Good Job!
We'll keep a prayer for ya in the Mathews' household that it stays easy!
KC

My center console is different from the one shown in my Bentley.  There are two screws at the rear of the console extention (the part with the E-brake handle).  My Bentley shows taking the ash tray out and removing the screws . . . but my console has an armrest, a storage compartment, an ash tray and a rear cup holder that is not shown in the manual.  I pull the boot from around the E-brake, and way back in there I see a nut that looks like it holds the rear of the extension down, but I can't figure out how you get to it.  Any ideas?

"Drill out shear bolts of steering column and lower steering column."

Why the heck didn't they just put hex head bolts in there?  You can look straight at it from the bottom, but not while you are trying to drill.  If you don't hit dead center of the bolt you're in trouble.  If you miss dead center on both bolts, your in double trouble . . . that's where I am.   

My next post on the forum may be titled "Parting out a '96 Passat."   

Lowes has propane heaters on sale like William and I use. Good luck!

I need to get one of those for Homer the Super Bus anyway . . . 

Quote from: Zen on December 18, 2011, 04:17:19 PM

"Drill out shear bolts of steering column and lower steering column."

Don't bother drilling out the bolts.  They can usually be easily removed with a pair of vice-grips.  However, should they decide to get cranky smack the edge of the "bolt" head a few times with a hammer & chisel and they'll start to turn.  They're an anti-theft thing so you can't just swap out the ignition switch lock cylinder housing and drive off with the car.

Oh yeah, go by the dealer and get a new ignition switch.  This is the perfect time to change it.

Two things come to mind here . . . 1) If somebody wants it that bad, they can have it!    2) Is the switch the same as a Corrodo?  Justin bought one several years ago and ended up not really needing it.  I saw it around here somewhere a few days ago.

At least the van were easier to get to.

Not to mention, on a bus, you don't have to take the dash out to change the heater core.     And I've taken the dash out of a bay window bus before . . . it's a piece of cake compaired to this thing!  Of course, it's gets pretty chilly inside Homer the Super Bus in the middle of the winter.  I guess you pay for what you get . . . you don't always get what you pay for, but you almost always pay for what you get.

I was thinking on running around the corner to ACE and buying a long chisel and trying to hammer it around, but it eases my mind a lot to know that's an acceptable alternative before I start whacking at it.  If I can find my vice grips, I'll try them first . . . hadn't thought about that.

Thanks guys!!!!  I should have the dash out before lunch.  I'm gonna be optimistic here and say I'll make partially into the assembly process before I have to leave for the meeting / Christmas Party tonight.  Hope to see y'all there!

To give you an idea of what has to be done, sit in the car, look left, look right, everything that you see between you and the back side of the windshield has to come out.  And then there's stuff that you can't see.  It's gotta come out too.

Step 1 complete.  I got everything I could see out.  Now I'm at step 2 . . . the stuff I couldn't see.  This looks more complicated than step 1!      Oh well, I'm committed now . . . either finish or scrap it.

By the way, for anyone considering doing this yourself in your driveway . . . DON'T!