[Mk2] [NA] Dashboard lights

[mickey boy]

does anybody know how to put in new dash board lights as when it gets dark i cant see the speedo, and we woudnt want to break the law.

[Torero]

Hi Mickey,

Reasonably simple will take an hour or so first time.

Remove gear gaiter shroud and then the black plastic plate around it.
Remove the ashtray and undo the 2 exposed screws in the ashtray space.
Remove the centre panel of the dash [where the vents, radio and heater controls sit] be careful removing it from near the lighter.
Remove the fascia on the RH drivers vent [by the door tweeter] 2 screws IIRC
This will expose the screws around the instrument cluster, there is a plastic cosmetic strip which clicks out of its location that runs around the top half of the cluster [again, take care not to snap it]
Then all the screws for the cluster are visible, undo them and lift the cluster forward.

You may need to remove electrical blocks at the rear but I changed mine quite easily by lifting it out without disconnecting them.

I can post a thread of how to remove part of the dash for the heater control which is reasonably comprehensive and has pics. I hope that helps

John.

[mickey boy]

Thanks john i will give that a go, go to pub or do my lights ? big decision

[RST]

Well you said you didn't want to break the law so make your choice LoL. The cluster is quite easy to remove -just be careful of the plastic tabs as the plastic goes brittle! If you want to look up what bulbs first look up the books in Halfrauds first. It sticks in mind though allot of folk complain about poor illumination -if you replace the main bulbs with 501's (5W sidelight bulbs) then the clocks come up absolutely fine. The aftermarket dash bulbs (3W) come up a lower wattage than Toyota speck bulbs (3.4W) unless you go for sidelight bulbs so allot of bulbs are dimmer than they should be for a start. I haven't had any problems with mine uprating the bulbs -well within the limits when I checked fuse ratings.

[mickey boy]

Thanks mate, some good info,