New Dashboard

[tom]

When I bought my Elan a year ago the only thing wrong with the car was the fact that the dashboard was peeling away from the facia in a number of places and it had started to discolour. So, this weekend I have taken on the task of replacing the entire dashboard! I have got the old fascia and dash out and the new one back in ;D, but I’m having some trouble transferring some of the switches over to the new fascia.<br><br>So, is there any one out there who knows how to remove the rheostat from the fascia as it doesn’t seem to want to just pull off??  ???<br>Many thanks for your help.<br><br>Regards,<br><br>Tom<br>

[Doug]

not sure, but I think the rheostat knob just pulls right off with a good tug, and then there's a retaining nut to undo . . .  :-/

[GordonBKK]

Hey,  I am also trying to pull the console dimming rheostat out with no luck.  It is darn tight. I thought the last owner/s had superglued it in.  Need to get the round knob off so I can tighten up the nut behind it as the knob is just falling into the hole everytime I need to turn it.<br><br>Looking forward to news on a solution before using brutal force.....

[Darren]

When I get 5 mins, I'll let you know, cos not only do I have a spare rheostat knob but I also have a spare rheostat unit that it fits on.<br><br>I'll try and get some picts for you.<br><br>Darren<br>~~~~

[tom]

Right after a few hours of struggling I finally managed to remove it!! ;D<br><br>Basically you have to carefully remove the circular centre section of the switch (the bit with the rheostat symbol on) to reveal a small screw. This is the hardest bit, as you have to be really careful not to damage anything . You then need to loosen the screw that is now visible which will allow you to remove the outer thumb wheel part of the switch. You will then be able to see a small nut that needs to be released before the switch can be removed from the rear of the fascia!!<br><br>A bit of a long process just to remove the rheostat, but I guess that’s Lotus! Many thanks to everyone for their help.<br><br>Tom

[GordonBKK]

Absolutely super news.  Not to take any credit from you, I did suspect there just might be a screw in the center behind the logo, as is the case with many appliances which hide screws behind the stickers/rubber inserts.  Prior to this I wondered if the rheostat sign was lighted in the first place, and that the bulb had failed. <br><br>My rheostat sticker felt quite will stuck on, and pressing in the center bit did not show the usual dimple depression, a giveaway sign, so thinking it was a solid knob, I left it alone first to puzzle over. <br><br>Great news indeed, and thanks too.  Cheers!  

[GordonBKK]

Jeeeezzzz, the sticker is really well stick on, or possibly the heat here has glued it real tight.  I tried to use a sharp blade to pry it up, nop. Used a small screwdriver to do it, nop. tried to slice the sticker off, nop...... I even tried to stick a sharp pin all over the sticker, from edge to center in an attempt to find the edge of the center hole from which I could cut down to, no luck; must be a real thick sticker??   ???<br><br>Is that removable center circular section, to reveal the screw, a flat plug? How big and thick is it? If a plug, how far inwards is it from the edge of the sticker -- approximately what is the diameter of the plug or hole??  >:(<br><br>I need to get it out now since all my console lights have gone to sleep (a wire came loose from the voltage gauge and while trying to plug it back in the console light flickered a little, went dim (rheostat had no effect then)), then .... all console lights went out.  Cannot find any specific fuse for this.  Suspect the rheostat is now gone too.... Any confirmation?   ??? >:( >:( >:(<br><br>Cost of new/ used but good rheostat??<br>

[John_W]

These rheostats and separate knobs are part of the Lotus parts sale items:<br>http://www.grouplotus.com/media/car/doc/jansalelist.pdf<br><br>PART NUMBER SALEQTY NORMALPRICE (INCVAT) SALEPRICE (INCVAT)<br>A100M0094F Rheostat Knob ELAN M100 200 £11.35 £2.13<br>A100M0097F Rheostat Panel ELAN M100 50 £38.61 £10.55<br>A100M6059F Rheostat Module ELAN M100 50 £122.61 £7.43<br><br>The catch is that they have to be ordered through a Lotus dealer. Maybe a phone call to the parts dept would get round that if you ask very nicely, or if a part is not needed desperately quickly maybe a UK member who lives near a dealer could help. Unfortunately our local dealer is about to close (again) or I would offer to help.<br><br>John<br><br>PS the INCVAT bit means that the price includes sales tax.

[Elanbloke]

Gordon, that rheostat (I think it's actually a potentiometer - which is not that expensive say £17) may or may not be the problem but it works in conjuntion with a rheostat (which is expensive say £80+) that is plugged in near the indicator unit and some relays. On a RHD car they are up under the dash just by the drivers door and it's the green one.  If you remove the pot you can test it with a meter to see if it's working. If it's not the problem there is a way to pull the rheostat and hot wire the circuit so you at least get dash lights. I have the info somewhere if you need it.

[GordonBKK]

Wow guys and gal, thanks for the deluge of information. Super.  :D  <br>Good grief....  the problem seems to be more than just the potentiometer (real right word to use) and .. what??... there is a seperate rheostat which could be gone as well??.  :-[  Looks like a busy weekend after I get back from out of town....  Lovely new love seems to want more of my time and TLC!!   [smiley=1poke.gif]

[Bryan*]

Did anyone ever figure out the case of the dead dashboard lights? Mine were going on and off intermittantly and now seem permanently off. I was suspecting the pot on the dash as well (and having a heck of a time figuring out how to get it out!). It (the potentiometer) does have live wires going into it.
Thanks for any help.

[Bryan*]

Gordon, that rheostat (I think it's actually a potentiometer - which is not that expensive say £17) may or may not be the problem but it works in conjuntion with a rheostat (which is expensive say £80+) that is plugged in near the indicator unit and some relays. On a RHD car they are up under the dash just by the drivers door and it's the green one.  If you remove the pot you can test it with a meter to see if it's working. If it's not the problem there is a way to pull the rheostat and hot wire the circuit so you at least get dash lights. I have the info somewhere if you need it.

I'm struggling with this dash light problem, and would love to have your solution to wire the rheostat out of the circuit. Alternatively, do you know of a source where I might order the parts listed in this thread (rheostat and the potentiometer in the dash).

Thanks for your help. Bryan

[Enright]

At a guess if it's just a rheostat then there will just be two wires going into it. In which case you should just be able to join them together and because the resistance has been removed, you instantly get full brightness lights.

Erm, locate the dashboard lights fuse first though and have a spare ready, just in case I'm wrong!

[paulwatkins]

Sounds right to me Neil!

But make sure you pull the fuse before you do it!

Paul

[Bryan*]

You're right, I should definitely try just shorting the potentiometer on the dash out of the circuit to see if that lights things up (or blows the fuse!).
But my fear is that it is this other component of the system (the rheostat?) that lives on the circutboard under the dash that I will need to bypass. I havent pulled that one out (actually don't know if it is just held in by friction or soldered to the board) to see whether it has just two contacts that could be shorted.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Bryan

[GeoffSmith]

I agree with Neil and Paul - the important thing is to make sure you don't let the wires touch any metal. Aftersales still had some modules for a few pounds back in January.

Geoff

[Enright]

Um, I disagree with myself!

I've just looked under the access panel and there are 3 black wires going to the pot.
So it prompted me to look in the Service Notes - Electrical Sections, and I found the wiring diagram on Sheet 22 (here is a scan of it).

Look at the "POTENTIOMETER", just above the centre on the LHS.
I reckon that if you join KB 38L (the centre wire on the potentiometer) and KN 38J (the RHS wire on the "+" side), it will make the "RHEOSTAT MODULE" think that the pot is turned all the way full on.

It looks as though you don't even need to hack any wires - I think that you can bridge the terminals IPHC BI6 and IPCH BH7 in the connector block between the two components.

Any electricians care to back this up (or correct it)?

[GeoffSmith]

It looks as though you don't even need to hack any wires - I think that you can bridge the terminals IPHC BI6 and IPCH BH7 in the connector block between the two components.

That should work.

[ailwyn]

Ok, electronic whizzes.

Looks to me (from the diagram) that a rheostat is a glorified transistor?

If so, why not just have a transistor?

Or, just have a pot?

Probably just me being thick and/or uneducated... but I just wonder why it can't be simplified.

A.