We're infected with a disease that, fortunately, many of you are suffering from as well. It's called: customitis. There is no known cure and the only way to treat this formidable adversary is by looking through magazines, catalogs, and going online and buying everything you think will make your truck look better than before. Other treatments include personalizing your truck to the best of your ability, and then making sure your truck does in fact turn heads. One recent attempt of ours to cure this disease saw a new stainless steel US Speedo gauge cluster being installed on our Project Sinatra F-150.
Stock is never a good option...
Stock is never a good option for a truck, and this black cluster was a little too boring for us.
It was a quick and painless treatment that saw our all-black, boring, stock Ford gauge cluster being replaced by a new stainless steel unit from US Speedo. Featuring blue numbers with blue and silver needles, the new overlay more closely matches the PPG Midnight Sapphire Blue body color and certain interior pieces. Check out just how easy the installation was, as we made one phone call to Stylin' Concepts and had our new overlay in three days. Stylin' carries the full line of US Speedo overlays and several other manufacturers, as well. So if you, or your dash, are in need of customizing, go to stylinconcepts.com to get your fix.
Just more than an hour after...
Just more than an hour after starting the install, we had great-looking gauges with added style to match the theme of our Project Sinatra F-150.
Starting with the packages...
Starting with the packages from Stylin' Concepts, we have to admit we ordered both the natural stainless steel finish and US Speedo's new Aqua Marine overlay, just to have some options. We chose the stainless finish because we plan on adding more blue-painted pieces to the interior that will help the gauges really stand out.
After removing the three 9/32-inch...
After removing the three 9/32-inch screws from the upper plastic trim piece,the headlight, dimmer switch, and the steering column cover, the trim piece was removed and we gained access to the gauge cluster.
In order to get to the two...
In order to get to the two wiring harnesses, the upper plastic piece had to be removed. It simply slid off.
Using a longer extension and...
Using a longer extension and the same 9/32-inch socket, the cluster retaining screws were removed and the cluster pulled free from the dash.
Before we disconnected the...
Before we disconnected the wiring harnesses, we used a dry-erase marker to mark on the plastic cluster the location of each of the gauges.
Then, we easily removed the...
Then, we easily removed the harnesses.
On the floor of the garage,...
On the floor of the garage, the retaining screws holding the clear plastic cover were removed and the plastic cover was pulled off.
US Speedo supplied this needle...
US Speedo supplied this needle removal tool and the factory orange needles were removed.