Instrument Cluster Replacement

[FalcoRob]

My instrument cluster has the usual pixel display fade out and I have ordered a flat ribbon cable and spare instrument lights in the hope of repairing it myself.

The perspex facing also has a couple of cracks which are not a major issue from an operational point of view but are nonetheless unsightly.

I came across a complete, new, unused cluster at a reasonable price so am considering just buying that and solving all the issues in one go.

My question to you experienced folk out there is - what happens to the mileage indicator readout?
Is the mileage stored somewhere else in the onboard computing system and will it magically appear when I plug in a new instrument cluster, or will the new one display zero?
If it does display zero, is there a way to reset it to show the current actual kilometers the car has travelled?

Rob

2003 X5 3.0d
E53
M57
Build Date - 12th Sept 2003