1980 308 Ferrari GTBi dash panel lights | FerrariChat

1980 308 Ferrari GTBi dash panel lights

Discussion in 'Technical Q&A' started by Michael J, Aug 26, 2004.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

  1. Michael J

    Michael J Rookie

    Aug 26, 2004
    26
    Desert Hot Springs
    Full Name:
    Michael S Janis
    I was wondering if any of you guys have pulled the dash out of a 308. My books don't show much in the way of clips or screws, and it is impossible to get behind the gauges to change the blubs out behind them. I just wanted to put in a higher watt bulb to see the gauges at night. Also does the dim switch turn to a full light on position, at full counter clockwise possition? Thanks Mike
     
  2. f355spider

    f355spider F1 World Champ
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    May 29, 2001
    17,913
    USA

    LOT's of threads on this subject in the archives. But here is the info again:
    http://www.ferrariclub.com/faq/dashlights.html

    You may or may not need to remove the steering wheel, but if you do, be sure and use a high quality 3mm wrench, those screws are Loctited in, and hard to remove (unless they have been removed previously). It is easy to slip with the wrench, and bugger up the screw or the wheel, so be careful. Spare screws can be had from a good metric hardware store, or any Momo steering wheel dealer. Cover the steering column with a towel to prevent scratches to the dash bezel.

    If you do the light bulb upgrade, you WILL notice that either the tach or speedo will end up a bit brighter than the other (forget which) it is just a function of the upgraded bulbs. For some reason, they take different bulbs, and there are not a lot of choices for higher wattage, so one is maybe 50% brighter, where the other side is only 25% brighter.

    Bypassing the dimmer pot will make a significant difference as well. Apparently there is a lot of resistance in the circuit. Do this first, and see if this is sufficient before replacing all the bulbs.
     
  3. Nuvolari

    Nuvolari F1 Veteran
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Sep 3, 2002
    6,370
    Toronto / SoCal
    Full Name:
    Rob C.
    When removing the 4 lights on either corner of the cluster use dental floss to slide behind the light and pull it away from the dash. Prying with a screwdriver WILL scratch the dash no matter how careful you are. Been there done that and have the re-annodizing bill to prove it.
     
  4. f355spider

    f355spider F1 World Champ
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    May 29, 2001
    17,913
    USA
    My explaination of why the tach and speedo result in different brightness after the bulb change; they take different style bulbs....the upgrades just happen to not be equal in intensity.
     
  5. thecarreaper

    thecarreaper F1 World Champ
    Silver Subscribed

    Sep 30, 2003
    17,564
    Savannah
    bump so i can drive the damn car at night. cant get the ~!@#!$$@%#$^%$^*%& lights to works in the dash.
     
  6. Jdubbya

    Jdubbya The $10 Trillion Man
    Silver Subscribed

    Dec 28, 2003
    37,253
    PNW
    Full Name:
    John
    That's genius I tell you!! It took me forever to get them out and I still managed to scratch things up. Also broke the "tangs" off the back of three of the lights. Bought new ones and will use your trick to replace them!
    Thanks!!
     
  7. Morrie

    Morrie Karting

    Nov 4, 2003
    207
    Sarasota/Asheville
    I had a tech tell em that the lights are 4 watt and that if you put anything brighter in they will melt the surrounding plastic.

    From what I'm reading, this information was incorrect. It looks like several of you have upgraded. Where do you get the new bulbs?
     
  8. ria

    ria Formula Junior

    Nov 2, 2003
    732
    ohio
    Full Name:
    phill
    on my 80 308 gtsi i need it to take the dash out and davehanda reply to me step by step info on how to do.
     
  9. f355spider

    f355spider F1 World Champ
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    May 29, 2001
    17,913
    USA
    I've upgraded my previous 308 and current 328, no problems...and know many others that have done the upgrade. The bulbs can be found at Pep Boys. I noticed that one of the bulbs is used for a third brake light (that is the hard one to find) on some European cars....so car dealers may be a source.

    Dave
     

Share This Page