davek9

Nice write up Dwayne

ew928

That's a most awesomest writeup on podectomy.

Took me about 1/2 hour of thinking, trying, feeling before I figured out the right side offset securing post on my 88 tightens up against the side of the pod for correct alignment As you tighten up the 5mm bolt, the offset piece leans against the side of the pod, and that's how it goes together very easily for me.

Now I know how to take those side switches out of the pod enclosure.
Couldn't get those damn tiny bulbs out of the holder when installed in the pod.

Thankyou again.

6mil928

Excellent work you get an A+. I will be doing mine in the next week or two so this is perfect timing.

TheoJ

Dwayne,
fantastic !!! What more can I say?
When is the tranny rebuild scheduled?? Can't wait for that one.

tip: Just for those like me who are lazy: you can leave all the switches in the pod in place but move it up-side down towards the seat, and just take the instrument cluster out. Easy, no hassle.

Dwayne

Just got back in town yesterday......THANKS for the comments!

I like Theo's tip regarding the shortcut to get to the instrument cluster when removing the whole pod is not the objective. I'll try that next time I'm after just the instrument cluster. THANKS for the tip, Theo!

Now for part II - see the separate thread on instrument cluster repair....

Tony

Nice write up! I know how time consuming it can be to do..appreciate the effort. A defintie keeper. I would assume the procedure is pretty similar on an S4?

Dwayne

I believe the pod removal procedure is a little different for '90-'95 (I saw another writeup on the later model year and it looked different). I believe THIS procedure should be the same for your '87.

Fly Navy

Dwayne - you're incredible to offer this to the community.

I was hoping you'd take on this project - my odometer gear is likely broken and I've been working up the nerve to dismantle and take a look.

Thanks again! Mike

StratfordShark

Bravo Dwayne on a fantastic write-up. Mine's an 88 but there are enough similarities - and your write-up is so thorough - to make this extremely useful as I need to do minor work on pod too (D indication bulb blown, intermittent fuel gauge).

This is the best write-up/photos I've ever seen on pod removal. Thanks

LT Texan

All I can say is I wish you were around about 15 - 20 years ago documenting all this stuff!

UncleMaz

Dwayne: Superb write-up.

944 owner here. 928 is an 88. I am about to tackle this for a bud. I count something like twenty bulbs. His illumination is out. If it is anything like my 44, the idiot light bulbs are still good. Which and how many bulbs should be replaced? Much appreciated. Michael

DonS

Thanks for your work in putting this together. I've had the dash out before but several years ago and need to finally get around to replacing the odometer gear (thanks, Roger!). I'll use your write-up this weekend. The job will be much easier with this.

kiesan

I just did all the gauge cluster bulbs on my airbag '91 'S4. It was way simpler than this appears to be. It took longer to read through this tutorial than it took to have my 'S4 cluster on the bench. I'm sure glad all the lights on my '82 work!

Awesome write-up though. Every time I read something like this I think what a swell guy the person must be to put in the time. It must add hours to the job.

I used this as my guide for my 'S4 which was very helpful. Got a bulb kit from ROG100:

https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...=15+minute+pod

jthwan22

I love it. No LED bulbs WYIT?

Dwayne

Hello Michael,
Just got back in town tonight and read your post. I'm guessing the bulb count may be different between '84 (my writeup) and '88. I checked the wiring diagram for the '88 and count a total of 26 bulbs in the instrument cluster but I can't tell easily from the diagram how many of the bulbs are for instrumentation illumination. On the '84 there were 3 illumination bulbs (3W, I believe).
So, are all the illumination bulbs non-functional (i.e., no illumination)?? If so, have you checked the illumination adjustment wheel and the wire connections at the illumination adjustment wheel for power?? I know, a silly question, but might be worth a look before taking the pod out. Once you've confirmed the illumination wheel is working/getting power, you can trace the electrical diagram to see how many of the 26 bulbs are for illumination. Let me know if you don't have a diagram and I'll see if I can find the number for you. Also, could simply order illumination bulb kit from Roger as stated in post above.