Has anyone had any experience loosening the chrome dash insert that holds the gauges, etc., on a 51 Mercury? I need to pull it away from the painted dash just far enough to replace the oil gauge. There is not enough room for me to get my big hand in there from the back. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Please respond to JJAGS3@AOL.COM. Thank you!
Removing the dash insert is near impossible without removing the dash. It really is not all that much more difficult to remove the whole dash. It only had the screws across the top and the two bolts that hold the sides to the cowl under the dash. Either way you have to deal with the wiring harness. The E-brake handle has to be dropped or removed. There are the heater/vent control cables that have to be disconnected. On the insert, there are tinnerman type nuts on the back side that have to come out then the steering column is in the way and has to be dropped down. When it goes back in, a person has to be super carefull not to scratch the paint. I just take the electrical harness loose from everything in the engine compartment then remove the body gromet retainer and push it all back inside the car. It's easier if you remove the whole steering column but you can remove the floor plates and two of the three steering box bolts to pull it down more. After all this you only have to disconnect the rear body harness from the dash and of course the harness from the steering column to finish electicals. Disconnect the windshield wiper cable and pull the dash. On the electrical connector blocks, I made a wedge tool to work into each connector socket of the block to help release the bullet connectors. It's either that or cut the wires and replace the harness while you have it all appart.
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