph + km/h clusters.

USDM / Canadian Corolla GT-S AE86 gauge cluster

The US and Canadian AE86 GT-S gauge cluster is similar to the European one as both have the LHD layout. The biggest difference between European and USDM is the speedometer that reaches 150mph (240km/h) and reads “Unleaded fuel only” at the bottom of this gauge.

Zenki (early) USDM Corolla GT-S AE86 gauge cluster

Apart from the aforementioned differences, the pre-facelift (zenki) gauge cluster is pretty much the same as the European.

Kouki (late) USDM Corolla GT-S AE86 gauge cluster

The facelifted (kouki) gauge cluster received the same treatment as the JDM, UK and EUDM gauge clusters: thin white lines and white needles.

Partnumbers of the USDM Corolla GT-S AE86 gauge cluster

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A660 (USA zenki), 83110-1A670 (Canada zenki), 83110-1A661 (USA kouki) and 83110-1A671 (Canada kouki)

USDM / Canadian Corolla SR5 AE86 gauge cluster

The US and Canadian AE86 SR5 gauge cluster is similar to the GT-S. The only differences are that the SR5 has the tachometer redline start at 6000 rpm and the speedometer go up to 110 mph / 180 km/h.

Zenki (early) USDM Corolla SR5 AE86 gauge cluster

Kouki (late) USDM Corolla SR5 AE86 gauge cluster

The facelifted (kouki) gauge cluster received the same treatment as the GT-S gauge cluster: thin white lines and white needles.

Partnumbers of the USDM Corolla SR5 AE86 gauge cluster

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A310 (USA Zenki), 83110-1A320 (Canada zenki), 83110-1A321 (Canada mid), 83110-1A311 (USA kouki), 83110-1A790 (another USA kouki) and 83110-1A322 (Canada kouki)
Identification on gauge cluster: 83010-1A810 (zenki) and 83010-1A850 (kouki)

Swiss/Other Corolla SR AE86 gauge cluster

The Corolla SR was sold in Switzerland and some other undefined countries (like the Dutch Antilles) and was basically nearly identical to the Australian Sprinter SR, but then mirrored as it’s an LHD car. The gauge cluster of the SR models had a tachometer on the left with a redline of 6k rpm and a speedo on the right that reached 180km/h. There is also a similarity with the EUDM cluster as it features the ECON and PWR warning lights in the tachometer.

Partnumbers of the Swiss/Other Corolla SR AE86 gauge cluster

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A330 (zenki Switzerland), 83110-1A350 (zenki) and 83110-1A351 (kouki) for km/h clusters. 83110-1A360 (zenki) and 83110-1A360 (kouki) for mph + km/h clusters.

JDM AE85 gauge cluster

Now you may wonder what the lesser JDM trim levels looked like.

AE85 2-door SE and 3-door SR

Zenki (early) two-door SE and three-door SR AE85 gauge cluster

The AE85 SR and SE trim levels featured the same layout as the AE86 and even featured a tacho that can go up to 8000 rpm, but the major difference is that the tachometer has a redline of 6500 rpm. The SR and SE also feature a door-open warning, so on the left side there is a warning light for this.

Kouki (late) two-door SE and three-door SR AE85 gauge cluster

The facelifted (kouki) gauge cluster received the same treatment as the AE86 gauge cluster: thin white lines and white needles.

Partnumbers of the JDM SE & SR AE85 gauge cluster

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A230 (zenki) and 83110-1A770 (kouki)
Identification on gauge cluster: 83010-1A720 (zenki) and 83010-1A721 (kouki)

AE85 2-door XL (Lissé) and 2-door GL (Lime)

Zenki (early) Levin GL Lime / Trueno XL Lissé AE85 gauge cluster

This is what the gauge clusters of the Toyota Corolla Levin GL (Lime) and Sprinter Trueno XL (Lissé) AE85 look like. There is no tachometer and in its place the fuel level and water temperature gauges have been placed. In the bottom right a small quartz analogue clock is placed. The GL / GL Lime / XL / XL / XL Lissé didn’t feature a digital clock on the dashboard. Warning lights are on the left side Check engine, Oil pressure, hand brake and on the right side charge. You can also make out the Fuel Low warning light next to the E in the fuel gauge.

Kouki (late) Levin GL Lime / Trueno XL Lissé AE85 gauge cluster

There isn’t really a facelifted version as Toyota only changed the needles from orange to white and didn’t bother to update this cluster with the new design.

Better reuse than reinvent?

Even though it has the exact same outer shape as its counterparts, it’s a far cry from the other beautifully styled AE86 and AE85 (SE & SR) gauge clusters. It almost looks like a previous-generation cluster. Oh, wait…

The kouki (late) Corolla Van KE72V did feature a gauge cluster that is nearly identical to the one in the Levin GL (Lime) and Trueno XL (Lissé) AE85. The speedometer, fuel level and temperature gauges and their face plates are identical. Only the faceplates on the sides covering the warning lights and clock are different. This means the engineers of Toyota were lazy and reused a gauge cluster from the previous generation.

Partnumbers of the JDM XL & GL AE85 gauge cluster

Speedometer partnumbers: 83110-1A200 (zenki) and 83110-1A201 (kouki)
Identification on gauge cluster: 83010-1A670 (zenki) and 83010-1A671 (kouki)

SPECIALS

There are a couple of special gauge clusters that are worth mentioning.

TRD 240k / 10k gauge cluster

The most well-known is the TRD JDM layout gauge cluster that has a 10k rpm tachometer and a speedometer of up to 240 km/h. You can tell this one apart from the others by the different font size of the 20, 60, 100, 140, 180 and 220 km/h markings and also the very difference in steps of the tachometer lines indicating the engine speed.

TOM’s 240k / 10k gauge cluster

Then there is also a TOM’s JDM layout gauge cluster which also has a 10k rpm tachometer and a speedometer up to 240 km/h.

Sleek SPEED 240k / 10k gauge cluster

Another 240 km/h cluster by Sleek Speed was shared by blugecko in the comments. This cluster seems to be 99% identical to the TOM’s cluster as the speedometer goes up to 240 km/h and the tachometer to 10K rpm. Even the lettering is spaced exactly the same. The only difference is the Sleek Speed logo.

ALSPORT 270k / 11k gauge cluster

The ALSports JDM layout gauge cluster has a tachometer that goes up to 11k rpm and the speedometer even up to 270 km/h!

Chowini’s 140 mph / 240k / 10k gauge cluster

There even was a drop in replacement tachometer for the RHD gauge clusters by Chowini available through the Finish company RMF. Unfortunately, that company went belly up four or five years ago.

Gauge cluster overlays

There is also a gauge cluster overlay available from Torparts which has a tacho meter layout going all the way up to 10k, but then you will have the USDM layout and a mph speedo. The overlay just extends the 8k rpm range to 10k rpm on the same scale so your tacho needs to be recalibrated or replaced.

Also very beautiful is the white aftermarket JDM gauge cluster by SK Engineering which also has a speedometer going up to 200km/h.

Another one off 220km/h JDM cluster.

Last but not least AEU86 member Ivan141 is currently busy on a RGB dash project where he uses several PCBs to backlit the AE86 gauge cluster in any colour by using RGB LEDs. The project is still in its development phase, but he might sell it as a separate kit in the (near) future.

Custom gauge cluster by Moby-D

Finally, if you’re really up to some custom work, a company called Moby-D will happily create a fully custom gauge cluster for you for the mere sum of 200,000 yen (1200 dollars). In the past, they modified a gauge cluster to go up to 260 km/h and 12K rpm!

Conclusion

I found it really interesting to research all the possible gauge clusters and find their individual differences. There was a lot that I learned from it!

I know there might be a couple of other varieties around the globe, but not listing it here doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist! If you have such a cluster: please compare it to what I posted here and tell me if it is similar to any other model.

Image sources:
Hachiroku.com.au
Torparts
AEU86
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