hey. i found it in THIS thread! lol. should be pics in that first pdf, listed above... the post by rkw

 

link link link....

 

These links! Scroll up!

 

Ha! That link points to a post that is a direct copy of the TIS dashpad upper removal instructions. Pretty clear sign I missed something then since I already had the doc in hand

here's RKW's link to the the dashpad TIS doc. Check bottom half of page 3 and top part of page 4.

Looking at the pic again, it definitely shows the screws to loosen (1) and the restraint cables (2) that have to be fed out. What's hard is that you can't see this stuff. Will update my thread with more advice here.



Thanks for the kick in the pants - I obviously needed it

 

Hy, of you can, do us all a favor and document the process maybe. At least take pics of what is under the dash! I want to see if there is anything that can rattle around.

 

I'm documenting the dashpad removal for my OEM BT retrofit here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...00-post41.html

 

Just a tip:

Putting dash pad back on I found the hardest part was fishing the "the restraint cables (2) " back in place.

 

Hey Mike. not surprising :-) I'll probably fish them through when reassembling - thanks for the heads up.

This work is definitely not to be taken lightly. It's a very big deal.

 

Yes,

Looks like you are making good progress.
I learned allot the first time I took most of the interior apart. And how to scratch up my hands in the process on the plastic bits.

 

thanks Mike. Will hopefully get it wrapped up in the next couple of days

I hear ya. I was a Ford interior systems engineer in a prior life so I know this stuff cold. It's pretty amazing how everything comes together. Always loved that. The hard part is how to take these things apart without damaging or scratching anything. I'll add some advice on the build thread about that.

As to hand scratches, plenty of photographic evidence in my thread :-) guess I could wear some light gloves but never got used to that.

</threadjack>

 

by the way, the climate sensor removal instructions in the TIS doc I had are wrong. you need to remove the pins from the sensor - only way to extract the dashpad. more detail in that post I linked to before

 

Just did this as you know, and I don't think it's possible to leave the a-pillar trim in place without damaging the dashpad during extraction. feel free to prove me wrong with your own car though

 

So you really had to remove the glovebox too?
What angle is the shot of those attachment cables? Where exactly are they located?

 

The TIS pic posted earlier is taken from the floor facing upwards. the bracket and screws holding the retaining cables are right above and behind the glove box. there's no way to get to them without removing the glovebox. not really an issue though as the glovebox comes out as a complete unit with 5 front facing screws. I have pics of all this in my BT retrofit thread..

In the installed position, the retaining cables go almost straight up to the dashpad. They are routed behind the airbag. There's about 4mm clearance for them.

btw just noticed you have an 06 JCW too.. sweet

 

Posting everything here. Perhaps we can get this stickied

PLEASE NOTE: The R53 instrument panel was redesigned for the 2005/6 model year. The passenger airbag mounting and instrument panel trim in the same area are completely different. The instrument panel itself is also mounted in a very different way. I believe this was done to address squeak and rattle complaints in prior R53 instrument panels as well as for the new head airbags in the a-pillars.


I decided (for me - not for you) to proceed with my dashpad and a-pillar removal. MAKE YOUR OWN DECISION AND DEAL WITH THE CONSEQUENCES ON YOUR OWN.

Now that the trim is out there are a bunch of dashpad screws to pull. starting from the left there are 2 above the steering wheel and 4 above the glovebox



each end of the instrument panel has 2 screws as well.




there are 6 screws on the top of the dashpad:

2 long screws on each end of the defroster vent trim (4 total)





and another 2 angled screws in the middle trim panel. you will need to remove the trim covers to access these last two.



that leaves the climate control sensor. need to carefully pry it up. according to TIS you are supposed to tug on the wire to break an adhesive tape bond - THIS IS DEFINITELY WRONG. They must have changed the way the wiring harness was installed after the copy of the TIS doc I had was published. You have to pull the pins out of the sensor be pulling off the lower cover of the sensor and then carefully extracting them.





Once all these fasteners have been removed you can do the a-pillar trim panels. these need to be out so that the dashpad can be removed.

Ok that said, after reading the TIS a couple of times and inspecting the a-pillar trim contents and airbags, I decided (for myself - not you) to carefully loosen the screws attaching some black straps to the a-pillar trim. I then put those screws back in place BY HAND so that they would not cut new threads into the plastic. once those screws were out I could remove the a-pillar trim.



The final step involves disconnecting two release cables from the airbag assembly. They appear to be designed to prevent the dashpad airbag door from flying out when it's deployed. This is what they look like out of the car


Anyway, and again AT YOUR OWN RISK, the pic below is from the TIS and shows that there are 2 screws (1) that need to be removed so that the cables (2) can be pulled away along with the dashpad. These bits are located right behind and above the glove box area in plain sight.


There are additional instructions there that must be followed carefully.


This is as far as you can get after freeing the straps



The clips on the ends need to get routed out behind the airbag. it is really tight behind the airbag though. Look at the top right of the pic and you will see the clip from the end of one of the straps


it will also be tricky to feed them back through for re-installation.

 

Nice work... I couldn't figure it out either, so thanks!

 

thanks..

quick tip on reinstalling the retaining straps. glove box and climate control sensor

airbag retaining clips
- loop the ends through some weed trimmer line
- feed the line through the narrow slot behind the passenger airbag
- work the ends of the retaining straps through the slot
- pull the line once the ends of the retaining straps have gone through
- attach the retaining straps. mine had blue tape on the right-most sided strap. was helpful when hooking them up

glove box
- to re-mount the glovebox assembly stick a thin screwdriver through the hole in the back of the glovebox (the whole closest to the front of the car). aim the screwdriver to the mounting hole on the plastic part the glove box attaches too. when you're sure the holes are aligned pull out the screwdriver and drive a screw in. the other 4 glove box screws will all align easily at this point.

climate control sensor
- tape some of that weed trimmer line to the ends of the connector wires
- feed the line through the dashpad from underneath
- hold on to the line as you position the dashpad
- remove tape+line while holding on to the wires. pull lower cover off sensor and connect pins. they fit in 2 slots in the lower cover of the sensor
- drop sensor in place, make sure it's centered in the dashpad hole and press down firmly.

 

Great advice, again the hardest part was fishing the connection holding cables back into place and then screwing the holding screw and making sure everything lined up correctly.

Also a good time to go through with Velcro felt tape and fix any dash rattle locations since you have it off.