1998 Oldsmobile Cutlass 3.1L.

Repairs: Temp. sensor replaced, fuel sending unit replaced, dash instrument cluster replaced, all fuses checked
Question: I have a 1998 Oldsmobile Cutlass, the fuel & temp. gauges read empty & cold, no high beam indicator light on dash. high beams do work. no power to switch to the left of steering wheel, next to dash light dimmer switch.

i was told the car was in an accident & was hit in the front left. all the above mentioned stopped working at the same time. what could cause this?

The fact that it was an accident makes it nearly impossible to try and figure out what could be causing these problems. Without having the car in front of me I could not tell you if they left something unplugged, repaired some wires incorrectly, if a harness was smashed during the accident and was not found, if any of the modules were replaced- are they the correct ones, and so on. The only thing that is in common with the fuel level and the temperature gauge is the body control module (BCM). The BCM collects data from the temperature sensor and the fuel level sensor along with other items and sends information to the instrument cluster on what is called the SPI serial data line. This is also used for the high beam indicator in the dash but since they don't work I couldn't say if these three were all related.

I would check the connections on the BCM which is located under the passenger side of the dash. Make sure the connectors are not corroded. You may also want to get the part number off of the label and call your local dealer with the cars and VIN number to see if it is the correct computer. If it looks like it has been replaced then it may just need to be reprogrammed, which must be done at the dealer.