Removing the dash to access the wiring?

66Plymouth

Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2018
Messages
92
Reaction score
63
Location
Colorado
Gentlemen, I have a 66 Fury 3 and having electrical issues and figure its time to bit the bullet and go through all the wiring. In order to remove the dash I need to remove the windshield is that correct?
 
Disconnect your battery first.

All the dash (and body) wiring connects to block connectors on the firewall - that's called the bulkhead. Each gauge has a unique connector which can be carefully unplugged. There may be some terminal connections (like the ammeter) that use nuts and bolts.

Be careful when unplugging the speedo gauge and others - there are multi-connectors that push onto rigid pins that are easy to break. Don't wiggle them too much.

If you have no experience with this sort of thing then I suggest you have someone who does with you to help.

Download the Factory Service Manual from www.mymopar.com to guide you.
 
I swapped out the wiring harness from my 1968 Fury III to my 1968 Fury Fastop with no problems. Pretty straight forward even thou the Fury III 4dr had air conditioning.
I removed the complete gauge assembly, radio etc to give me access/room, I didn't do the steering column, I maybe removed the lower side dash bolts and brackets to pull the lower part of the dash out to get a little more access, but can't really remember if I did that for the wiring harness or for removing the heater/AC box, (was long ago).
Pretty straight forward plug & play, handy to have the service manual electrical diagram if you get lost.

I would take it the 66 would be just as easy, if not more easy.

Oh yea and disconnect the battery as above advice.
 
So I've replaced most of the engine wiring with 14g and solder ends. Up under the dash is the concern right now. It appears that some wires are just cut and hanging and I would like to take or pull the dash out some to access the wires and change rhe bulbs.
In the past I took apart most of the front dash hoping to get to the wiring , but was unable to remove the main panel( all the gauges) so I stopped in fear of breaking something. The bulk heads I know can be replaced and that's on my list as well (total of 3) that snap into place. I have the service manual and I appreciate the link that you sent for the online one which I'll download as well.
 
The main panel is what I call the one to the right of the steering wheel (radio, heater controls, clock etc) and is held in place by screws, the radio knobs and retaining nuts, and the dreaded clock adjustment knob, which is held in place with a very small flat head special bolt inside the knob. Pull the knob towards you and use a small jeweller's screw driver to loosen the special bolt. The knob should come off in your hand with the bolt inside. The bolt is easy to drop, so don't lose it.

The left hand gauge panel is integral to the gauge package, and is held in with screws. Once those are out, the panel and gauge package should come out towards you.

Remember that all the wiring is held into the dash frame by big rubber coated clips that are part of the dash frame (for the most part). These clips need to be undone by bending them open. This will allow things to move about a lot better. Feel around carefully and have a look with a flashlight under there to see where they are. Most likely that's what's stopping the gauge package from coming clear of the dash.

Everything disconnects from under there. You don't have to remove the dash. If you're able, remove the front seat so you can lie down on your back more easily and get under there to see what's going on.
 
30C6CADA-956C-4FB2-B7CE-269308874DF1.jpeg
So I've replaced most of the engine wiring with 14g and solder ends. Up under the dash is the concern right now. It appears that some wires are just cut and hanging and I would like to take or pull the dash out some to access the wires and change rhe bulbs.
In the past I took apart most of the front dash hoping to get to the wiring , but was unable to remove the main panel( all the gauges) so I stopped in fear of breaking something. The bulk heads I know can be replaced and that's on my list as well (total of 3) that snap into place. I have the service manual and I appreciate the link that you sent for the online one which I'll download as well.
Yes as stated in order to remove the dash the windshield must come out which is a big deal. I attached a pic to show why, there are screws along the front edge which can’t be accessed until you take the windshield out.
As with most wiring harnesses they can be difficult to get out but with patience it isn’t that hard. Take lots of pics so you can remember where everything went. There isn’t a lot of options on these cars so they aren’t too bad to do.
Good luck.
 
So I went through all the wires in the engine bay for the most part other than messing with the block on the fire wall area. I made sure all my grounds where nice and tight and even scuffed off some of the paint to make a better ground. I had some items still connected such as my electric fan wires. I undid them and remove any and all wires that weren't connected.

I went under the dash and found one positve wire running out of the wire (block) with wires showing and snipped then end. I carefully went through all of them and found nothing that would pose a issue.

What has prompted me to do this, was thw other night I had the driver side rear light cutting in and out. I also noticed when I got into the car and placed my hands on the steering wheel, I got a zolt/zapped which made me think I had a short somewhere. I woke up this morning to go to a show and my battery was dead after about 2 days of sitting.
Am I wrong in thinking the short is close to the area of the steering wheel? As you can see from the photos, I don't have wires running all over the place.

20190831_150240.jpg


20190831_150250.jpg
 
Back
Top