RaleighTL

My dash clock light went out a while ago, and due to the dealership saying it'd cost $115 labor to fix, I'm just now getting around to trying to do something. I heard it can be done by myself, so I went by the dealership and got the bulb for $2.50. Can you tell me how to get the trim/black plastic dash off without breaking/scratching it pieces? Thanks!

RaleighTL

Oh yeah, I tried banging the light area (as was suggested in another post) and it didn't work. And the page that shows how to install the new gauges doesn't specify how to get the trim off.

bigbadboss101

Mine is out too and I tried banging the area. In my Subaru I got the heater control lights to go back on by banging. In my old Corolla GTS I got the dash lights to turn back on by banging :-).

Need to fix my clock lights now.

SwampGas

2 screws above the steering wheel, carefully pry off the trim, then you can disconnect all the connectors. You have to unscrew the clock from the assembly then use a flathead to get the bulb out. $1.49 at radioshack for a pack of 2 (part 272-1092).

SatinSilverTypS

iTrader: (1)

$115 is total BS. it takes 10 minutes to replace. it's sad that dealerships only want to screw people now

draco0858

hey my light that shows the mileage and the car under the speedometer went out any suggestions.

ipastor

How did you pry the black plastic bezel out?
I took out the screws and tried pulling from the top center but it wouldn't move much!

Thanks

Edward'TLS

Some DIY instructions say to take off the upper half of the steering column cover before removing the 2 screws. Is this step necessary ? I'm reluntant to pry open the steering column cover, because it will leave pry marks on the cover seams.

dgronho

I too am having issues with my LCD guage. New to TL's so not sure if that is just common or if it is a light I need to replace. Anyone know? Hoping it is just a light cause it sucks not being able to see it very well.

Romer2003TL

I have the same problem. I went to the dealer and told me that it was a sensor that has gone and probably not the bulbs. They said at $100/hr for 5 hours they could fix it
I know there are DIY posts on here that guys have changed the green bulbs to blue. check it out it may be what you are looking for. I haven't got around to fixing mine yet.

Vicman17

Dealers will claim a 1-2 hour flat rate labor charge on non-warranty items like this. When I had this problem, I told the SA I would switch my servicing to my neigborhood Acura dealer and they quicly changed their mind. Then they said they'd include it on my next scheduled service for an extra $25.00.

Anachostic

My clock light went out a few months ago. I was very upset by it because I knew it wasn't a warrantable item and I'd have to pay a ton for the dealer to pop the dash out. So thanks to this forum, I believed I could do it myself.

I've always been impressed with people that have the forethought to document a procedure so others can learn from it. So this time, I thought I'd try.

I went to Radio shack and got the bulbs. (272-1092)




when I saw them I said "No way." I thought I'd have to solder them or something. But I was determined to do it anyway.

I got home and got everything all set up. My tools: a screwdriver. I put the seat back and got ready to dive in.



I started by removing the two screws under the top of the dash. Then I yanked off the heater knobs and put the steering column down. Wow, this is easy!



Then I used the flathead screwdriver to pry up what I thought would be obvious latching points. Starting with below the heater controls.



I pulled a bit on that, but the rest of the dash wasn't moving. So I chose another point I thought would be a good latch point. I scuffed a little of the plastic trying to find the best part to pry at.



I pulled a bit more, but there was no way I could release the left side. so over to the other side to pry that out.



And one more underneath.



Now the dash is mostly worked out, but the top of the steering column is interfering. So I crawled under the steering column and unscrewed the first screw I saw. It was a machine screw, which meant it must've had a metal anchor. That doesn't seem likely - that the top half of the steering column has metal anchors.

So I took a chance and stuck my finger in the turn signal opening and pulled up. The top popped right off. Ok, so no screws, then. I put the screw back below the steering column. Now the steering column top is off.



There's really no room to work behind the dash. There are five harnesses on the right side: Odometer controls, clock, heater, rear defogger, and hazard switch. They all have release clips on them, so it was fairly easy to get them out. Three more harnesses on the other side, too.





Now the dash is loose. I found it easiest to get the top lip of the dash over the steering wheel then rotate it over the wheel.



Now the dash is empty.




I took the dash out of the car to get a better look at it and find out what needed to be done.



The black box at the top with the small white dot is the clock. The white dot is the bulb. I did not need to unscrew the clock from the dash.



Using the flathead screwdriver I unscrewed it (maybe 1/8 turn to unlock it). I improvised with two small drill bits to pull the bulb out. I wish I had forceps.



Now I understand how the lights work. The wires wrap around the plastic harness. Now I need another tool: an x-acto knife.

I used the x-acto knife to get the bulb wire out of the plastic harness.



Now at this point, all the rest of my pictures sucked because I shot so close, What I saw through the viewfinder was not where the lens was. So bear with the descriptions.

I took the new bulb and put the wire through the holes in the harness. I wrapped the wire around the harness like the old bulb was and trimmed it off with the x-acto knife.

I put the bulb back in the dash and took the dash back in the car. Before reassembly, I plugged in only the clock wiring harness and made sure the light worked. It did.

I reinstalled the dash in the exact reverse order I took it apart in.

Then I started the car and made sure every switch worked. My fog light indicator doesn't light up anymore, but it does turn on the fog lights. I can live with that.

Now I have an illuminated clock again. Life has returned to normal.

Hopefully someone finds this useful. Good luck.

Edward'TLS

Anachostic, thanks for the excellent write-up and pics. Do you really need to pop off the top half of the steering wheel cover to remove the dash instrument panel ? Will it clear if you just lower the steering wheel to the lowest position ?

Anachostic

I could not get the dash off without removing the top of the steering column. I did have the steering wheel lowered. But try it yourself. Removing the cover doesn't have to be the first step, and like I said, no screws.

kraty1

Thanks so much for the great write up & pics. This clock light being out is such a small issue but has been causing me much pain. I'm going to attempt this weekend.

RaleighTL

Well, I finally got around to changing my dash clock light bulb. Thanks for everyone's help and hints. Here's a brief summary of how I got it done:
- Remove two screws above the MPH/RPM gauges.
- Carefully, but requires some muscle, pry out plastic dash.
- I did not need to disconnect the wiring to the fog light, cruise, and sunroof buttons. Nor did I need to completely take the dash out. By coming in through the right side of the dash, I unclipped the wiring in five places behind the air controls. With a screwdriver, you can get the clock part off the back of the plastic dash. Just twist the bulb for it to come out (may require needle nose pliers) and twist the new one in.

This really is pretty simple and well worth saving $100 plus. It took me about an hour.

- Sean

FuriousSam

I just did the same thing, took me about an hour as well.

FuriousSam

After checking out the lights in the freezing cold, I noticed that the new bulb aren't as bright as the temperature light (Not really surprised since the LED is smaller than the one it replaced, but at least it works now and I don't have to keep turning on the reading lights to tell time).

Edward'TLS

I did mine last weekend. I too agree that there is no need to take out the dash piece. So
- there is no need to disconnect any wirings on the left side.
- there is no need to remove the steering wheel top cover, as long as the steering wheel is tilted to the lowest position.

However, take special care when installing the new bulb, because my screwdriver slipped and the new bulb slid out and disappeared into the inside of the center console. So I had to go and buy another new bulb.

mr_min

my dealership wants $7.50 a bulb in milford, ct

they have always been high..

bigbadboss101

An hour is good. I am afraid I would take it apart and then it doesn't fit nicely together when I am finish with it.

AcuraBuddy

I had the same problem when I first got the car but heck I had it done at a local carshop for like 25 bucks including the bulb. But I'm pretty sure if you follow the directions given above with those pics you should be able to do it and save yourself like 20 bucks

Edward'TLS

But this will guarantee the brightness of the clock display to match up with the surrounding displays.

Bricktop

What's the part number on the OEM clock bulb?

9932

iTrader: (1)

so is this going to fix the problem i have where when the time is 8:30 its looks like its E:3U ???
cuz this really bugs the hell outa me!!!

DrZfINeSt

Thank you this thread helped me out a lot!

FuriousSam

I just noticed I made the same post in the photo section, so I figured it might get more views here:

I got one of the #74 LEDs for my clock and it is not lighting up after I installed it. Does the LED have a positive and negative side that I should watch out for?

FuriousSam

I solved my own problem. I switched the LED around and it lights up. The only problem I have right now is that I brought the super white LED and the clock is lighting up with a blue color. I am guessing there is a blue film in there that is changing the color.

hotwheljoe

ChangedTheClockLight...ButNowIHaveThisProblem...No ClimateControl

thanks to the great instructions here on how to change the clock light, i did the job today. wasn't so bad. one hour of so. changed the light for the temp control display too (the right side one was out).

i thought i had plugged in all 5 of the connectors in the back. now the auto temp control (no a/c, i turn the knob to auto no cool air) is not working along with the "outside temp" display ( it displays - - -). which connector do i need to re-check?

i went from super happy to wow, what did i do?

thanks for all your future help,

joe
------------------
updated info-

the fans stay on in auto mode and air is blowing, but the air is not air conditioned cool.

so i need instructions on getting the outside temp to display and how to get my cold air back.

thanks everyone!

joe

hotwheljoe

please disregard my post of panic, i went back into the dash and connected a connector and all is well. thanks, joe

9932

iTrader: (1)

my light is not out because i can see the clock at night but instead of saying 8:30 it looks like E:3U. does this mean i need a new clock?

kaptainjack

just wanted to add my thanx to all who contributed info here...did the job today...no real regrets except I might have gotten a replacement from Acura instead of Radio Shack...there is a slight difference in intensity, but it's still better than being in the dark...I didn't have to take of the steering wheel cover, but did need to disconnect all 8 harnesses..just a couple of minor marks or scratches but I'm probably the only one who would notice...thanx again to all..

nototo

Anochostic,

Thanks for the detailed pics and instructions. I did it in 20 minutes.
Couldn't have done it without your help. You saved me $95 the dealer would have charged me. I will pay it forward. Cheers.

Audiovibe-Mike

Its might not be the bulb. mine goes on and off at its own will. one time it worked for like 3 months and then sometmes it doesn't work at all

spoka

iTrader: (6)

thanks for the handy write up

StreetKA

iTrader: (8)

thanks that was very useful

JustSomeGuy

Wow, my clock light has been out for almost a year now. Just haven't been able to figure out how to fix it. Thanks

My brother had an old pickup once where one side of the instrument clusters light never worked. One really bad day, we were driving home and the other side went out. My brother lost it and hit the instruments in frustration. Both lights went on and we just stared in wonder. Drove the rest of the way with big grins on our faces and the day did not seem so bad anymore.

pshaine

The OEM part number is 35505-S0K-A0. I followed the instructions and they work great. The OEM part was under $3 so don't mess around with the Radio Shack ones.

Once you get the dash off (no need to take the steering wheel cover off) you can reach behind and quickly replace the bulb.

Using a small flat head screw driver, un-screw 1/4 turn and pop in the new one. The entire project took less than a half hour and works great now.

Hopefully these photos help.

View of Part Number


View of Bulb


View of back of clock with bulb installed


View of dash besel pulled off a few inches


Side view of clock


Hope this helps everyone.

Thanks to all for their posts.

newperson

iTrader: (2)

pshaine, that does help; thanks! My dash clock light has been out since I first bought the car (6 months ago). Been stalling because I don't want to take the dash apart. Your pics make it look like you can just pull only as much as you need to do it.

jjar03

Just to add to all this.
I personally had to remove the whole thing out (precisely speaking this is not the whole dash, I would call it a plastic cover to which switches and climate control electronics are attached), I guess my hands are too big so I cold not get to the bulb without removing the whole thing. Also, after that I have removed and pulled out the clock (I think this was just two screws) itself and then removed the plastic cover on the back of the clock to be able to nicely get to the small bulb (all this is very logical and apparent once you unhook trhe switches). I guess this is the proper procedure since bulb is recessed, sort of in the hole and it is still hard to imagine for me how some people could do it without doing what I have done.
Also, in my case during removal, and I was very careful, a few clips just broke. This could depend on the climate and the age of the car since they are all plastic, but I guess it is the case in most instances that they would brake during removal. It does not matter, since the remaining clips are good enough to keep it securely enough in place.
Also, one of the bulbs on the fog light switch (green one) went as well, and this happened to several people that I know, so do not be surprised if it happens to you.

The bottom line with all this in my opinion:

1) It cannot be properly done, if at all, in 10 minutes, as usual give yourself plenty of time even though it may look simple (this applies to everything else that you do). I am an old fart and this is typical for young people to say, that everything can be done quick and everything is easy. Well, when you do a few things, then you realize that nothing can be done fast and do not think about anything as being easy, be as prepared as possible and again, give yourself plenty of time.
2) I would order two light bulbs for the fog light switch aside from ordering clock bulb since these are known to brake during removal, they are cheap anyway. They are located on the right hand side of the fog light switch.
3) As far as removal process goes, after unscrewing two upper screws, start prying with the flat head screwdriver wrapped with the self-adhesive tape (to prevent scratches) beginning from the lower left corner (below fog light switch) then when you pop up that clip, you can proceed with upper one (above fog light) and work your way slowly towards right hand side.
4) After you remove the whole panel, left hand side vent can also disassemble (happened to me) which is pretty obvious and easy to assemble. Take this opportunity to wipe off the dust collected in your vent as well, so have a rug handy.
5) I still think that you need to remove plastic cover (no screws there as far as I remember) above the steering wheel to do all this properly.

This was just my 2 cents and do not be afraid to attempt this, aside from few broken clips, you should be just fine.