BadSax
enjoys 3 martini lunches
So even in the Jamie instructions you still have to pull the dash?
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- Thread starter ggfrank21
- Start date
So even in the Jamie instructions you still have to pull the dash?
Pull it out but not take it out.
Sierra3
Registered
Dont take the entire dash free or out of the car.
Dont take the entire dash free or out of the car.
Its a pain in the ass to get all aligned back up and back into the car one manning it with legs spread and feet holding it up with arms on top. I just did and enitre dash and interior conversion over to another car from dash and steering column back to rear seats. Everything. Again.
The dash board is held on by two lower bolts, two inner bolts by console, and a bunch of 6 or 8 i believe selftapper looking bolts across the top of the dash under the pop off cover. To access the blend door (ill post pics under here in a sec of it clear and naked with no dash) You only would have to remove the lower two bolts and the center bracket bolts. The dash will swing out quite a bit once the center console is removed. You can even loosen the top row of bolts along the front window to let it flex a bit more. Dont take the entire dash out. Its a pain in the ass to get re aligned and all vents and heater ducts to fit back like they were. (time consuming).
Once you tilt it out at the bottom, the wire harness will be holding it back from swinging all the way out. You can put a 2x4 chunk3-4 inches long under the bracket between the dash foot and frame to hold it out and crawl up under there like a rat and get to the door pretty easily. Save yourself a headache, dont take the entire dash out. Ok, im loading some pics to help you off my naked 1995. Be right back. Remember this is a 1995, not a second Gen. But should be very close to pics. There is also a vacuum operated solenoid down by the heater core on passengers side as well if you want pics of that too.
Dont take the entire dash free or out of the car.
Its a pain in the ass to get all aligned back up and back into the car one manning it with legs spread and feet holding it up with arms on top. I just did and enitre dash and interior conversion over to another car from dash and steering column back to rear seats. Everything. Again.
The dash board is held on by two lower bolts, two inner bolts by console, and a bunch of 6 or 8 i believe selftapper looking bolts across the top of the dash under the pop off cover. To access the blend door (ill post pics under here in a sec of it clear and naked with no dash) You only would have to remove the lower two bolts and the center bracket bolts. The dash will swing out quite a bit once the center console is removed. You can even loosen the top row of bolts along the front window to let it flex a bit more. Dont take the entire dash out. Its a pain in the ass to get re aligned and all vents and heater ducts to fit back like they were. (time consuming).
Once you tilt it out at the bottom, the wire harness will be holding it back from swinging all the way out. You can put a 2x4 chunk3-4 inches long under the bracket between the dash foot and frame to hold it out and crawl up under there like a rat and get to the door pretty easily. Save yourself a headache, dont take the entire dash out. Ok, im loading some pics to help you off my naked 1995. Be right back. Remember this is a 1995, not a second Gen. But should be very close to pics. There is also a vacuum operated solenoid down by the heater core on passengers side as well if you want pics of that too.
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I understand that you don't have to remove the steering column or even unbolt it from the dash, but don't you at least need to unbolt it from the steering shaft? That's what I always do. I know the shaft is telescopic and will slide in and out but I was always afraid of bending it, even if slightly.
Furthermore, I don't get why you would want to go to all the extra trouble of removing the instrument cluster bezel and message center when you can get to all four screws from under the dash. Removing a few extra bolts on top of the dash beats peeling that stupid bezel and listening to its sickening cracking and popping, waiting for it to snap in half.
Speaking of optional steps, I absolutely insist on removing the seats. SOOO much easier to move around and get to stuff and it only adds an extra 15 minutes tops. My contortionist days are over.
Furthermore, I don't get why you would want to go to all the extra trouble of removing the instrument cluster bezel and message center when you can get to all four screws from under the dash. Removing a few extra bolts on top of the dash beats peeling that stupid bezel and listening to its sickening cracking and popping, waiting for it to snap in half.
Speaking of optional steps, I absolutely insist on removing the seats. SOOO much easier to move around and get to stuff and it only adds an extra 15 minutes tops. My contortionist days are over.
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BadSax
enjoys 3 martini lunches
I like the seat idea, I may do that as my carpet needs to be washed...
Someone (not me) on the return trip from picking up the CE spilled coffee all over the pass side...
When I did my dads, the steering column remained bolted in....it did not move at all. The dash is able to pretty much pivot at the column therefore doing no binding or anything to the steering wheel or column.
Again, the instrument cluster does NOT have to be removed...nor the message center. The way I did it, the message center being removed would have not helped anything, the A/C ducting was in the way, just as it would be with the dash on.
You can't compare a complete interior swap with pulling the dash out just enough to change the blend door. What you did would definitally be a pain in the butt but I think the pictures are just going to confuse Badsax.
Here you go J, just for you. Ofcourse, first step would be a cold beer.
There are 7 10 MM bolts along the top of the dash, remove those.
Remove the center console/shifter/radio bezel.
Under the dash, under (read under NOT behind) the radio/climate control are 2 11 MM bolts, remove them.
To the left of that, to the right of the gas pedal, there is an "L" shaped bracket, remove those two 12 MM bolts.
Next lift up the front of the door sills and remove both kick panels. Behind the kick panels, next to the trim moulding, are two 15 MM nuts, remove those. (these studs are good for holding the dash...so you don't have to sit with legs spread, as meantioned above
)The next and last nut to remove is behind the wiper delay module. You have to remove the panel under the steering column which has 2 8 MM bolts I believe, at the bottom. Once the panel is out, you will see the wiper module on the left of the steering column. It will have gray duct tape wrapped around it. There is a small 8 MM bolt holding the module bracket. Once the module is out of the way, you will see the last 15 MM nut behind it....above the emergency brake mechanism.
Once you've removed the 16 nuts/bolts and the plethera of screws holding the console in, you can sit in the passenger seat and pull the dash out approximately 10 inches on the passenger side. I layed on my back with my legs out of the door and looked up to pull the 4 1/4" blend door bolts out. The door arm will have to be pivoted off of the blend door arm.
Reverse to install.
(I hate when they say that, haha) I would start by installing the top dash bolts first and making sure the two outside 15 MM studs are lined up.I don't like the idea of pulling just the bottom of the dash out and jamming a 2x4 in there. The top of my dads dash was soo thin and brittle sounding.
I like the seat idea, I may do that as my carpet needs to be washed...
Someone (not me) on the return trip from picking up the CE spilled coffee all over the pass side...
Un huh...sure.
Well really, once the whole dash is disconnected so that you can pull it 6" or so back, is it really that much harder to take it right outta the car?
self edit... I guess you'd have to remove the steering wheel?
The book says to remove the dash, so to a dealer and see how many hours of labor they will charge you for that. :fart
By the way, here are some pics of the air trunk out of the car on my living room floor, with the blend door arms in full heat and full cool positions. It should be obvious what the problem is. The Ford engineers obviously forgot their basic geometry from school. I've got some steel bar of the correct dimensions and am going to make some corrected metal links if I can get off my lazy ass and pull out the milling machine.
Note that in the pics, I'm pushing fairly hard on each arm, with each one at its full stop.
Full heat:
Closeup:
Full cool:
Closeup:
Be aware that in the full cool position, the alignment is not an issue because the lower (gray) arm is not pressed against its stop. It's just hanging down a couple of degrees. It's only in the full heat position that the arms get stressed, which is why we see so many "I have no heat" posts around the beginning of winter but not so many "I have no AC" in the spring.
I'm tempted to say that the fix is as "simple" as making a new metal link with a shorter distance between holes, but I believe the best approach is to make the hole for the gray arm into a slot. That way the gray arm isn't under pressure in the event that the actuator pulls too hard in the cool position.
Note that in the pics, I'm pushing fairly hard on each arm, with each one at its full stop.
Full heat:
Closeup:
Full cool:
Closeup:
Be aware that in the full cool position, the alignment is not an issue because the lower (gray) arm is not pressed against its stop. It's just hanging down a couple of degrees. It's only in the full heat position that the arms get stressed, which is why we see so many "I have no heat" posts around the beginning of winter but not so many "I have no AC" in the spring.
I'm tempted to say that the fix is as "simple" as making a new metal link with a shorter distance between holes, but I believe the best approach is to make the hole for the gray arm into a slot. That way the gray arm isn't under pressure in the event that the actuator pulls too hard in the cool position.
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Hey, who you callin' Mike?
It's a hobby milling machine, nothing heavy duty. Made by an American company named Sherline. I've got one of their lathes too. I used to be seriously into model planes, cars and ships, and used to make my own parts to replace what came in the kits. I'm a stickler for detail. Anyway, it's great for very tiny, precise parts, not for rebuilding engines haha, but it can definitely handle a part like this.
It's a hobby milling machine, nothing heavy duty. Made by an American company named Sherline. I've got one of their lathes too. I used to be seriously into model planes, cars and ships, and used to make my own parts to replace what came in the kits. I'm a stickler for detail. Anyway, it's great for very tiny, precise parts, not for rebuilding engines haha, but it can definitely handle a part like this.
Sierra3
Registered
Hey, who you callin' Mike?
It's a hobby milling machine, nothing heavy duty. Made by an American company named Sherline. I've got one of their lathes too. I used to be seriously into model planes, cars and ships, and used to make my own parts to replace what came in the kits. I'm a stickler for detail. Anyway, it's great for very tiny, precise parts, not for rebuilding engines haha, but it can definitely handle a part like this.
Thats cool, I can see where that would be needed bigtime for RC cars or planes for servo mounts ect. Or if you break something jumping your RC truck and need new frame or suspension pieces modded out.
BadSax
enjoys 3 martini lunches
Can you swap the heater core with the dash only out 6"?