Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community - FT86CLUB - View Single Post - Is it possible to get US odometer to work in a Canadian FR-S?

H1C · 07-19-2025, 12:07 AM

I thought I'd give an update on how this turned out, in the chance that someone else tries to import a Canadian twin into the US, or a US twin into Canada.

My takeaway: don't try to reprogram the gauge cluster to change the display from km to miles or vice versa. Reprogramming even the mileage on these 1st-gen cars' clusters corrupts them somehow. I suspect it has to do with the non-OEM software that the cluster shops use to program the clusters. These applications don't have the chips for the gauge cluster for every make and model mapped out correctly.

GeraldJustProjects wound up ghosting me. Tried reaching out to him a few times after sending the cluster that he programmed back to him, but never heard back. He never sent the cluster back to me either.

I resolved my issue by sheer dumb luck. I happened to find the one used US instrument cluster on eBay that had close to the correct mileage that the car came with. It was within a few hundred miles of the reported mileage when the used car dealer sold me the car.

But at first, the Toyota tech could not get this cluster to pair with the main body ECU either. He tried various things for a couple of hours but it just would not pair, so the car would not start. He recommended that I buy a new reprogrammed cluster from Toyota USA.

But I ran an experiment. I had him put the Canadian main body ECU that the car came with back in, which has the same part number as the US one, and asked him to try to install the eBay US cluster with the correct mileage, but this time without doing the pairing procedure.

It worked: he was able to install it, start the car, and the odometer ticked up correctly.

I had taken a guess that the main body ECU only has a certain number of pairing procedures that it can undergo, and after that it won't take any more, and that appears to be true. The US one that had been put in the car had undergone a couple of pairing procedures already, so it would not take any more.

This was a six month process involving multiple trips to the dealer, a couple of cluster shops and over $2500 in costs, but it was a learning experience.

It worked out in the end. The dealer who sold me the car reimbursed me for most of the cost to get the odometer to work. And the car has been running nearly flawlessly for a year since then.

Things learned:

US and Canadian engine ECUs have the same part number
US and Canadian main body ECUs have the same part number
US and Canadian gauge clusters have different part numbers
US and Canadian ABS controller ECUs have different part numbers

The ABS controller ECU and the gauge cluster seem to be the only parts that affect the odometer calculation

07-19-2025, 12:07 AM	#14
H1C Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Drives: 2014 FR-S MT Location: metro-Atlanta area Posts: 126 Thanks: 131 Thanked 80 Times in 48 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	I thought I'd give an update on how this turned out, in the chance that someone else tries to import a Canadian twin into the US, or a US twin into Canada. My takeaway: don't try to reprogram the gauge cluster to change the display from km to miles or vice versa. Reprogramming even the mileage on these 1st-gen cars' clusters corrupts them somehow. I suspect it has to do with the non-OEM software that the cluster shops use to program the clusters. These applications don't have the chips for the gauge cluster for every make and model mapped out correctly. GeraldJustProjects wound up ghosting me. Tried reaching out to him a few times after sending the cluster that he programmed back to him, but never heard back. He never sent the cluster back to me either. I resolved my issue by sheer dumb luck. I happened to find the one used US instrument cluster on eBay that had close to the correct mileage that the car came with. It was within a few hundred miles of the reported mileage when the used car dealer sold me the car. But at first, the Toyota tech could not get this cluster to pair with the main body ECU either. He tried various things for a couple of hours but it just would not pair, so the car would not start. He recommended that I buy a new reprogrammed cluster from Toyota USA. But I ran an experiment. I had him put the Canadian main body ECU that the car came with back in, which has the same part number as the US one, and asked him to try to install the eBay US cluster with the correct mileage, but this time without doing the pairing procedure. It worked: he was able to install it, start the car, and the odometer ticked up correctly. I had taken a guess that the main body ECU only has a certain number of pairing procedures that it can undergo, and after that it won't take any more, and that appears to be true. The US one that had been put in the car had undergone a couple of pairing procedures already, so it would not take any more. This was a six month process involving multiple trips to the dealer, a couple of cluster shops and over $2500 in costs, but it was a learning experience. It worked out in the end. The dealer who sold me the car reimbursed me for most of the cost to get the odometer to work. And the car has been running nearly flawlessly for a year since then. Things learned: US and Canadian engine ECUs have the same part number US and Canadian main body ECUs have the same part number US and Canadian gauge clusters have different part numbers US and Canadian ABS controller ECUs have different part numbers The ABS controller ECU and the gauge cluster seem to be the only parts that affect the odometer calculation Last edited by H1C; 07-19-2025 at 12:36 AM.