gijosh

any help I cang et ont his would be awesome. considering i alsmot burned the house down last night touching wires tot he battery and contact pins

Im playing around with the instrument panel now figuring out how to test the pins. looked for a few different threads and youtube videos but i'm not finding any real help. Im trying to test the instrument panel while its not installed or plugged into anything. I looked in How to sectiona dn found nothing, and I saw some other threads in electronics, but nothing that was more of a how to. I really need a dumbed down version with a few good pics showing me how I can test the different pins on the back of a 620 instrument panel and how i can test that the light come on. Any help as always is very much appreciated.

SO I took out my gauges the other day and im looking at the back of it. its pretty different. theres 12 pins first of all. Ive got which ones are the turns signals, just from tracing the board to the pins... But I'm havign a time trying to figure out the other stuff.... like most importantly which ones the ground. I cant tell.

I cant find the thread but someone posted in a either a 620 dash thread or a gauges thread regarding the same.

As an side, heres the old cracked to shit dash...

So it's been cold as crap for awhile, so i havent been out to twist on the truck. Today i was able to finally ge the old piece of crap dash out. I was able to search for some other dash related forums for some extra help. here you can see where the original color was that burnt orange color. I prefer the silver outside color. Also all the rats nest of wiring I've been dealing with. I am looking forward to being able to test all my gauges now theyre out of the dash. Out of curiosity, does anyone have dimensions or patterns for a new dash? I am planning of making one from hardwood. I also plan on removing hte console and doing the same. I can do it myself, but I figure if someone already done the work i might try and ask first. Thanks

Theres a lot of dash removal questions... but this thread right here is King of them. showing me exactly where the damn screws are is clutch. I'm taking my dash out to re-wire it and remove lots of old wires the kid who had it before me left int here. thanks for this!

Thanks for this thread, ive been struggling with the center bolt on my truck. That and trying to figure out whats still connected has been a pain in the ass.

No Just the Haynes. It shows only five screws holding the dash in place.

The whole dash. Im going to rebuild one of my own. Helped someone do it before and since this ones all cracked to pot I figured id just take it out. Pluse due to the spaghetti mess of wires left in there from previous owners custom wiring jobs, its making it hard to figure out my electric issues.

aNY opinion on removal of the dash? I've got two of the bottom screws out, but the tight clearance between the windshield and the dash make it kinda tough. Also, it looks like the phillips heads on the screws are stripped, so ive got to impact those out, which isnt easy given the clearance.

So due to the spaghetti mess this truck is turning out to be, and its kinda tight to check the connections being all the gagues, it looks like it would be easier to just remove the dash for now to fix the electric woes I seem to be having. It looks like its just 5 or six screws right? I just feel like it may be easier to look at connections and sort wire that way. One of the previous owners did some custom electric for the audio, which seems to be compounding my problem. any reccomendations?

I figured the last one was one of the lamp plugs. Thanks. Im just looking for the corresponding end for it.

I've noticed it's kinda tight back aroudn the dash area, and I can really see to where different wires run, but I swear, This truck is a spaghetti mess. Should i attempt at taking off the dash to do this? It seems like it would be eaiser to sort the mess that way for one thing. I cant check the connections on the gauges otherwise.

Heres some more pictures. I was wondering, i have noticed not a lot of people have the same big boxy looking thing in their engine bay as me. Its just left of the engine block if you're looking at it. I know someone had said something about it being part of an A/C system. Here's a picture of the dash. I removed a plate that had a little "D" logo. Is this where the tach SHOULD go? I need to get one I think. a straigh on look of the dash gauges and stuff OK< what follows are a bunch of pictures where i found wires or cables that lead to nothing. any ideas? and finally, I noticed this part has color coded hoses coming off of it, but the last one is capped off. Is it supposed to be like that? I was curious, because the color coded sticker on it, says it goes to the carburetor

OK, so I've replaced all the fuses and the fusebox. When the headlights come on, i should see some sort of lighting on the dash panel right? So my gauges and such would be illuminated at night. Im not getting that. SOME lights DO come on. Like when the Key turns I get the oil light that comes on. BUt Im asking specifically about the dash lights that light up the gauges so I can see them at night. I turned the little knob on the right hand side that SHOULD be for that purpose, and no response. I checked the connection to the plastic connector and it seems to be solid. IS there a way to test the knobby to see if that fader is good?

I bought a clip to sodler into place. most likely doing that part tomorrow. Luckily have a few days off this weekend to really take a look at the little things I still need to do before i can put it on the road and start stalling at every stop sign

Thanks for everything. Yeah I was surprised about how many youtube videos there are for car maintenance stuff. and just using different tools Dad didn't get a chance to show me... like the soldering iron. It's also the reason It's slow going... Lots of research before I look and see where the new lesson applies to my truck, so so going, but I think I'm doing ok. It was dead a couple weeks ago after not starting for 4 years. I at least got the engine turned over. I see what you mean about the dash board too, its cracked beyond belief. the kid who had it last at least has a dash cover over it.

Hopefully, soon. Found the paperwork for the truck in My Dad's old files. soldered a new fuse clip into the fusebox. A little jury rigged but it'll do. I've got to take a look at the instrument panel lights. when i turn on the headlights nothing lights up there. Found some old bulbs in the glove box so im guessing it may jsut be a bulb issue, but who knows until i have time to trace wire runs... Theres so much extra stuff that the kid who owned it before my Dad bought it just left in there after he wired it. But i'm excited about it to get it on the road soon. especially with these gas prices I cant afford to drive my brother-in-law's cutlass anyhow.

The one with the smashed in roof is begging to be a Convertible. I really love how clean these engines look all chromed up. between the work my Dad did, and the jury rigging the kid did before Dad had it, theres a lot of stray wires and connectors that dont lead to anything. I look forward to the day I can clean up all the extra trash left over int he engine bay.

Major Victory today. Engine turned over and idled. runs like a champ. The clutch was a little stiff, but the gear shifter finally came loose, and I was able to put it in neutral. I can smell gas, but I don't see anywhere where there is leaks or anything. Things to do now are to get the old sitting int he sun, not going anywhere tires replaced. and fix the electrical aka the fusebox. I've got a plan for that already. I ended up just replacing the starter.. it was only 30 bucks and the other one had some worn down exposed wire coming out of the solenoid.

That's good to know, thanks. The battery is brand new. I may be just starting it wrong. I work today but have tomorrow to check it out. Thanks for your guys' help. hopefully iI can post some pics soon when i can get it cleaned up and on the road and video of my first stall as i attempt to learn to drive manual transmission...

yeah, soooo THAT's how much i know about auto repair and manual transmissions... I overlooked the most obvious thing... apparently you have to keep the clutch pressed down to start it. So there's that. I am thinking that all the truck needed in the first place was a new battery. I will try again tomorrow.

Thanks for ALL this help so far. I definitely will be getting a new fusebox... dad had alligator clamps with a wire as a fuse there because of the missing bracket. A friend came over and told me it's most likely a Solenoid problem, So Im in the process of taking off the starter. Had a little trouble with my socket wrench being a little too thick to get into the tight space. Man, the labeled pictures really helped out a ton. thanks.

Pretty much any help would be good. if there's any manual out there written for non-car dummies, I'm in. What i really wish i could see is like, a picture of the 620 engine with labels on it. so i know what I'm looking at. I've identified the alternator, and a couple other things... but there's a few things that look like what the starter should be... Just so you cats know what kind of dude you're dealing with.