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My impressions:
2-02-2006
After finally getting the gauge face installed, I decided to start on my impressions.
This is not a difficult modification. The instruction left out the one point of the
face having a firm mounting point between the fuel and temp gauges. I should have
just cut the center out and it would have been easy, but with MY mistake in trying
to rip it off, I snapped the fuel gauge. (My fault entirely)
Other than this hiccup, it went very smoothly. I found a replacement dash to pull
the parrt out of to fix my cluster. This is recommended so the odometer stays accurate.
Be SURE to note the needle placement carefully. If not, find someone with an OBD2
scanner that can verify the needle settings when you are done. (The easiest for the
fuel gauge would be to fill the tank completely then set the needle on full.)
The look is amazing. I like the brighter white dash that I chose, though the silver
background would be nice too. I wanted to set the logos in silver so a white dash
was my best bet. They show up as silver at night (if you chose silver logos) and
look very cool. I think it look better than everything one color, but that's me.
I also chose red for the MPH and RPM labels. Again, it looks great and stands out
from the blue numbers quite well.
Choose your font carefully. I liked the MR2 font better, but was locked in to default
by my mistake. I may replace it again eventually, but I like this too. We'll see.
The craftsmanship is very nice. the lighted sections look laser cut and are very
crisp. the material is slightly thicker than the stock face material.
The amount of selections and customizing available is amazing. You'll build quite
a few you like before you pick on to submit. Check it out, have fun designing. It's
a mod that you get to see all the time.
Taurec is a pleasure to deal with. He answers questions promptly and produces and
ships in a reewasonably short amount of time. I got mine much faster than I expected.
feel confident in your purchase from him.
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1-27-2006
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| My Taurec's (Spyderchat I.D.) custom gauge face showed up in the mail
today. I was excited to get started so I came right home from work and pulled the
dash. I ran into some problems during the install and will go through it step by
step. Please read the whole way through the install to see what is not included in
the PDF and how to avoid the same issues I had. |
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Make sure you download this PDF file and
follow it to the word.
There are some problem areas that not included in the PDF but I have pictured below:
Gauge Face Installation PDF ( 444 kb)
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Here are two pics of the new custom gauge face created for my car.
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This image shows the backlighting combination I designed and how it shows up at night.
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Installation Procedure:
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First, I took several pictures of the original gauges for reference
for later after the face is replaced and I need to know where the needles were.
If you don't do this properly, the needles will be off. These gauges are not self
calibrating. I have tried it out, just to see.
Follow the instructions in the PDF. |
Next, Lower the steering wheel all the way down. You'll need the clearance.
Then, just grab the entire housing with both hands and give it a firm pull. The entire
housing just clips on and pulls off rather easily. |
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Once the outer housing is removed, the cluster is exposed. Below you
can see the three screws that you need to remove to pull the cluster from the inside
of the dash. Don't lose the screws.
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This picture was yaken down through the windshield. I wanted to show
you where the three plugs were located. You need to unplug these by pushing down
on the small tab on the top of the plug in the connector while pulling firmly.
The cluster will be easily removed form the dash when all three wires are disconnected. |
I took the cluster inside to make sure it was at room temperature.
I didn't want to break and plastic pieces by rushing it. The plastic gets brittle
when its cold.
I heard a suggestion of warming the parts (needles) with a hair dryer before attempting
disassembly of the gauges.
Once they warmed up I took the entire front plastic housing off by pressing the tabs
in ther slots all around the edges of the cluster housing.
The clear and black plastic all came off as one. |
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Use a fork with a tissue or paper towl (to mprevent damage to the
original face plate), to pry up firmly, but carefully.
They are a bit tough, but don't pry had, wiggle, or jerk it around. Pry straight
up and be patient. You do not want to break these little axels off.
I know, cause I broke one. The picture below shows the part the controls the needle.
If the spindle breaks off, you'll be buying one to the tune of about 640 dollars
new!
(Note: I actually broke the axel at a later point, I just wanted to say it could
happen at this step rather easily.) |
Broken spindle on Gauge control motor:
Once all of the needles are removed, then you are supposed to peel
off the original gauge face. While doing that, you can see that I damaged the original
face AND broke off an axel in the process.
To the right shows me trying to get the gauge face off.There are four places where
small pieces of double stick tape hold it fast. These are easy as they just peel
off. The real problem shows up directly centered between the fuel and temp gauges. |
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Hole tore in old gauge face
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Once I got it to this point, I realized there was something else holding
the old face to the housing.
Here there is a molded plastic pin the traveles from the gauge face through the clear
plastic mounting plate that you see under the gauge face.
This CANNOT be removed from the top without damaging the original gauge face. You
need to remove the clear plastic plateyou see in this picture, the four gauge "motors"
and the old gauge face all in one shot. |
Avoid tearing out the original face by doing the following BEFORE peeling
the old gauge face off the clearplastic backing under the old gauge face.
Remove the seven screws that secure the cluster together.
After the screws are out, the gauge face, the plastic mounting plate,
and "motors" will pop out of the circuit board with very little pressure.
Again, be careful; not to set it down on the axels as this in the point I broke my
axel off the fuel gauge.
Go between the fuel and temp gauge "motors" from the back. There you will
see where the original gauge face is held.
Go in with a dremel and grind out the plastic tab holding the original gauge face.
BE CAREFUL you only grind it enough to pull through the clear plastic mounting plate.
THEN you can peel the gauge face loose where it is glued fast without damaging it.
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Now is the point that you can safely peel the gauge face from the
housing assembly. there are just for very small squares of double sided tape holding
it fast to the clear plate. |
This picture shows where you need to unclip the gauge "motor" for replacement
if you break a spindle.
Avoid breaking one at all costs, Toyota gets 640 dollars for a gauge assembly and
does NOT sell the parts seperate.
I should have spare motors as I bought an entire gauge assembly from a salvage yard.
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2-01-2006
(I didn't have my camera handy so just used a reverse of the disassembly
for a guide to assemble the dash.)
I couldn't find the aeresol window tint, so I used a little film like the PDF instructed
in the areas the PDF and my image (picture above) showed. Just cut small sizes to
cover the areas noted. then plug the dash in the car. Trim or reapply if necessary
to your taste. Once I got it where I wanted, I put double sided craft tape at a couple
points to scure the gauge face to the housing. Used the thin type (that looks like
scotch tape), not the padded body fastening stuff.
Once I assembled the gauge face, I reinstalled it in the car without the needles,
trim, or clear plastic. After it was plugged in and the three screws were installed,
I turned the ignition to "ON". I then put the fuel gauge needle to the
exact point it was in the disassembly pics. (Afterwards, I fueled the car to see
where the needle stopped. It was right on full.)
Since I had the correct tools, (shown below) i hooked my Snap On OBD2 Scanner to
the Spyder. Just go to data stream. I warmed up the car and installed the needles
to the readings on the scanner. That way everything was accurate.
The RPM was easy, just read it and install the needle with the car running. Once
the car reached 185 degrees, I put the temp needle directly center of the temp gauge.
The speedometer was a bit more complicated. To do it safely, I put the needle on
just below the delimiter hole. Then I took the car for a ride while my wife watched
the scanner value. I got it right the first time! Once I got back, I popped in the
delimiter button.
Now I could pop the clear lense and trim back on. Done!
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Below is the finished picture of the gauges during the day.
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Below is a closeup of the tach to see the colors at night.
(Sorry about the blurry pics, I'll try to get better ones.)
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Below is the finished picture of the gauges at night.
(Sorry about the blurry pics, I'll try to get better ones.)
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