Actually, if any member has a DIY to submit they should PM it to me or Silver so we can correct any grammar, spelling and punctuation errors and then put it up in the FAQ section. Posting it here we may not see it before it falls off the first page or before it gets a bunch of replies added to it. Also, if it will have pics in it you need to commit to keeping those pics up so that the links don't break. A DIY with broken pic links sucks.

 

I was just saying if he's submitted them and they don't get approved/posted in a reasonable amount of time (like he said) then posting here is better than dozens of questions being asked over and over.

 

pcfixerpro, you can just take those two screws out and the rubber piece that all the lines are attached to will pull right off the switch (with all the vac lines attached). its slip fit and it is soft rubber. those lines go under the dash, to the right of the gas pedal in a cluster of vacuum lines and there is a yellow and a green one that go to canisters connected to the hvac box for the blend doors.

Rick, it makes it much easier to pull the dash if you remove the steering column. remove the knee blocker and disconnect all the wires on the column (including the gear selector cable). then there is a bolt on the shaft that goes through the firewall (below the brake booster) that you have to take out and the steering column will be disconnected. after taking that out you will have to take the three bolts out of the base of the column on the firewall and the four bolts that hold the column to the dash under the cluster. so all the wires, one bolt on the shaft in the engine bay, three bolts on the firewall behind the brake pedal and four bolts toward the top of the column right below the cluster and the entire thing will pull right out with ease.

and you don't have to discharge the ac lines to pull the dash (or change the heater core for that matter).
pulling the entire dash consists of removing the column, taking the glove box, the knee blocker, the door sill guards, the plastic covers that are connected to the sides of the dash and the door sills, the hvac controls, the instrument cluster, the passenger airbag switch, the radio, the cupholder, and the passenger air bag out to start. then disconnect all the wires you can see behind the airbag (don't forget the antennae wire), the wires that go the fuse panel and all the other ones around that area, and the vacuum cluster to the right of the gas pedal.
after all that then all you have left is the bolts along the windshield, the bolts behind the plastic cover on the floor under the cup holder, and the two big pivot bolts on each side of the dash. you will have to loosen those pivot bolts and rock the dash back to disconnect a couple wires before you will be able to yank the whole thing out.

i know that is all mashed together, but i'm pretty sure i covered everything. i did it all by just looking at what to remove and taking my time.
a cordless bit driver will save you a lot of time when removing the 1 million+ screws that hold the dash together.

 

Sheriff, when are you coming over? I have beer.

 

^
Well...I was going to try tackling my cracked dash by myself, but after reading that, I think not.

 

Damn that things expensive. What's the dealer price on these? I thought mine was right around $200 when I got it 3 years or so ago. Now I did get a discount with the dealer at the time because of where I worked but not that much of one. I can often talk them down to the same or similar price as a regular customer. Maybe they have really gone up in price.

 

that's a bit of a drive.
it really isn't that bad if you have a cordless bit driver to take out all the screws. you can get it done in a day. do you have holes or is it just cracked? that plastic welder seems like it would work out nicely if there aren't any chunks missing.

 

That is the dealer price!

So you are willing to spend $1000 in labor to fix a dash? Its an easy job, trust me, I did it.

 

Cover looks good! Glad I havent had any issues with either of my dashes.

 

Let me see what I can do on finishing what I was typing up and get it posted or whatever. Rick how do you want me to send it to you?