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My biggest problem is that I don't have access to an 84-96 for test fitting. For some reason, strangers I meet at the gas station won't let me rip their dashboards apart while they're getting gas
What I was able to do was take a couple of test panels to the junkyard and test fit them there.
This is for the driver side. This one is printed on my cheap printer with my cheap filament, just for test fits:
What I learned from that was that unfortunately, 3 switches won't fit in a row like that. I somehow forgot to take a picture with the dashboard installed but there's significant overlap, and I can't get the switches any closer together. I also was off a little bit on one of my measurements so it sits a little crooked.
The other one I took with me was the clock panel side:
The bad news here is that while the switches fit, there is AC duct work that interferes with the bottom two switches. They fit, but not if you actually install the plugs. One way around that would be to modify the switches themselves by cutting off the housing around the socket and soldering wires directly to the switch. It's also possible that OEM switches would work, but I didn't think to try them until much later. (ETA: I checked and no, OEM switches won't work either) I also do have a little bit of room to move everything up, which might also fix it.
I have a pretty demanding day job and two boys under 5 so it's actually kind of hard for me to get out to a JY and test. I can't really say when I might have something really ready for sale, unfortunately
Crazy I came across this! Shapeways is a customer of the company I work for and they use our machines to make their/yours & others products. Pretty awesome to find out that there are aftermarket parts on XJ's made on the machines I work with.
Last edited by TFitzPat87; 11-01-2016 at 07:17 PM.
Thank you for the info on the pre-96 stuff. I am in no rush to get them as my XJ is not running at this time and is an extra vehicle/project no hurry to get it back on the road yet.
My biggest problem is that I don't have access to an 84-96 for test fitting. For some reason, strangers I meet at the gas station won't let me rip their dashboards apart while they're getting gas
What I was able to do was take a couple of test panels to the junkyard and test fit them there.
This is for the driver side. This one is printed on my cheap printer with my cheap filament, just for test fits:
What I learned from that was that unfortunately, 3 switches won't fit in a row like that. I somehow forgot to take a picture with the dashboard installed but there's significant overlap, and I can't get the switches any closer together. I also was off a little bit on one of my measurements so it sits a little crooked.
The other one I took with me was the clock panel side:
The bad news here is that while the switches fit, there is AC duct work that interferes with the bottom two switches. They fit, but not if you actually install the plugs. One way around that would be to modify the switches themselves by cutting off the housing around the socket and soldering wires directly to the switch. It's also possible that OEM switches would work, but I didn't think to try them until much later. (ETA: I checked and no, OEM switches won't work either) I also do have a little bit of room to move everything up, which might also fix it.
I have a pretty demanding day job and two boys under 5 so it's actually kind of hard for me to get out to a JY and test. I can't really say when I might have something really ready for sale, unfortunately
But I am making progress!
Progress is progress, man. Thanks for your time with the R&D. If I can be of any help, let me know.
09-28-2016, 02:36 PM
