Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Dashboard

Ok, guys, I've had enough of ongoing electrical problems, gonna have a look behind the dashboard... is it really just 3 screws holding it in place? Are there any scary bits to look out for when removing it? Any advice appreciated

I'm not sure on the 2011 dash but I suspect just the three screws on the dash and a few holding the underdash trim.

It helps if you move the steering wheel to it's lowest position and probably also remove the steering wheel.

Keep both doors fully open, sit in the car and have blankets to flip the dash onto (initially on to your lap).

Before you pull the dash out too far look at the configuration of cables etc,take lots of photos.

You can then start unplugging cables to remove the dash (labels should be put on the cables (helps if you mark the orientation even though they are keyed|) You can also mark parts with a sharpie to help on reassembly.

There are generic faults such as trapped cables, dodgy connectors, bad fuse connections etc that can cause a host of multiple problems. However I would suggest the best approach (before you take out the dash) is try to narrow down the possible cause of the fault.

If you list the faults with as much info as you have on TM I'm sure someone will have some good ideas as to the cause which may help you in tracking it down.

Thanks, I've asked several times on here, no-one seems to have met my problem: every time I turn the ignition on, the fuse for the lights & indicators blows...nothing to do with turning on the lights, just the ignition. there's a short somewhere, can't find it anywhere else, so I'm down to checking for water and/or mice behind the dash...

There are a number of fuses for the lights & indicators, I think they are;

Indicators/hazard 15A
LH side 7A5
RH side 7A5
LH & RH dip
LH & RH main

Which fuses blow?

If you can find the blowing fuse have you tried removing the associated lamp(s), this would tell you if the wiring from fuse to lamp was faulty or if the lamp was faulty.

You can also take off the lower steering wheel cowl and meter the light and indicator switches.

If you don't have a multimeter it is a good investment.

But if it is mice or water then a visual check might just be the quick way.

Mike, try theses sites.....
https://sites.google.com/site/morganatica/
www.gomog.com
Gomog has wiring diagrams BUT...you car may differ.." it's a Morgan, sir" applies.
Wiring may vary especially colours!
A multimeter is definitely handy too.

The wiring diagram on gomog is fairly old, the latest one I know of is at the back of the Morgan parts list;

http://mog2904.free.fr/morgan-traditional-parts-book/morgan-traditional-parts-book-2006.pdf

It is a nightmare to read as it is designed for the harness maker, but it should help.

Mike, I had a problem once when I did my dash on my Plus 8 when it blew out the charging circuit fuse, when I turned on the ignition. After much frustration I discovered by accident that a live to one of the switches which was badly insulated had vibrated slightly loose and even though it was still plugged in the body was intermittently rubbing on the rev counter. This caused the fuse to blow. When you pop off the dash and carefully lower it and inspect each connection and that it is the nsulated and on straight.

Hope this helps.

Could also chafe on the ECU housing outlets

That parts book is the best christmas present ever, thanbks mate :-)

'Fraid I've tried everything else on here, the only thing really is to drop the dash, thanks for the tips, wish me luck, I'm going in!

I have come to the conclusion that Morgan has some pretty dodgy electrics behind the dash. To give you one strange example the heater fan control is on the earth side from the fan motor. This has the strange effect that when the ignition is turned off and the fan is going at high speed it starts to work like a generator and some of the warning lights that are on the same earth don't instantly go off but fade out over about a second as the fan motor winds down.

I have a mysterious fault that has now blown out 3 very expensive circuit boards. I thought it was happening only when the aircon was on and at one stage I put it down to the amateurish mounting of the aircon relays. After all that was fixed it blew again, it was then put down to a section of the circuit board being too thin,so it was beefed up. Now it has gone again and this time the aircon was not turned on. The big problem is that it can work perfectly for a month or two and then phst!

My current thinking is to completely replace the Morgan circuit board with a wired system and at the same time reverse the heater fan circuit so the the two speed switch is on the power side. In the mean time I have no heater fan