I have a 2000 Corvette that I am working on over the winter, and have a (somewhat extensive) list of repairs that need to be done. Many of these involve pulling apart the interior/dash, and was hoping some more experienced C5 folks could add (or maybe even suggest parts/vendors) to the list so I won't have to do this again for some time. Here's what I have so far:

-Fix (or replace if needed) heads up display
-Wire cigarette lighter to only have power with ignition on (for my Bluetooth transmitter)
-Replace all/most lights in dash with LED, including the climate controls, radio, all buttons around the gauge cluster, and possibly the gauge cluster itself. Anyone have any vendor/type suggestions? I prefer 5000k
-Regrease linkage (it has a short shifter and has become quite taxing on my elbow on long drives due to do force required to move the shifter)
-Replace missing screws found when removing dash
-Replace/repair broken plastic pieces (there are a lot). This will be difficult, any vendor suggestions are appreciated.

Some 'Maybe' ones as well:
-Replace radio with a double DIN (and bezel to accommodate)
-Replace/repair fabric(?) on dash that is separating around the HUD plastic

 

For me, replacing bulbs with Chinese LED bulbs has been an experiment with some good and some bad results. Sometimes they are not as bright. For instance in the under hood light, the LED replacements are useless. The turn signal and tails lights are bright but cause hyper flashing, so a module had to be purchased and installed. I would be cautious putting LED bulbs in difficult to reach places where incandescent bulbs were originally, unless you can test them before you put the dash back together. Hopefully others have had better luck than I.

 

That is a very good point, I replaced many of the easy to replace interior lights with cheap Chinese LEDs and they randomly flicker. I'll definitely spend a little extra for better quality, dimmable lights for the dash so I don't have to replace them. Many of mine are already burnt out so I'll be replacing them anyway.

Here are some pictures of where I'm at, almost ready to start ordering parts.

 

I'd also try to clean everything, inside the hvac ducts, and vacuum up the degrading thin insulation stuff that falls off the wiring, especially in the console area. Maybe add some sound deadening/thermal barrier in the floor or tunnel. Also a good opportunity to remove the HVAC controls to resolder the display if it is dim or barely showing the info.

 

Cleaning is a good idea, I'll borrow a shop vac for all the loose parter particles. Should I use paper towel with a little water to get all the dust or is that getting carried away?

The exhaust is so loud I'm not sure any sound deadening would make a difference, but some thermal insulation couldn't hurt. There seems to be some already around the torque tube hump in the middle.

I just finished taking apart the climate controls module, and it looks like the lights are soldered directly onto the circuit board, anyone know of a place to get replacements for these?



Some other lights I would like to replace are all the ones in the gauge cluster and buttons surronding the gauge clusters. If anyone knows the part number or a good place to get these, please let me know! There are two types on the gauge cluster, and a third on the buttons.



Unfortunately many of the plastic pieces are breaking (or already broken) as I'm taking everything apart. Im going to epoxy what I can, but if anyone knows of a good place to source these, RockAuto has a pretty limited selection.

 

If you haven't already done so consider changing out the HVAC door actuators for driver and passenger sides.
If you are Houdini you might be able to change the drivers side actuator without taking the dash apart. But the passenger side (which goes out about a week after the driver's side) requires removal of the entire dash so you can remove the passenger side airbag contraption.
The passenger actuator is blocked by the air bag holder.

Also switch out the 4 way flasher since the dashpad is now off. This too is unbelievably difficult to reach with the dash in place. Easy as pie when off.

Don't pinch any wires when replacing the dash or you get to take it completely apart again and tape the wire. (don't ask)

Take both seats out before you start the project. Your back will thank you. It's only a few minutes and they are very light.
Stuff rags in the defroster vent as it is a magnet for your only 8mm socket.

 

HVAC actuators sound like a good idea. I'm a little nervous about removing the air bag, I'll do some research before doing that.

Hazard/four way switch is on the list, forgot to put that in the original post!

l'm hoping I won't forget to reinstall any of the connectors when putting everything back together, I'll note the wire routing as well so nothing gets pinched.

A little too late to take out the seats, I'm not a big guy so this has worked out okay for me. Mine is also an FRC so pulling out the full dash took a little twisting but was not as bad as I was expecting.

Blocking off vents is definitely a good idea, I have a tendency to drop sockets and bolts into hard to reach places.

Thank you for the insights!

I think my next step is to find a good place to order all these lights from. Would like to go LED and 5000k on everything if possible. I need:
Gauge cluster lights
Radio lights (soldered)
Climate control lights (soldered)
Button lights (for HUD control and gages/reset)

I also need to repair my HUD, which there are several great videos online about. I need to replace the mirror pin and I soldered the photo sensor together so it won't adjust with the ambient light. I'm debating undoing that and replacing the photo sensor. Anything else I should do in the HUD (other than cleaning) while it's out and apart?

 

One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is the heater core. It's a pain and I think you'd be tearing apart even more/deeper than what you've listed here, but sometimes they corrode and leak. If you aren't certain about how often the coolant has been replaced, flushed, etc and if you think the 20 year old core might have been the victim of corrosion, it's way better to get a nice fresh one in now and keep the coolant clean going forward so that it doesn't corrode and leak.

 

Heater core isn't a bad idea, but I think I'm going to leave it for now as I'm in a garage that I don't want to spill anything in. I'll add a coolant flush to the list to hopefully prevent corrosion.



On another note, I am having a lot more difficulty finding parts for this than I thought, I thought Corvette parts were cheap and abundant! Here's a list, if anyone has any suggestions for any of these, that is greatly appreciated:

Gauge cluster lens, mine has a crack in it


LED lights for the gauge cluster


LED lights for the radio and climate control module. I have some LEDs on order from DigiKey, but figuring out polarity without power to either is going to be a nightmare.


HVAC actuators for drivers and passenger side.

HUD oversize bezel. There are a couple out there but they are all extremely expensive. I might try pulling the fabric back under the existing bezel first, or using a filler material.


Drivers side HVAC door actuator

Passenger side HVAC door actuator

Also considering replacing the blower motor, seems easy to get to and mine has some surface rust.

 

I was able to source most parts, I am still struggling with these two:

LED gauge cluster lights. There are some super cheap ones on Amazon but i can't find anything beyond that. Does anyone know what these bulbs are? I've read that they are 194s, T5s, T10s, PD 189, and other numbers, but none seem to match. There looks to be two slightly different sizes in the gauge cluster, and all the others match the smaller size.



I am also looking for a replacement plastic lens for the gauge cluster. The one I have has a small crack in it. This is probably much harder to find than the lights, I'm assuming I might have to go used if I want to replace this?

 

You mention greasing your shifter linkage... You may also want to recalibrate or realign your shifter housing as time and wear can take a toll. It is easy to do and Froggy has a good YouTube video on this.. pretty simple. While you have the shifter housing out, replace the rubber grommets at the mounting screw locations. This may help your shifting though I didn't notice much change in mine. What did help tremendously with shifting smoothness and effort was vacuum bleeding the clutch master cylinder to get air out of the system. VetteOnVettes has a YouTube vid. This did more than anything to improve shifting and it too is easy to do.

 

Also maybe go ahead and install a hyper flash module. It will take over the turn signal flashing from the hazard switch flasher circuit which is prone to failure.. even the new ones... I've gone through two before installing the hyper flash unit. It will also make your car ready for LEDs if you decide to do that. VetteLights, Corvette Central, C&S Corvettes and many others sell it. Cost about $40. Easy installation. I too have a 2000 manual trans.

 

I did not read every post for content but did skim. I'll shoot from the hip on the original "while I'm in there" concept:

The dash pulling back from the hud bezel... I think someone sells a larger hud bezel which fits over top.

The darned GM brown goo wiring noise insulation. Get some Tesa tape if you are OCD like myself and just wrap right over that junk. You'll never get random glue hands again.

I'm that guy, so I have to say it: TMODcustoms tub for your shifter. You don't realize how dead that box IS right now but will when you put a fresh one in there - guaranteed for life.

VetteNuts thermal insulation with sound deadening. I have done my own from scratch once, and then did his once, and then did his kit again... totally worth it. Saves time and FITS RIGHT. You still want to take your time and ensure every angle where different surfaces meet are very cleanly done so the carpet goes perfectly back in place. This is especially true in the driver footwell. Definitely get a $5 roller to install. Then also do the trunk and get some heavy sound mat (dynamat, amazon special, all work) and focus on the trunk side wheel wells as well as the external frame side of the wheel wells (behind the plastic cover). This will greatly reduce road noise.

Gauge rings. If they are your style, now is a great time. I used black RTV and they never came loose. Others have used crazy glue and had the rings fall loose in summer temps.

Z06 cluster swap - again, if that's your interest this is an easy time. You can swap the boards on the rear of both clusters so you get the fancy Z06 gauge display but retain the correct mileage for your car.

Toss some sound mat on the inside of the dead pedal plastic while you're at it.

>>> REFRESH YOUR GROUNDS IN THE CABIN <<< both down front corner near the doors

Seat rack fix. And Bolster bladder fix. Why not? Rack can be fixed with $20 or less of delrin on ebay. Bladders can be replaced with replacement blood pressure cuffs. Large and Small. Two each per seat. BUT... really... it should be said that the C5 seats all leave comfort and support to be desired. A used set of Corbeau A4s or C7 base seats is the way to go eventually.

Plastic repair.... there was a good link this week in the "what did you do to your C5 today" thread on this. Many creative fixes using soldering guns on low heat and metal to basically plastic weld seams. However, I have always gone for epoxy.

Squeak elimination. Use the soft surface or friction reducing tape of your choice and find / cover all points of friction where plastic squeaks and creaks. A C5 without squeaks is a MUCH classier car.

Stereos are a whole other thing too.

I have always run various USB, Aux, HDMI plugs around the interior if you get into radio work. There is just enough space in the arm rest for you to run a dongle with whichever connection preferred if needed.

Amazon visors have proven to be good factory replacements with plastic sheet inside to last, vs factory cardboard units which sag.

I'm sure there's a few more things I'm not...

.... nope... thought of it and it's a good one... DITCH the TTY torx bolts around the shifter. Why? Because eff that noise. I went with ARP but any grade 8 from the box store will do. I forget the thread and depth but the key is that I swapped them to be 10mm heads which makes the job a lot easier as well as a lot less potential for anger if those TTY torx ever stripped.

 

Thank you for the tips Skooter, I will definitely be realigning the shifter housing and replacing the rubber seals. I recently put a new master cylinder on it (maybe 6 months ago) and bench bled it before installing. I believe the issues lies in the linkage itself, as moving side to side in neutral is more difficult than putting in into gear.

The PO put in VetteLights (which I had to replace already since he forgot to install the factory connector correctly), but one of the flasher modules fell out, so I need to buy a new one.

 

I'm going to try filling in the HUD gap with some 'welt padding' before buying the $80 oversize bezel. Another user on the forum did this and it worked well.

The GM tape I'll probably either clean a little with a shop vac or replace with some zip ties, we will see!

The PO put the short shifter in, not sure what brand. He spent a fair bit on money on other items on the car, so I think it is a pretty good quality.

I am on the fence about insulating. The car basically straight piped, so road noise is not really an issue. It would be mainly for thermal insulation.

I was hoping to find just the lens for the gauge cluster, but it seems it is not available anywhere, even used. I'll probably just clean this one up and re-use it. A Z06 cluster would be cool, but $250.00 is the cheapest I could find.

Grounds are definitely a good idea.

PO put in Corbeau seats already, all set there!

I did begin to epoxy many of the broken plastic pieces, most should be repairable. The radio bezel/center console plastic is a little worn on the outside, but I'm saving that for when I switch to a double DIN radio.

I'll see if I can pick up some friction reducing tape along with the 'welt padding'. Might have to use that in my C4 too, that things creaks and squeaks like crazy.

Visors are a good idea, I need some for the C4 too. I'll probably wait until next winter for this. Too many projects already!

I'll bring the existing shifter bolts to the hardware store to get replacements that take a hex key.


Thank you for all the suggestions! Unfortunately I am struggling for time to work on it (and source these surprisingly difficult to find parts) right now, but I'll definitely be happy if I can get the dash back together and fix some minor engine bay problems before winter is over! I'd rather do it all (and the right way) now while it's apart and stuck in the garage all winter!

 

Here's the grommets/bushings. Mine are dried out and cracked. Going to replace them next time I get the dash/console area apart.
https://www.corvettestoreonline.com/...xoCV7AQAvD_BwE

 

After slow but steady progress, I have replaced all bulbs with LEDs, and want to make sure the gauge cluster lights are all there. Anyone have a picture of what their gauge cluster looks like with the ingition on and car off? This is what mine looks like, trying to see if any are missing. I used some pictures others posted to get the polarity (hopefully) correct.


One odd thing is that my passenger window switch is not illuminating. It finctions to move the window and lock/unlock doors but no lights. I tried switching the polarity as well, with no luck. Drivers side has new lights and works well. Anyone know why this might be?

My HUD is also still not working. I fixed the pin in the mirror, and I can see the mirror moving up and down, but nothin is on the windshield. I tried adjusting the brightness, and still nothing. Anyone know what I should try next and where replacement parts could come from?

I also tried to push the dash leather back under the HUD bezel with plans to epoxy it to stay under, but I could not get the leather to move/stretch. Any suggestions to help get the leather to stretch back under the bezel?

 

I am also going to begin soldering new LED bulbs into my HVAC control module and factory radio. I was hoping to find something that shows the polarity in both. Even just the radio would be very helpful, as the HVAC controller I can hook up to a voltage supply, but the radio board I cannot. Unfortunately there has been no luck with online searches. If there's nothing out there, I'll take some pictures when I have the polarities sorted.

 

That''s a good point on LEDs as I swapped out some easy ones on my door panel controls and didn't like the brighter light as the receivers weren't designed for them and the brighter light was distracting while driving at night. Perhaps a lower intensity LED would have worked better but I simply swapped my old bulbs back in.

Also, I suggest swapping out your hazard switch if it hasn't already been replaced. Although seldom used, they can fail and cause other llghting issues. I had to use mine last year for the first time in years for an actual road side emergency and the stupid think got stuck in the on position.

 

The LED lights I got are definitely brighter than I wish they were, but not by much. If I feel they are too bright, I may stick some black electrical tape over the top LED (I belive there are 3 per bulb, one on top and one on each side). For now, I'm going to leave it as is so I don't have to take the gauge cluster apart for a third time.

Some else had suggested the hazard switch as well, and I have already replaced that, thank you!