Cutlass Dash Removal

[carmangary]

I found a perfect dash for my Cutlass! Tomorrow I am going to remove it from the donor car. I'll need to have all the tools I need to do the job with me so I want to be prepared. What is involved in removing it? I know how to remove the small piece around the cluster but I have no idea how much I have to take loose to get the main dash loose. Any big tips so that I don't spend hours trying to figure out what screws need to come out and how to get to them would be very much appreciated!!

Thanks.

 

[Blake442]

You'll need a T-15 torx driver, and 1/4", 7mm, 10mm & 13mm sockets. A couple screw drivers will help too.

Start off under the hood, and undo the wiring harness bulkhead.
Inside the car, pull the speaker covers in the corner of the dash. There are T-15 fasteners hiding behind them, and the others are visible in the defrost vents.
Pull the instrument cluster pad and loosen the cluster. If the car has cruise control, disconnect the cable from the deal on the drivers side fender well, and it will give you more room to pull the cluster away to get the cable unhooked. If the car doesn't have cruise, then you'll just have to pull it away as much as you can, and then slip your fingers back there and press the little tab that releases the cable.
There is a fastener on each side by the kick panels, and one in the middle/passenger side, below and behind where the cigarette lighter is. Then other than a couple ground wires, that's really all that's holding the dash in.
Just take your time, you'll figure it out.

 

[madmaxstyle]

X2

also little needle nose pliers might be useful for those plastic clips that GM uses on everything.
Definitely have a good arsenal of screwdrivers

Maybe a camera to make records of how things come apart and a container to save all the little screws and clips and widgets that come off. If you don't put it back together right away it saves time to have pictures to refresh the memory.

 

[carmangary]

Your posts are a little late but still appreciated. Yesterday at noon the dash was in pristine condition. Between then and 8am this morning some jerk pulled, or rather broke, the padded portion around the instrument cluster off an ruined it. In the process they chipped the edge of the part around the radio and made a hairline crack around the dash. Not sure what they were doing since they didn't take anything they removed. It was just laying there. Luckily, I found another instrument cluster surround in another car and I the dash is till better than what I have in my car. I think I might be able to repair the little chip and crack or at least make them less visible. I have to dye it red instead of green anyway. So, it was a good day but not as good as it could have been. It still makes me mad that some jerk went and messed up a perfect dash just because they were too stupid to do whatever they were trying to do.

 

[carmangary]

I didn't follow your method about the wiring harness, though. I tried to remove it with the harness in place but ended up having to remove it all. When I pull the dash out of my car i will try to pull it out all at once and then put it on the replacement dash and put it all back in. That's the plan anyway.🙂