Well, with the crappy lighting that the dash has for the guage cluster I decided to update it to be brighter and a color theme to match the Deep. I give credit to Gunny's GXP for the find. I expressed to my son what I wanted for my birthday and he got me the white face place with blue lettering and upgraded white LED kit from blackcatcustom dot com.
Sorry, some of pics are a little blurry, I didn't notice until after I had completed the install.
I started by removing the chrome ring and then pulling the black tunnel, I thought I could remove the 4 screws to the guage cluster and pull it through the hole but I couldn't reach the back to disconnect the plug.
So I had to pull up the surrounding dash and of course to do that I had to pull the passenger O-Shi% grip and shift boot/shifter. Once that was off I was able to pull the dash up the dash surround. I only disconnected the 12v outlet and then supported the dash up to the latch for the convertible.
I then removed and disassembled on the top covers of the guage cluster, I reinstalled the power connection and as I turned on the car (without starting it) while counting the seconds it takes for the guage needles to stop moving (write this time down, you will need that to install the needles) and then marked the location of the needles. Then I removed the guage and opened it up the rest of the way on the table.
To take of the needles, you carefully turn them counter-clockwise while lifting and set them aside.
The circuit car on the right has three white areas where I de-soldered the LEDS in the center of each and added the brighter LEDs according to their instructions. I plugged it in to the car to verify the LEDs worked. I ended up having to reverse the fuel guage LED wires as the polarity is opposite of the tach and speedo.
I re-assembled the guage to the point you see below and plugged it back into the car and turned the key forward to the on position without starting. Counting the seconds from before. Then installed the needles by carefully pressing firmly down. The tach and speedo needle were at 0 and the fuel guage was about 1/4. I then disconneted and went back inside to finish re-assembly.
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I finished re-assembling the guage and installed it reversing the rest of the removal process.
Here is the final installed picture.
I rate this on a scale of 1-5, a 3. The soldering of the LEDs can be tricky in you are a novice and don't have a good gun. My son brought home his soldering station from work. The dash and such are fairly easy, as well as the dis-assembly of the guages.
This project took 1.5 hours
I may take the needles back off and change the color of them. The bottom of each needle is white. I'll probably scrape that off and then apply a blue color so during the day the needles will standout better.
Current Mods:
Solo Mach Exhaust, JPM Arm Rests-Visor Covers-Center Cover, Stubby Antenna, Wind Screen, Replacement Spring for Factory Compressor Bypass Valve (or BOV), Norms Rear Facia, Foot Well Lighting, Red Map Lights and a JPM Shifter.....
That looks tremendous! You worked really fast to get that done in 90 minutes. Congrats to you on a mod well done. Great photos and tips on the needle work!
Black Cat is the best. Alex there is working on a custom faceplate for me as we speak, and I’m opting for the upgrade LED’s as well. Kind of ironic though – you went from a black face to a white face, and I’m doing the opposite. I didn’t realize until now that GXP gauges are black background. Oh well, just goes to prove the grass is always greener…
__________________ MeanNA '07 pretty much loaded. Mods to date: Kappashere CAI, billet grille, Helo rims, de-badged rear, built-in garage door remote, body color engine cover, leather covered (by JPM) tulip (trim over waterfall), interior de-silverization including body color boomerang, radio, switch bezels and door hardware, retro gauge overlay, Halo DRLs Next up: final exterior de-silverization (windshield trim) Someday: yellow accent leather seats
Looks great. Happy to steer you in the right direction. I know mine is so much easier to read with out having to stare at it.
Great job on the play by play as well. I was so happy to finaly get mine back out of the shop and get the stuff in I was finished before I even thought about making a photo diary to post.
Enjoy.
__________________
DEEP, GT CONCEPT KIT,RK SPORT RAM AIR HOOD, RAZZI WING, UP-SHIELD, EIBACH SPRINGS(1.7”R), DEJON CAI AND I/C PIPES, CUSTOM EXHAUST,CUSTOM PAINT AND GRAPHICS, RMR STYLE BAR, LED AND ACCENT LIGHTS, CUSTOM GAUGE FACE, DASHHAWK UNIT,Premium package w/leather, A/C, Auto, 18" chrome wheels, 6-disc audio w/monsoon 7, spoiler, sport pedals.
"BLUE DEMON"
"For those who fought for it, FREEDOM has a flavor the protected will never know"
The dash took only about 10 minutes to pull and same to install and the guage cluster have little tabs you lightly push against and pop apart. I was extremely pleased on how simple that part was. The hardest thing was removing the stock LEDs because they are soldered on below the LED. So getting the heat to the wire of the LED without damaging the circuit card.
here is the overlay that Alex is working on for me...
I know to many of you it will look really plain, boring, and not worth the effort. But I'm going for a classic old school roadster look. Have been unsure about the needles. My stock NA needles are red...
I think I'd prefer white needles. But now I see that GXP needles are white, so maybe I can buy some of those from the dealer. Or maybe someone wants to trade?????
This is one of the best appearance mods I have sen in a long time, I really like this one. Now I just have to decide what color to get. Way to go DBG. Nice job of how to pics. I am really lucky, I can get you to help do mine.
__________________ Red Bull Drift Team 2008
Solo Mach and High Flow Cat
Dejon Intercooler, Intake Elbow, BOV spring
Wester's Garage RACE tune II
JPM custom shifter.
Barney Juice with Militec-1
GM Auto-dimming mirror with OnStar and maplights
Rhys Millen Racing, RMR Style Bar. Peak RWHP 286.3, Peak Torque 313 ft/lbs.
SSR Type C wheels, Bridgestone Potenza RE-01's
DDM Works PINK Breastplate
This is one of the best appearance mods I have sen in a long time, I really like this one. Now I just have to decide what color to get. Way to go DBG. Nice job of how to pics. I am really lucky, I can get you to help do mine.
No problem, when you get yours I'll help you swap it out.
That was super well documented and looks freakin awesome! Any tips on the soldering? I've soldered before but have not had to do much around PCBs, just wire to wire.
Use a small pointed tip, make sure it is clean and then "tin" it (tiny bit of solder on the tip) You also need one that operates at a high enough temp so that the when the solder is touched, it melts quickly without transferring to much heat to the surrounding components.
