Dash swap question - Interior Forum

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Dash swap question
Tuesday, February 22, 2005 12:25 PM
Can I take a dash out of a cavalier and fit it into my sunfire with no problems?

Re: Dash swap question
Tuesday, February 22, 2005 12:27 PM
It's out of a 98 cavalier into a 2000 sunfire
Re: Dash swap question
Tuesday, February 22, 2005 12:40 PM
99% sure you can swap any dash from 95-05 as long as you get the entire dash and the front door panels.

a few on here have swapped theirs


<img src="http://home.comcast.net/~dslabuda/dsltwist.gif" border="0">

<a href="http://www.modasylum.com">www.modasylum.com</a>
Re: Dash swap question
Wednesday, February 23, 2005 9:16 AM
Thanks for the info.
Re: Dash swap question
Wednesday, February 23, 2005 9:43 PM
i've swapped a 2000 dash into my 98 cavy, my pics are on the second page of my cardomain

http://www.cardomain.com/id/z22styles


1998 Chevrolet Cavalier
5-spd


Re: Dash swap question
Thursday, February 24, 2005 10:47 AM
Did you run into any problems?
Re: Dash swap question
Thursday, February 24, 2005 4:21 PM
sorry to hijack, but i'm thinking of swapping too only putting a sunfire interior in my cavy. in the 97 cavy's (which is what i've got) the cd player is on the bottom, and in the sunfires i believe its on the top, so isn't there a metal bar or something that i'm gonna have to cut into? also, are the airbags in the same location or do i need to change that too? and finally, any other major changes that will need to take place inside the dash that i might not be thinking of? thanks!



silly boys... body kits are for girls.
Re: Dash swap question
Thursday, February 24, 2005 4:34 PM
I've been contemplating doing this for a while, my only concern would be the gauge cluster, would they be interchangable? Of would i be able to keep my cavvy cluster? I kinda doubt it tho...



Re: Dash swap question
Thursday, February 24, 2005 4:55 PM
i think you'd have to switch to a sunfire cluster, but don't ask me i'm in the same boat as you! otherwise i wouldn't be asking a million questions, lol.



silly boys... body kits are for girls.
Re: Dash swap question
Friday, February 25, 2005 5:51 PM
vixen 97: look at my pics, the tube frame on the sunfires is differen't i belive


1998 Chevrolet Cavalier
5-spd


Re: Dash swap question
Friday, February 25, 2005 7:41 PM
yeah, i'm pretty sure that to make this work i have to gut absolutely everything, frame and all, and get it from a sunfire. i think what worries me most is fiddling around with the airbags.



silly boys... body kits are for girls.

Re: Dash swap question
Friday, February 25, 2005 8:01 PM
Well if your batt is unbolted and out of the car you don't need to worry .

You will need everything to make it work. From the tube frame, lower and upper dash, and door panels, and don't forget you have to rewire the plug for the new cluster




Re: Dash swap question
Friday, February 25, 2005 9:29 PM
Sounds like alot of work......What to do?
Re: Dash swap question
Sunday, March 06, 2005 11:16 PM
vixen97 wrote:sorry to hijack, but i'm thinking of swapping too only putting a sunfire interior in my cavy. in the 97 cavy's (which is what i've got) the cd player is on the bottom, and in the sunfires i believe its on the top, so isn't there a metal bar or something that i'm gonna have to cut into? also, are the airbags in the same location or do i need to change that too? and finally, any other major changes that will need to take place inside the dash that i might not be thinking of? thanks!




they switched the radio location on both cars in 2000 (i believe), to coincide (sp?) with the change-over to the new central bcm based (class-II data) system


<img src="http://home.comcast.net/~dslabuda/dsltwist.gif" border="0">

<a href="http://www.modasylum.com">www.modasylum.com</a>
Re: Dash swap question
Thursday, April 28, 2005 9:08 PM
Ok, i know this is an old thread, but i would also like to know if anybody has actually done this?

I have a 99 cavy, and today i swapped in a 99 Sunfire Cluster, and rewiring the plug was the easiest part, that and waiting for the theftlock to relaern. Anyways now im thinking about swapping in a whole sunfire dash assembly and would like to know from someone that has done it, is it pretty straightforward if you have everything from the sunfire?

And also what about the radio? Since mine is on the bottom and the sunfire is on the top, is that part seperate from tthe dash or a part of it?

Anybody with a 95-99 Sunfire want to trade my cavy dash for your sunfire dash???





Mike

1992 GMC Sonoma GT #492. Oh, Its just a stock V6!

1999 Cavalier Coupe, daily driver, 2200/M5. Mods and pics are in my registry.

Fully built turbo 2200 in progress, should be installed very soon. Will post details as they happen.
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Re: Dash swap question
Friday, April 29, 2005 5:56 AM
if you have all the pieces it shouldnt be bad. as for the radio, as long as the wires are long enoug it shouldn't be a problem relocating it either.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/sndsgood/ https://www.facebook.com/#!/Square1Photography
Re: Dash swap question
Friday, April 29, 2005 8:58 AM
i wouldnt mind putting the sunfire gauge cluster into my 96' Z i hear people talking about rewiring the plug...how do you go about doing that, not really the electonics buff if u didnt notice.


"sometimes the respect is more important..."
Re: Dash swap question
Friday, April 29, 2005 10:43 AM
schmidty4343 wrote:i wouldnt mind putting the sunfire gauge cluster into my 96' Z i hear people talking about rewiring the plug...how do you go about doing that, not really the electonics buff if u didnt notice.


Yeah the cavy uses a 24 way plug and the sunfire uses a 22 way plug, and the wires are in different spots on the plug, also the plug is not available from GM anymore the cvy on eis but you have to buy the Whole 700 dollar dash harness to get the sunfire plug, so you would need to get the harness plug out of the same car as the cluster. Also i believe the 95-97 cluster will interchange with yours but like mine it had to be a 99 cluster becasue of the digitial odometer. so for my 99 the plugs both use the same wire colors, so juts macth them up and cut and splic in the new plug, i just used crimp tyoe butt connectors and then taped everything up with electrical tape, but you can solder of you feel the need. Then just start the car, and it will dis and wait 10 minutes until the theft light quits blinking and turn the key off for 10 seconds and it should run after that. But the cluster itself doesnt fit into the stock cavy cluster hole, it has a slighly different shape, and i had to dremel out some of the dash plastic to recenter it in the dash, and there is some small gaps on each bottom corner, at first glance you dont notice them, but at closer look you can see it. Heres a few pics, i didnt take any pics of how i modifed the dash, but i will when i have to take the cluster back out and have it reprogrammed for the vorrect milage.










Im now considering doing a complete 95-99 Sunfire dash and center console and door panel swap, and adding power windoww. I think the Sunfire is a much nicer interior than the cavy, better material and fit and finish. Just not sure how hard its going to be to find a complete setup in good shape, i may start looking at buying a parts car to swap the interior with, i seen a 95 sunfire with a bad motor on ebay for like 200 bucks, it was a 5 speed also, and it had the power windows and everything i would need to make the swap and it loked to be in nice shape, but im in Houston and its way up in New Jersey, so not sure its its worth the expense to go and get it. Just checked it and it has one day left and the bidding is at 202.50. having that car would make the swap very easy, and i could put my cavy dash in to that car and put my old motor in it when the turbo engine goes in a sell it as a running car. HMMMMM, i wish i had a way to go and get it.

Ok, enough rambling about me, but the swap can be done, and as you can see in my pics can look pretty good, but to do it right you would need to swap in the entire sunfre dash assembly and probably center console for it to look right.

The best thing to do to rewire the new plug is to get a shop manual for your year and there is a diagram for each plug and there location in the plug, The easiest part is rewiring the plug.


Mike

1992 GMC Sonoma GT #492. Oh, Its just a stock V6!

1999 Cavalier Coupe, daily driver, 2200/M5. Mods and pics are in my registry.

Fully built turbo 2200 in progress, should be installed very soon. Will post details as they happen.
Support the site that supports your habit, Go Premium.
Im premium since January, but why doesnt it say that?????
Re: Dash swap question
Friday, April 29, 2005 11:49 AM
Ok, ive just looked into doing this also, I have a 98 Cavy no tach 5spd. Ive found a couple clusters w/ tachs but they are autos. Does this make a different? I also found a Sunfire 98 w/ tach but auto again. Ugh, MY question is will a cluster work if its not the same year and is a Auto????? Thanks



Re: Dash swap question
Friday, April 29, 2005 1:36 PM
Fast Fosgate wrote:Ok, ive just looked into doing this also, I have a 98 Cavy no tach 5spd. Ive found a couple clusters w/ tachs but they are autos. Does this make a different? I also found a Sunfire 98 w/ tach but auto again. Ugh, MY question is will a cluster work if its not the same year and is a Auto????? Thanks


Well 98 is also one of those tricky years, becasue about the halfway point they went from the machanical odometer to a digitial odometer, if your has the machanical odometer then any cavy cluster from 95-97 will swap, but you will have to have the milage reset by a professional speedometer shop.

If you have a digitial odometer, then you have to swap it with a digitial odometer, and again have the milage reset by a pro shop, but it will bolt right in and your stock plug will work and the tach will work also.

You can swap in a sunfire cluster like i did, but its not a bolt in swap, actually the sunfire cluster wont bolt in at all, mine is just sitting there with the front trim piece wedged against it holding it in place, see pics above. You have to rewire in the sunfire cluster plug, but your stock therftlock plug, 3 3 wire plug on the side of the cluster will work with the new cluster, just remmeber you have to wait for the theft lock to relearn after you get it all done.

And finally, if your looking for a cavy cluster with a tach for a manual with the digitial odometer, they are very hard to find, and the sunfire one seems harder to find still, if you have the older one you can usualy always find them on ebay, and yes if you have a manual you ned to use a cluster for a manual.


Mike

1992 GMC Sonoma GT #492. Oh, Its just a stock V6!

1999 Cavalier Coupe, daily driver, 2200/M5. Mods and pics are in my registry.

Fully built turbo 2200 in progress, should be installed very soon. Will post details as they happen.
Support the site that supports your habit, Go Premium.
Im premium since January, but why doesnt it say that?????
Re: Dash swap question
Friday, April 29, 2005 1:48 PM
I have a mech odometer, damn that sucks I cannot find any manual clusters!




Re: Dash swap question
Saturday, April 30, 2005 1:57 PM
so ur saying all i would have to get was a 95-97 sunfire cluster, splice the new plug....turn on till theft lock stops blinkin then off for 10 secs and i should be good?


"sometimes the respect is more important..."
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