2005 defender cigarette light removal

Hi guys I’m planning on removing the cigarette lighter in my landy to replace with a usb voltmeter, am I going to have to remove a lot of the dash to get at it? With regards

You can buy a plug in voltmater and usb connector for very little money, that way you still have the 12v plug if you ever need it. Link attached.

Amazon product

So as a 2005 model you've got the big centre panel for the radio with switches round it, I'm guessing. You've got to take the top piece of the dash off, which involves undoing a number of self tappers along the front edge right against the angle with the windscreen, including the screws round the windscreen vent bezels and some big fat ones that just hold the top of the dash down. Plus you need to take the end pieces off. This allows the top dash panel to be lifted out of the way and then you can get at the screws that hold the top of the centre panel. There's also a couple of screws at the bottom of the centre panel down deep recesses. Then you can ease it towards you, being gentle with all the wires, and you can get at the lighter socket. I'm just working from memory here as it's a few months since I last had mine apart, but that's roughly the procedure.

Brown said:

So as a 2005 model you've got the big centre panel for the radio with switches round it, I'm guessing. You've got to take the top piece of the dash off, which involves undoing a number of self tappers along the front edge right against the angle with the windscreen, including the screws round the windscreen vent bezels and some big fat ones that just hold the top of the dash down. Plus you need to take the end pieces off. This allows the top dash panel to be lifted out of the way and then you can get at the screws that hold the top of the centre panel. There's also a couple of screws at the bottom of the centre panel down deep recesses. Then you can ease it towards you, being gentle with all the wires, and you can get at the lighter socket. I'm just working from memory here as it's a few months since I last had mine apart, but that's roughly the procedure.

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You are a gem thank you

Scooby22 said:

You can buy a plug in voltmater and usb connector for very little money, that way you still have the 12v plug if you ever need it. Link attached.

Amazon product

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Thank you, I already have one of them, but it sticks out to far I want it to look kinda factory sort of thing

Discodevon said:

You are a gem thank you

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Oh, and to get the top part of the dash off, I think you need to get the instrument cluster off. There are two screws on the bottom at either side and then one at either side near the top as I remember. You'll get enough movement on its wires without having to disconnect anything. Loads of screws, all different shapes and sizes too. It's helpful to remember what goes where!

Brown said:

There are two screws on the bottom at either side and then one at either side near the top as I remember.

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Just be very carful when you do this the two plastic tabs at the bottom of the cluster have a horrible habit of immediately breaking off as soon as you try to do anything with it!

dag019 said:

Just be very carful when you do this the two plastic tabs at the bottom of the cluster have a horrible habit of immediately breaking off as soon as you try to do anything with it!

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There are metal ones on mine. Maybe that's one of the things they changed on the TD5 model.
One thing I don't like is the little clip-on captive nuts that Land Rover seemed to use very widely. Either they fall off or get displaced or the screw pulls through entirely and there's no grip any more.

Thank you guys, looks like im going to be busy for half a day doing this job when it comes in the post lol! A little scary taking the dash apart but the chap who fitted my immobiliser years ago never fitted my radio back in properly so it’ll give me a chance to hopefully make good of it while apart… Brown what was the reason to you taking your dash out?

Discodevon said:

Thank you guys, looks like im going to be busy for half a day doing this job when it comes in the post lol! A little scary taking the dash apart but the chap who fitted my immobiliser years ago never fitted my radio back in properly so it’ll give me a chance to hopefully make good of it while apart… Brown what was the reason to you taking your dash out?

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I've had the dash apart a number of times for different reasons. Mostly it is to do with the wipers. There's usually something wrong with my wipers. The wheelboxes jam and the motor burns out (although some motors seem to have a thermal cut out and will start working again when they cool down), or the wheels slip on the spindles as they are often only staked or peened on. Oh, and the wiper relay is behind the instrument cluster, and they seem to need replacing regularly. I've been locked in mortal combat with my wipers since 2013. However, the last time I replaced everything was just over two years ago and they've worked since. Another time was to fit additional instruments. I put a rev counter on and a transmission oil temperature gauge a few years ago. I've had it apart trying to get the radio to stay in place. I took it apart a few times trying to trace an electrical fault which made the heated rear screen warning light come on when I switched the lights on. When this happens, of course everybody says 'earth', but in my case there seemed to be a short inside the loom from the warning light wire to something that became live when the sidelights were switched on. I replaced the warning light wire from the switch to the instrument cluster with a fresh one and it's been fine since. There was a time when I put LED lights in the instrument cluster instead of the usual filament ones, several of which had ceased working. A time when I was trying to get the hot air blower to work and blow air on the screen. And about four weeks ago when I was trying to make the windscreen washers work. I think that's it, mainly. So lots of things result in the dash having to come apart!

I've just checked. The last time I replaced the wiper motor and wheelboxes was Christmas 2019/20
What have you done to your Landie today.
So that's nearly two and a half years. That's an extraordinarily long life for Land Rover wiper components, so I'm sure something will go wrong with them soon.

Brown said:

I've just checked. The last time I replaced the wiper motor and wheelboxes was Christmas 2019/20
What have you done to your Landie today.
So that's nearly two and components, so I'm sure something will go wrong with them soon.

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Thanks mate, my mechanic had mine apart in 2017 due to the wiper box or something, if I remember the wipers were sticking so sounds familiar, I’ll let you know how I get in with it, I need to do some rust proofing underneath but sadly here in Devon it’s still pretty damp so not ideal for it just yet

Brown I have fitted the usb voltmeter today, getting the dash off wasn’t the most fun of jobs but I got there, got to put it back together in the morning, I can’t get the radio surround to sit right though, it never has after a auto electrician fitted my immobiliser some years ago, so I’m stumped with that, it almost can’t take the weight of the standard Land Rover radio and pops out a little at the bottom, not the end of the world but annoying, I’ll get some pictures when all back together thanks for your help, I used a bit of cardboard to put the screws in so the exact screws are going back into the same place

Again thanks to brown for his detailed information about the dash removal, here are some pictures, the usb voltmeter came with the wires which clip onto the back of the unit, so all I did was unplug the cigarette lighter plug and crimped on two insulated spade connections the other end, and they fitted perfectly into the existing Land Rover plug, The voltmeter I had to screw into the hole as it was very tight, used 2 black plumbing o rings either side of the fascia so it won’t come loose and tightened the supplied locking nut, and where the cigarette socket was there is a recessed grove so the o ring filled that groove and made a tidy job, the old fag socket itself I used a small pick to remove the light housing, then pushed the two green tabs in at either side and it came through the fascia ok, ( pics aren’t good due to sun glare )

Whilst the heating control panel was removed, I spent about 20 mins spraying wd40 down the wire cables, now they are really nice and easy to pull up and down

Oops, I haven't looked into this thread for a few days, and you seem to be asking me a question. Sorry about the delay in replying. I can't get the radio to stay in by itself either. It appears to be supported entirely by the front panel. There isn't a receptacle like on a lot of other cars. I even bought a front panel (not the whole thing, just the bit the radio goes in) and a fixing kit but it was no better. I've wedged mine in with self tapping screws with large flat black heads and they seem to have sufficed. They match the exposed self tapping screw aesthetic of the trim in the cab and look like they've always been there.