Second-Gen Firebird Clock Upgrade - Turning Back Time

Separate the clock from the tachometer housing by removing the two retaining bolts and carefully rotating the clock away from the center. Use extreme caution: The clock hands and tachometer needle are very delicate!

To separate the clock-face/dial-plate assembly and electro-mechanical motor from the main case, carefully pull the hands up and away from the face. Once removed, set them aside in a safe location; then pry all the retaining tabs outward, and gently pull the entire clock assembly apart.

With the dial plate separated from the electro-mechanical motor, you can see the internal gear set that is responsible for moving the hour, minute, and second hands. Pay close attention to the gear positions as a few are reused with the new quartz-movement motor.

With a soldering iron, remove the red wire from the electro-mechanical motor, and connect it to the positive terminal on the quartz-movement motor (marked +). Then use the supplied black wire to connect the unmarked terminal next to the positive to the copper strip on the dial-plate assembly.

Depending on the year, the detailed instructions tell which motion gear should be installed. Then reinstall the center gears from the original unit. All the gears should mesh without any interference. No lubrication is required.

Being careful to avoid pinching the wires or breaking the fresh solder joints, install the new quartz-movement motor in the case and reinstall the clock face. Then carefully pry the retaining tabs back, and reinstall the clock hands. Align them so they both point at the 12. By connecting the red wire to the positive terminal of a 12-volt battery and grounding the case body to the negative terminal, you can bench test the unit to ensure it's functioning properly before reinstalling it in the cluster.

Reassembly is straightforward. Once the cluster is inserted into the dash and the wiring harnesses are reattached, reconnect the battery and verify that the clock, tachometer, and oil pressure and coolant temperature gauges are all working properly. Also verify that the backlight, turn signal and high-beam indicators, and seatbelt and brake warning lights are illuminating.

When our dash was apart, we used 3M's two-step Professional Formula Plastic Cleaner and Polish to clean the clear lens plates that cover our gauges. Consider doing this to your lenses. Rub a small amount of cleaner into the lens with a soft rag, and then follow up with the polish. This removes many of the fine scratches that gave your lens plate a hazy appearance.

Typically, this small set of contact points is the root of most electro-mechanical clock failures. Quartz-movement clocks were introduced into the Firebird model line in June 1978. According to TSB 78-I-74, the new tachometer/clock assembly was installed into U.S.-bound Firebirds beginning with VIN 2W87Z8N177086 (Norwood built) and 2W87Z8L175503 (Van Nuys built), while Canadian Export Firebird breakpoints are 2W87Z8N173053 and 2W87Z8L180822, respectively.