Hopefully, I'll be pulling a '59 Chevy dash this weekend and was wondering if anyone had any advice, tips as to were the mounting brackets/welds are. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Bill
BTTT for the lunchtime crowd! This thing is kinda deep in the sticks- can I cut the braces from under the dash, or do I really need to take the windshield out?
When I removed one from a 60 Chevy, I ended up removing the WS to get at the attachment points. The dash was not bolted in. It was welded.
The dash is welded to the body so taking it out is a major job. Spotwelds all around where the windshield attaches . I have my windshield out if you want some pics I can fix that.
Big Job... it is welded in... not like the earlier cars. Better to modify the existing then try to remove... unless you are doing something radical... then cut away. '59 had a great dash though... I can't imagine much of an improvement!
Windshield out=// two "rod braces to the steering column mount need undone... Air chisel with a flat bit- Nice leather gloves- go slow and finish up with a sawzall and a short blade..... keep your first aid kit nearby.......good luck!
Having the windshield out is a must. There are spot welds all along the front of the dash at the windshield channel. There are two braces in the middle that are bolted to the firewall. I believe there is a single bolt at each end on the front lip of the dash. There are bolts at the steering column and I think there are bolts for the brake and clutch brackets. I thought that the dash was bolt in. I hauled a bag of tools way back into a hedge row between two corn fields to get mine out of an abandoned '59. I did not have a hammer for some reason so I ended up breaking all the spot weld using a large adjustable wrench for a hammer and a screw driver for a chisel. If you can get the trim that goes along the window and the trim pieces that wrap around the end of the dash just in front of the doors. There are a bunch of pictures of '59 Impala dashes in other vehicles in the HAMB thread - Art & Inspiration The Mother Of all Dash/Gauge Threads!!!
Got it out today- thanks for the input/advice! Now I just need to take roughly 4" out of it somewhere (it's 59 1/2" wide and the '56 truck dash is 55 1/2"). Going to do some photoshopping to see what will look the best.
Definitely need to cut the amount from the middle..... saw one shortened on the glove box side and it was just-bad..... I shortened one for 32 Buick so the truck you have is way wider than that.....
On my Impala i took the windsheld out and still it was not easy to remove the dash without destroying it.
I've had no problem getting them out. Pull glass, unbolt column and pedal unit, sawzall around top and sides, unbolt or cut a couple of braces, then hack through the wiring and remove the speedo and heater cables. If you really want to go all out, unbolt the pedal bracket from the firewall, unbolt the column shield at the floor, cut or unbolt the column under the hood, and pull all that out in one big piece.
Yup, I actually went back to get the second on that was there- one was a '60 and the other a '59. On the first, I left the dash in and sawzalled the three sections from underneath- NOT FUN!!! It took 3+ hours, too many blades, and most of my sanity Today's dash was MUCH easier- we went in from the top after the glass was out and had it done cleanly in an hour WITHOUT the sawzall (only had it for the weekend). A small chisel did a clean job! As far as taking the 4" out, I may take it out of the pass side and simply cover over the cove with sheet metal, that way it won't look weird/wonky/lop-sided with two different sized coves. I've seen it done this way and it really looks nice, plus it simplifies the dash a bit (helpful in a truck). Also, I'll be using the stock truck steering wheel, which will go nicely with the gauge cluster!
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