buy a haynes first, it's got all the details of all the srews etc, but here is a short overview,
allow 1 1/2 days, it's a big job
disconnect battery
drain coolant
remove wipers (2no 13mm nuts on the end of arms)
remove scuttle panel covers (3no torx screws)
remove wiper motor and linkage ( 5no 10mm bolts and 1 wiring plug)
remove radio (if you can't manage this, don't think about removing the dash)
remove clock surround (pops off easily)
remove clock (2no pozi screws)
remove control/radio surround (2no pozi screws at bottom and 2no 8mm nuts just inside radio hole on each side)
remove airbag (2no torx on back of steering wheel, wiring plug pulls straight off)
disconnect rotary connector from airbag controller (black plug at top of wheel)
check roadwheels are in straight ahead position and remove steering wheel (big nut in middle of wheel)
remove steering column shroud (3 screws underneath)
remove rotary connector (3no torx)
remove indicator/wiper stalks (3 more torx)
remove 2 top nuts of steering column and loosen 2 bottom nuts
remove instument surround (4 torx)
remove intrument cluster (3 torx and 5 wiring plugs)
trace wiring and disconnect ignition switch
disconnect 4no wiring plugs from behind fusebox and 1 wiring plug from near clutch pedal
disconnect 2no wiring plugs from bottom of heater box in passenger footwell and ariel connector in front of passenger door
remove large wiring connector from under wiper motor by removing blanking plug with 8mm allen key, then removing single torx screw from underneath (t30 i think)
undo 2 no 8mm nuts from under wiring connector to release inner connector from bulkhead.
remove heater controls from dash (4 screws and control cables, watch out for clips, they tend to go ping!!)
lift out immobiliser keypad and disconnect cable from underneath
remove gear lever boot and 2no 10mm nuts underneath along with 2 screws under rear ashtray.
remove handbrake grip by pulling up and lift off centre console in 2 parts
disconnect body earth leads from bolt near accelerator pedal
remove front ashtray by removing 4 screws
remove dash mounting bolts, inside the car near the bottom of the dash on either side, near to the door.
remove dash centre bolt, directly behind radio hole.
remove dash to heater box screws 1 near right hand hinge of lower glovebox and 1 through ashtray (i think)
loosen 3 10mm nuts under scuttle panel 1 in middle 1 either side.
the whole bottom of the dash should lift away from the car quite easily, if not check for extra screws that I didn't have!!
once the dash is loose remove the nuts in the scuttle panel and lift the dash away from from the bulkhead
once the dash has fallen into your lap, reach behind and disconnect the brake light switch
lift and remove the dash from the car
to remove the heater matrix release the heater box from the car by undoing the nuts in the engine bay, 1 near the heater pipes 1 behind the brake pipes.
disconnect the matrix pipes inside the car.
avoid removing the big gromet that the pipes go through because it's a pig to get back in
remove the heater box from the car as it's guaranteed to contain a fair bit of water
release the four clips on the matrix and lift it out of the heater box.
reassebly is reverse of these instructions but take time to ensure that all wires are in the correct place and that the heater control cables are routed correctly, if not they don't move!!!
remember also the brake light switch.
these instuctions are for a rhd car, lhd will be slightly different.
any probs- rza98765@aol.com
J Latter, December 2006
