Dash swap

Discussion in 'Technical' started by Wizz, Oct 15, 2011.

  1. Wizz

    Wizz Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    1977 maverick
    Has any one swap a newer mustang or any newer car dash an fit in in a maverick or comet. If so I would like to see it. I'm trying to do it as well. Thanks
     
  2. Bryant

    Bryant forgot more than learned

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    i looked into it. it turns out that mustang dashes all the way up to 2004 are the same width as a maverick dash.
    some one on here did put a early 80s t-bird dash in there car. i cant remember who
     
  3. maverick75

    maverick75 Gotta Love Mavs!

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  4. MavMark

    MavMark Mega Modifier

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    1972 Grabber, 351w,EFI,A/C, RRS Rack, Power Everything :)
    Yeah, that's me. :)

    The main dashboard in my Maverick is from a 1980 or '81 T-bird. (Can't remember...I got this stuff from two different cars in the junkyard back in the early '90s) This style of dashboard was used from '80-'82 in what are now called the "Squarebirds". I have since discovered the same basic dash design was used in many Fords well into '80s.

    It originally had an electronic speedometer/gas gauge and a small trip computer in the center, but I have since upgraded the instrument cluster to one from a late 90's Crown Vic. The computer in the center area is now from a 1984 Lincoln, and the electronic climate control is from a 2000 Crown Vic.

    This dash worked very well because the curve of the top of the dash matched the Maverick's curve nearly exactly. The width is nearly perfect, being only a fraction of an inch wider. I had to dimple the doors to keep them from hitting the side of the dash when closed. I think the hardest part of this swap was modifying the AC/heater box to match the firewall on the Mav. The other major issue is the wiring. :) Of course I have added systems from a bunch of different cars, so this only complicated things. It might have been a bit easier if I took the wiring harness from the T-bird and installed it "as is". I also did not use the T-bird's steering column, so I spliced the wiring into the existing ignition/turn signals, etc coming from the Mav's column. I eventually updated that too to get tilt wheel by welding the top half of a '77 T-bird column to the bottom half of the Mav column...an idea borrowed from Tom Hackmann I believe...:)

    Anyway, a different dash can be done if you have the time and patience for it. ;) (I have less of both these days...:p)
     

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