Chrome Trim Ring Replacement 

 
Tools Needed:

Dremel Tool
Hot glue gun or soldering iron

Estimated install time: 1-2 hours

 Install time is dictated by the gauge cluster ring assembly. It is the only part of this install that requires tools.

Trim Ring Removal and Install:

Starting on the passenger side, grasp the vent tube with thumb and forefinger of both hands and pull with evenly distributed force. Bracing your middle knuckles against the dash face will give you a little leverage.

Repeat this step on the two other rings to the right of the steering wheel.

Turn over the vent tubes and you will see the clips that hold the trim rings in place. If you want to preserve your original rings, make sure you are working in a room temperature or greater environment. The plastic retaining clips are fragile. Carefully remove the rings using a small screw driver to free the tabs from the clips. The replacement rings just snap into place.

 

The rings will only go on one way. There is a ridge between two of the tabs on the tube. On the ring, look for the two plastic protrusions between two of the clips and you’ll have the right orientation. Line up the clips and tabs and snap the tube and ring together.

 

Slide the tube back into place in the dash and repeat the process on the other two vent tubes.

 

Center cluster trim ring assembly removal

The center cluster trim ring is attached to the drivers side dash trim; the left most vent tube socket is part of this assembly. You can remove the vent tube first, the same way you did above, install the new trim ring and set the tube aside.

Note: The left most part of the dash may come free when you pull on the tube, so using the knuckles of your middle fingers to brace the dash really helps here.

Unlatch the tilt lock and move the steering column down as far as it will go. 

With the thumb and forefinger of both hands, grab the center of the gauge cluster assembly and pull towards you.

Grab the vent tube, or if you removed it, reach into the socket and pull towards you to free up the other side.

Slide the top of the assembly forward and slide it out from behind the steering wheel and take it to the work area where your Dremel and soldering iron/glue gun await.

Removing the chrome trim from the dash trim:

Place the assembly upside down on a towel or other soft surface. Remove the rubber strip from the lower part of the assembly by carefully pulling it off. Ford factory pinches the three center tabs on the chrome trim closed so you can just pull the rubber free from these and on reassembly, fold the tabs on the new chrome trim outward.

Note: The two tabs on the upper part of the assembly are not a part of the chrome trim. They hold the center black trim that sits between the rings to the dash trim. These tabs should NOT be removed.

Using the Dremel tool with the sanding drum, grind away the melted tabs of the chrome ring portion of the trim. If you have multiple speeds, use one that gets the job done without melting the plastic. Take care not to sand right through the black dash trim. 

Once you get all of the tabs sanded off, move over to where the rubber trim was affixed and removed the two tabs there.

Plug in your soldering iron/glue gun. While that heats up, carefully work the chrome trim free of the dash trim. If there is too much resistance at a particular tab, use Dremel to sand a bit more of the tab away. This will also heat up the plastic a bit and make separation easier.

Once the chrome is free of the dash trim set it aside or garbage it. It can be reused using hot glue at a later date if desired. Clean the plastic debris from your towel and place your new gauge trim on it with the tab side up. Inspect the dash trim tab holes to make sure there are no bits of plastic clogging them. Mate the two pieces together and use the soldering iron or glue gun to affix them.

Heat up the sides of the tabs with the soldering iron and gently fold them over. The chrome overlay is resistant to melting so will crack/snap, reveling softened plastic within. You can use something blunt and heat resistant to hold the tabs in place while they cool. You will want to make sure the trim pieces are held tight together for the first few tabs on each side of the rings.

Install the rubber trim at the bottom of the panel. Make sure the Ford part number is visible. If it’s not, flip the rubber trim horizontally. Heat and fold the three twin centre tabs outward and heat and bend the two outer tabs over to secure it in place.

Install:

Slip the gauge panel assembly between the steering wheel and the dash. With the panel positioned as shown in the picture, slip the top portion under the dash lip and gently push it back towards the cluster. You are NOT trying to get the assembly to clip into place yet. There will be some resistance here, so you will need to use some force. Once the top portion slips well under the dash lip you can then line up the clips and push the panel into place.

If you have not installed the last vent tube, install it now.

Congratulations, you are all done.