Giulia - Wood Dash Inserts

[boxcarracer]

Thanks to all those who chimed in.

Another question, not veneer related.
My dad's cluster lights light up very faint, the wattage seems to be too low. I believe the original ones are 5W, but there are no numbers stamped on the neck of the bulb. Does anyone know what the bulb #s are?

[sprint750]

Original cluster lighting is very low on both GT and Giulia/ Berlinas

Once I replaced ALL the bulbs with new ones on my Super. The lighting was slightly better but not so much... and not as expected.

In fact the system was designed this way. (not like some 'christmas tree' cluster on modern cars) but it is very convenient on long term because you are not disturbed by the display while driving. There's even a switch to switch off completely the dashboard lighting. Only the Main/low beam is remaining.

For better cluster lighting I was told about using 12V LED instead of bulbs. Maybe there's a thread about this on this forum ??

regards
Sébastien

[Richard2]

I recently rewired my Berlina, putting in a Painless Fuse box and adding several relays. Without changing the dash bulbs, the dash lights are much brighter now. I believe the long wiring and line losses are not as great getting more voltage to the bulb.

[boxcarracer]

Do you have more details on this Painless Fuse Box?

I don't think LEDs are available for this type of bulb.

[Damo105]

My bulbs were replaced with LEDs by an auto electrician, so they must be available. The lights are a lot brighter now.

[Richard2]

Here's the link for the 12 fuse block I used. This conversion is not for the faint of heart. You must have a wiring diagram and carefully mark all wires moving them one at a time. I also use a continuity meter to trace wires. I got rid of the old style European fuses and put in several relays to unload the head light and ignition switch.

The head lights and dash lights are all brighter.


Painless Performance: Web Catalog

[JohnS]

Hi Boxcarracer.

If your Dad's car is the 1300TI in the photo, the stuff on the dash isn't wood its a formica type artificial material, it seems to either go light or dark in the sun or just warp, or all three!

If you want to replace it with wood most lightly grained veneers will do. Just remember though that it had a satin finish.

Cheers
John

[Damo105]

There seems to be conflicting opinions on the finish of the dash veneer. Some say it was satin, others say it was glass like gloss finish. I've seen restored cars with both, and don't know which is correct.

The veneer on my GTV has a satin finish, but I'm fairly sure it has been replaced in the past. I also notice that the reproduction dash inserts appear to be more teak colour rather than the darker original colour. That's certainly the case for my GTV.

Was the veneer the same across all 105 series cars? Is there a definitive answer to what the correct colour and finish should be?

Damien

[Andrew]

I would call it gloss but not high gloss. I have some NOS GTV wood pieces that have likely never been in the sun, and they're not super-glossy. But they're not satin either.

Andrew