Classic Dash A-body instrument panel "review"

[MopaR&D]

I just got finished putting in one of the plastic gauge panels from Classic Dash in my Duster. I am very happy with the results, going from a stock dash with sucky factory gauges and broken speedo to this was a HUGE improvement.

Before:

Gauges mocked up:

And here's a video of it all finished and working:
https://scontent-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hvideo-xtp1/v/t42.1790-2/10528219_10205033666613588_1107445900_n.mp4?oh=4c68995378d82ad99dbf3c715876586b&oe=554D790B

This is a pretty straightforward install except for a couple issues. One is that the hole for the wiper switch is way too big; I left my windshield switch out anyway because I HATE the original location. I will probably drill a slot into my dash somewhere and relocate it. The other issue is that you can't use a mechanical-drive speedo unless you want it to loosely sit in the gauge hole; the location of the two larger holes is such that the speedo cable hits the support brace behind the dash panel. You can't tighten down the hold-down bracket on the back side without putting lots of strain on the cable, so I just left mine "free-floating" for now. You may notice in the video I swapped the tach and speedo positions so the speedo would fit; I had already wired everything up and I was so close to being done I just cut a slot between the two holes so I wouldn't have to disconnect and reconnect everything. Looks pretty bad when you see it but at this point I couldn't care much about it I'm thankful for everything else working right.

Overall, this gets a big thumbs UP from me. Unless you are building a restored original car you should trash that horrible factory dash ASAP and get one of these so you can actually know what's going on with your engine instead of just "suggestions" lol.

 

[Abodybomber]

Sounds great,Khalid. What does something like that setup cost?

 

[joeboy]

I have one in my car too, and I agree nice part.

Yes the wiper switch can hole is to big. I put a stainless steel washer behind my wiper switch nut to make it work and look good.

 

[MopaR&D]

Sounds great,Khalid. What does something like that setup cost?

Just the panel by itself was $230 incl. shipping, they sell them with full gauge sets but they cost upwards of $700 i think if you order the gauges separate off summit it would be 1-200 cheaper.

Joeboy that setup looks amazing i considered the aluminum finish but my car is way too 'haggard' on the inside ha

 

[Abodybomber]

Just the panel by itself was $230 incl. shipping, they sell them with full gauge sets but they cost upwards of $700 i think if you order the gauges separate off summit it would be 1-200 cheaper.

Joeboy that setup looks amazing i considered the aluminum finish but my car is way too 'haggard' on the inside ha

Thanks,Khalid. Sure is a lot cheaper,than I thought.

 

[DakotaDuster]

Man that's awesome. Wish they offered the complete kit with harness and what not with the Mopar licensed gauges. Regardless, both of your guys setups look great.

 

[magnumdust]

I just got finished putting in one of the plastic gauge panels from Classic Dash in my Duster. I am very happy with the results, going from a stock dash with sucky factory gauges and broken speedo to this was a HUGE improvement.

Before:

Gauges mocked up:

And here's a video of it all finished and working:
https://scontent-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hvideo-xtp1/v/t42.1790-2/10528219_10205033666613588_1107445900_n.mp4?oh=4c68995378d82ad99dbf3c715876586b&oe=554D790B

This is a pretty straightforward install except for a couple issues. One is that the hole for the wiper switch is way too big; I left my windshield switch out anyway because I HATE the original location. I will probably drill a slot into my dash somewhere and relocate it. The other issue is that you can't use a mechanical-drive speedo unless you want it to loosely sit in the gauge hole; the location of the two larger holes is such that the speedo cable hits the support brace behind the dash panel. You can't tighten down the hold-down bracket on the back side without putting lots of strain on the cable, so I just left mine "free-floating" for now. You may notice in the video I swapped the tach and speedo positions so the speedo would fit; I had already wired everything up and I was so close to being done I just cut a slot between the two holes so I wouldn't have to disconnect and reconnect everything. Looks pretty bad when you see it but at this point I couldn't care much about it I'm thankful for everything else working right.

Overall, this gets a big thumbs UP from me. Unless you are building a restored original car you should trash that horrible factory dash ASAP and get one of these so you can actually know what's going on with your engine instead of just "suggestions" lol.

I have the same dash, my only issue was that its fitment is not great. This was the original pic when set it in place. It was crooked and not every hole lined up. I had to apply a good bit of pressure to get most of the holes to line up.


However, it still looks better than what I had in there and the gauge orientation is nicer than the fastlane west panels.

 

[DakotaDuster]

Oh man, magnumdust I like the combo of those black gauges and black steering wheel. Looks pretty stealth like. Lol

 

[Mopar to ya]

I bought mine from fastlanewest. It is nice, but the dash panel itself is very flimsy. How is yours? Is the plastic good and strong?

 

[MopaR&D]

The plastic is nice and thick about 1/8" thick all around but like magnumdust said the holes are kinda off you need to finagle the screws in.

 

[sireland67]

I used a Auto meter mechanical speedometer in mine, I just trimmed the brace a little bit.
FYI a stock speedometer cable from a 65 barrcuda fits the autometer gauge, its only $20 from NAPA.
I also fiber-glassed up the wiper switch hole, and re-drilled it to the correct size.
I also opened the mounting holes up to get it to align.

 

[NukeBass]

That looks really nice. After spending a whole lot of money having my car restored I am thinking of things like this to do in the future. Although I am a fan of the look of the original cluster, I see the value in adding the other gauges. Was there a lot of additional wiring to get the non-stock gauges wired in?

 

[MopaR&D]

That looks really nice. After spending a whole lot of money having my car restored I am thinking of things like this to do in the future. Although I am a fan of the look of the original cluster, I see the value in adding the other gauges. Was there a lot of additional wiring to get the non-stock gauges wired in?

Kind of, all these gauges are aftermarket so you need to have a wire for the lights, ground, ignition on, and signal for each gauge. You can use the factory wiring for the first three and I used the old fuel and temp sender wires. When I did this conversion though I also bypassed the ammeter circuit which took an extra couple hours. Overall it's fairly straightforward but takes a lot of time getting all the wires off the gauges set up.

Something I noticed about the new mechanical speedo is the needle bounces pretty badly, is there a particular type of lube to use on the cable or is general purpose grease OK?

 

[diymirage]

not to get off topic here, but do you happen to know the number of the installation kit you used to get the grant steering wheel onto your duster?
and do the horn and indicator stopper thingy work ?

 

[Louie70Dart]

Graphite, as is used for door locks, is what I used. That and some WD40 to help it slide down the sheath. I noticed they sell aerosols with the graphite in it, but that might be messy unless you are careful when you spray.

 

[MopaR&D]

not to get off topic here, but do you happen to know the number of the installation kit you used to get the grant steering wheel onto your duster?
and do the horn and indicator stopper thingy work ?

I think i just used the mopar kit they sell, the horn is a bit odd the way it works but it does work and the turn signal "cam" is located inside the column you don't mess with it to install the wheel.

For the speedo cable i tried graphite spray before but that was way too thin i think i'm gonna try mixing graphite paste with wd-40 or some other light oil so it stays stuck to the cable better.

 

[rumblefish360]

What size gauges? 2-1/8? The MoPar gauges only come in 2-5/8.

 

[DakotaDuster]

not to get off topic here, but do you happen to know the number of the installation kit you used to get the grant steering wheel onto your duster?
and do the horn and indicator stopper thingy work ?

I used Grant installation kit part #3314 for my 74 Duster.

 

[barty005]

I had one of those dashes but didn't like the holes that where left so I made my own out of an original put a bit of thin steel plate in and then cut it out.

 

[rumblefish360]

Hey Barty, do you have a step by step? I'm interested in what you did for my car.

 

[barty005]

Hey Barty, do you have a step by step? I'm interested in what you did for my car.

I sort of do I'll send you some pics tomorrow

 

[MopaR&D]

What size gauges? 2-1/8? The MoPar gauges only come in 2-5/8.

I just used universal Auto Meter Sport Comp gauges in the 2-1/8" size. The two bigger holes in the Classic Dash piece are for 3-3/8" gauges I'm pretty sure.

barty005 that looks awesome later on when I have the time and resources I will make a sheetmetal instrument panel like that. Good thing I haven't thrown away the old cluster yet I'll hang on to it.

I grabbed some graphite "dust" in a small tube from Home Depot and tried to get as much on the cable as I could, seemed to help but it still vibrates a bit between 40 and 60 mph or so.

 

[magnumdust]

Oh man, magnumdust I like the combo of those black gauges and black steering wheel. Looks pretty stealth like. Lol

Thanks, but the wheel is temporary. It came with the car and for the time being its very very low on my list of things to change.(unless it somehow breaks tomorrow while driving)

The plastic is nice and thick about 1/8" thick all around but like magnumdust said the holes are kinda off you need to finagle the screws in.

I'm glad its not just me.

 

[diymirage]

I think i just used the mopar kit they sell, the horn is a bit odd the way it works but it does work and the turn signal "cam" is located inside the column you don't mess with it to install the wheel.

I used Grant installation kit part #3314 for my 74 Duster.

thanks guys

I bought a grant wheel that was used in a drag car and after I installed it the turn signals wouldn't auto shut off anymore

ill look into the 3314 kit

 

[barty005]

Here's what I ended up doing (with out high jacking your thread)
1st removed all the old gauges (they didnt work anyway).

2nd made a cardboard template as it was easier to make and get the shape right.

3rd copied template to bit of ply and marked out gauges to get placement right then marked holes on what was left of the original dash.

4th carefully and that's really carefully plastic is 40 years old and brittle cut the around the inside edge left about 3/8 inch around the outer edge more where gauges didn't go.

5 I used a bit of 1/3 - 3mm sheet steel and cut it out the same as the ply (easier to stuff up the ply 1st) then once it was a nice fit drilled and counter sunk 6 mounting hole hence reason for leaving as much of dash outer edge as possible. I used nuts on the back side rather than screws.

6 primed painted and installed steel to dash re sanded and painted the whole thing as one.
I also sanded and painted the gauges as they where a polished alloy finish and I thought the matt black looked better.

End result dash fits just as the original the indicator light and high beam are push in led bulbs as are the green back lights in the gauges. I left the head light and wiper switches out as the where already mount on the under side of the dash one on each side just where the dash rolls under by your knees. also didn't want to cut anymore of the plastic than I had to as it had broken in one spot (cant tell super glue and paint covered it )


If anybody wants one of the plastic pre cut gauge dashes I have the carbon fiber looking one I removed.