So one of the louvers on my center vent above the radio is broken. How would I go about replacing this? Can I do it by removing the radio and pulling it out from there?

 

I just did mine about a month ago. My car is 17 years old and on its third dash pad. It's a long job, but not really that tough. A 7 mm socket, 15 torx bit, a 25 torx bit, and a fair amount of patience are all that's needed.

If you don't remove your steering wheel, do protect it when you remove the pad, and replace it. A towel or an old novelty SW cover will do the job.

Make sure you have the new vent assembly ready to go when you have the pad off. I remember now that I needed to remove a lot of the plastic HVAC venting inside the dash pad to get the center vent screws off- also 7mm hex head screws. If you are using a used vent do clean it from the inside especially, and lubricate with some silicone spray or grease. My old one just let go due to age-

My first pad replacement was due to the first owner gluing a velcro pad on top of the dash, and the glue put a divot in the vinyl. I just couldn't live with it and ended up buying a new pad from a Chevy dealer for like $700. It came with all the vents attached. I saved a set of them, so when I had to do the job recently I had the part in "inventory."

The second pad had to be replaced because the vinyl started to bubble up under the windshield, close to the front edge close to the cowl. That's a hot spot if you ever park your car in the sun- which you should avoid!!!

Good luck!

Best,
Bluemill

 

Google,

https://www.google.com/search?q=remo...hrome&ie=UTF-8

 

Agreed, dash has to come out.

Gary

 

might just leave the damn broken vent in there. Was hoping there would be an easier way to do it.

Oh well

 

I have pulled the interior out of mine a dozen times . It's not difficult. Just take your time.

 

You could wait until something else fails under the dash like the HVAC blend doors, the HUD or one of the other items that tend to wear out over time. Then replace it all at once.

 

My mind is fading, but when I replaced the hazard switch, I thought there was a way from the inside to pull back on the ducting, and remove the vent. I want to say I removed the Radio and HVAC, and ended up with a pretty clean shot? Maybe I'm confusing another vehicle?

 

I might buy the vent just in case that's true. I'm going to be doing a new double din radio install in the next couple weeks. Just don't want to do all the extra work for a broken louvre on the vent.

If i can get to it great. But as someone else said I'll wait for the hud or something else to go before I spend the extra time taking the whole dash apart.

 

Dash has to come out to replace the vent. There are screws that hold the ducting in place that have to come out then you can get to the screws that hold the vent in place. This will not be possible unless the dash is out of the car. Remember to put it down on a soft surface to avoid scratching the dash.

Gary

 

It's only about a 30-40 minute job to remove the dash pad and it's really not that difficult. If you're going to be doing a double DIN then you're half way there.

 

Agree! Not a bad job to pull. Takes patience and just a little bit of time.

 

ok so I think Im going to do it. Replacing the hazard switch which I was going to do through the radio, so I figure Ill do that the easy was through the top now too.

Do I really need to take the dash out of the car, or can I just prop it up so I can do the work there. It seems like it would be overkill to take the whole thing out.