why cant it be easy to change a simple dash light.. i have half the dash taken apart and have access to the back of the gauge cluster.. i have figured out where the bulbs are.. the door ajar was very easily marked on the board.. u just simply twist it and pull the bulb out.. i can see where the ill lights go in.. its a black piece that DOES NOT TWIST no matter what I do, short of getting pliers and breaking them off..

is there a trick to turning those little black things that hold the bulb? maybe ford should have just given every truck a flashlight to use for their dash lights

how hard/what direction should these things come out so i can change 2 bulbs? or does everyone pretty much just leave the lights out forever?

 

well, i have tried holding the black thing and spinning around in circles while tapping on my forehead and chugging a beer held up with my teeth and even that dont get the bulb out!

maybe i have to tap on it 3 times, say the alphabet backwards then pull..

 

unfortunately....its a ford so yes you have to do all those things. lol. they like to make us work hard. just like taking the plastic valance off is even a pain in the aorta

 

ah ha! fingered it out!

you have to spin around in circles BACKWARDS while tapping your forehead and chugging a beer while gargling!

 

just for future reference:

Step by step:

1. remove the piece that goes directly on top of the steering column.. this is held by clips, no screws

2. remove the one screw that holds the dash piece that goes BELOW the steering column.. this can now drop down by pulling it - the rest is clips.

3. remove the 3 screws that are visible that hold the dash piece that goes ABOVE the instrument panel. that piece is NOT ready to be pulled off yet!!

4. begin to carefully pull that dash piece that goes ABOVE the instrument panel out until you can access a spot where the headlight switch is coming out with the panel - there will be a plastic piece that you need to push in that acts like a clip - then the headlight switch can be removed and you will see the final screw that holds the panel in place - remove that screw.

5. once you have removed the above, you can access the 4 screws that hold the instrument panel in place - remove them.

6. carefully pull the instrument panel out. if you want to completely remove the instrument panel for easier access to the lights, you will need to first remove the transmission indicator ( P N D 2 1).. this can be achieved by looking along each side of it for the clips, pushing them in and sliding the piece down off the instrument panel.

7. pull the instrument panel outwards until you can access the wire harnesses.. push the clip in and pull them out (there are 3 harnesses for the instrument panel).

8. the instrument panel can now be completely removed and you will need to flip it over to see the back of the panel. the small white plastic pieces are all labeled on the pc board - ford even throws in some extra free bulbs if you dont have 4x4 (they install the bulbs the indicate your 4x4 status even if it will leave the factory without 4x4!).. the larger black ones are for the backlighting for the gauges - these must all be turned counter-clockwise to remove and clockwise to put back in.. they can be tough to get out and pliers can aid in turning them to remove.

9. follow the instructions in reverse to reassemble.

 

Hey Cain, nice step by step on the bulb replacement. Should be put to the "How To" section. Could you please be more descriptive on tapping your forehead, holding a beer in your teeth and gargling? Nice job Buddy and am glad you sere successful in the bulb replacement.

 

If you had to change any of the bulbs, then you might as well change them all. It is a big pain to do, but they are cheap and if you are already in there, then go for it. I recently changed my blinker bulb and a week later the other one went out. I will never change just one again.

 

On the bright side, just think of the money you saved over getting the work done at the dealer :-)