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“In this issue you will continue the assembly of the dashboard and center console by following these step-by-step instructions.”

This is a long issue and will likely take you a good amount of time (even if you don’t mod along the way like I did). While there are only a few ‘parts’ provided, there are nearly 30 steps involving mostly tiny parts. Get ready for some work!

Contents

Parts

Materials: The only non-electronic parts in this issue are the plastic Separator and Cable Ties.

Magazine

• Drive Time: Model Instructions
• A Time Traveler’s Guide: Elisabeth Shue

Build

Dashboard Wiring

Step 1

Pass the (digital speedometer) cable between the parts shown and down the other side of the center console:

Step 2

Lead the cable down and under the Dashboard:

Steps 3-5

Pass this cable down the underside of the Centre Console and place all of the cables along the side of the gear shifter housing:

Step 6

Place this Centre Console/Dashboard assembly onto the floorboard (Chassis Plate from Issue 40) as shown.

Make sure none of the wires are pinched or trapped under the Centre Console!

Step 7

Secure these together with four (4) FP screws from below, as shown:

Step 8

Before we start on the next steps, I wanted to add some detail to the terminal block (Separator). On The ‘A’ Car, this part is not just pure black like the piece we get with the model:

I did not want to go crazy here, so I just used a Metallic Silver Sharpie to color in the metal screw terminals. Some other builders have gone as far as to add the screws and blue crimp connectors, but that was too much for me. Any ink that didn’t go where I wanted it to go could easily be removed with a cotton swab dabbed in isopropyl alcohol. Note that the outer ends of the terminal do not get painted. 

Identify the Cables (48B) and match them to the holes in the Separator. Check the orientation of the Separator as there are tabs on each end, one small and one large.

I grabbed this diagram from the instructions to show the different sized tabs on the Separator and order of the wires:

Step 9

Pass the #1 wire of Cables (48B) up through the first hole in the Separator, across the underside, and back through the opposite hole.

I positioned the Separator about 5.5-6 inches (140-150 mm) from the twisted end of the Cables (48B). I determined this location by placing the wires on the dashboard and figuring out where the Separator should be and where both wire ends will still go behind the firewall as expected. That way there wouldn’t be any surprises during install (I didn’t want to have to redo all this wire looping).

Step 10

Repeat the previous step to fit the rest of the wires through the Separator.

I chose to pass all the wires through one side first, then loop them all back through after:

Step 11

Twist the free ends of Cables (48B) together. Both ends should look similar:

Step 12

Press the two tabs of the Separator into the matching holes of the Casing (glovebox lid) on the dashboard:

Step 13

Pass the ends of Cables (48B) down and under the Dashboard in the positions shown.

I will not be using the supplied Cable Ties in this issue. Instead, we are going to use another excellent Mike Lane mod: his Mini Cable Ties. These are miniature versions of the real thing. They come in white and black and will definitely require the use of tweezers! Just take your time and use them just like the full size ties. You will see me use these throughout all of the wiring from now on. You may also notice I do not cut the ends off yet; I will do this once all the interior wiring is complete.

Step 14

Pass the twisted ends of Cables (48B) through these openings in the ‘firewall’.

I bent them down to try to keep this wiring in place for the next steps:

Step 15

Place Cables (48C) and Cables (48D) together and position them around the parts on the Dashboard, then down, under and through the back, as shown.

This may be easier for you if you tape the ends together first. I also separated the yellow wires for more randomness in the look of my wiring:

Step 16

Pass one end of Cables (48E) through the same hole with Cables (48B, 48C, and 48D) and place the other end on top of the Dashboard.

I did this step a little differently. I jumped to Step 25 and put the ends of Cables (48E) into the contactor (Dashboard Display) first. This was so I could manage the slack in the wiring better:

Then, I routed the loose end around, down, and out the back of the Dashboard:

Steps 17-18

Loop one of the Cable Ties around this group of cables and pull it tight. Cut away any excess tie.

I am not using the supplied Cable Ties, so I did not do this step. But, I did use the Mini Cable Ties mod to bundle them all together:

Steps 19-20

Pass Cables (48F) underneath the Dashboard and up the front to the top. Secure these to the existing cable with a Cable Tie.

Again, I did these steps a little differently. I first completed Step 26 to attach the wires to the contactors, as shown. These required a little drop of super glue on the ends to stay in place:

Next, I ran the loose end of the Cables (48F) down the dashboard and secured them to the existing wiring:

Then, I tucked the loose end through the center hole in the back of the Dashboard:

Finally, because the next step’s wires will get in the way, I chose to do Step 27 now and secured the Heat Sink wires into the contactors:

Steps 21-22

Pass Cables (48H) underneath the dashboard, up to the top, and secure with a Cable Tie.

Like before, I did these steps a bit out of order from the instruction. First, I measured the ends of this cable against the car and ended up cutting off about 5/8 inch (16 mm) of three of the wires. These three shorter wires are for the closer contactor, while one long one needs to reach the far contactor. Leaving them all the same makes them bunch up, which looked weird to me:

Next, I super glued the ends into the appropriate holes of the contactors and tied the wires into place:

Then, I ran the loose end of Cables (48H) down the front of the Dashboard and underneath. To keep this tight against the dash, I used a drop of super glue under the dash to hold them in place:

Finally, the loose end passes through the center opening of the back of the Dashboard. You may also notice I tied the wires in the location mentioned in the instructions (see arrow below):

Steps 23-24

Pass the end of Cables (48G) through the hole under the Dashboard. Pull the other end up onto the dash and secure it to Cables (48C and 48D) with another Cable Tie.

Hey, what do you know, I didn’t follow the instructions here either. I chose to skip to Step 29 and secure these wires to the Vents first. I also changed the order a little from the instructions as the real wires on The ‘A’ Car are different:

The longer set of wires from Cables (48G) go under the passenger side Vents. The shorter set goes under the driver side Vents. You may need some super glue here to keep them in place as you work. There should be one shorter red wire left unused until Step 29:

The loose end of Cables (48G) comes through the Dashboard here:

Step 25

Insert the two ends of Cables (48E) into the Dashboard Display, as shown.

I completed this step earlier with Step 16, so here is the same picture again:

Step 26

Insert the four ends of Cables (48F) into the Dashboard Display, as shown.

I completed this step earlier with Steps 19-20, so here is the same picture again:

Step 27

Insert the two wires from the Heat Sink into the Dashboard Display, as shown.

I completed this step earlier with Steps 19-20, so here is the same picture again:

Step 28

Insert the four ends of Cables (48H) into the Dashboard Display, as shown.

I completed this step earlier with Steps 21-22, so here is the same picture again:

Step 29

Insert the ends of Cables (48G) into the rear of the Vents, in the order shown.

I completed this step earlier with Steps 23-24, but we do need to insert the short remaining red wire into the hole at the corner (arrow below):

That completes the instructions, but I wanted to include a couple more photos of the final result with all the Mini Cable Ties I added. These will be cleaned up and adjusted later, but they make such a big difference versus using the huge black Cable Ties supplied with the build:

Thoughts

Wow, what an issue! Now I understand why so many builders dread this issue. All of this work took me about 4 hours to do, but I think the results are spectacular, especially with the help of the Mini Cable Ties from Mike Lane! You may notice I have not cut any of the excess cable ties off yet. This will come later once I know all the interior wiring has been added and I can secure everything where it needs to go. There is more wiring in the next issue, so keep up your energy and let’s continue on!

Next Up

 Issue 49 – Interior: Seat Belts (Inner), Decorative Wiring