Replacing front panel light bulb

[Petros]

those connectors can be a real PIA, they do get stuck and you can not quite get a good grip on them to pull on it hard enough. Perhaps spray some silicone lubricant on them, and than just wiggle and pull. I have used some long nose pliers to get a grip on it so I can pull on it hard enough, just make sure you get the tab depressed to release it.

I have found that the ones on the left side of hood seem to be a bit easier to get off, and I leave the ones on the right side attached. I flip the hood to the right with the wires attached on that side to get to the cluster. It is not really that difficult once you know where to squeeze and pull on it. It only takes me about 2-3 min to get the hood clear, and another couple of min to get the instrument cluster out (most difficult part there is to release the speedo cable, it has plastic clip that you can not quite see, but will release like the electrical connectors when you push on it the right way...look down through the windshield to get a look at it).

With the hood off, you unscrew the instrument cluster (4 Philips screws), and pull it out as far is it will go (about 2-3" inches), release the speedo cable, than slip off the two electrical connectors, and it will lift free. The dash lights can than be changed from the back side of the cluster easy (a twist off cap for each one).

[stanrob]

It’s taken a long time for me to dive in, but much thanks to your advice, it’s fixed now. Here’s my report: The hard part was disconnecting the panel cover’s two left-end connectors. The smaller one finally gave way easily after I discovered, with a mirror, that my tiny screwdriver was in the wrong place. The larger one appeared to require only a lever-squeeze, but boy was it ornery! Eventually it gave way light as a feather. You had instructed me how to disconnect the speedometer cable after that, but it wasn’t necessary. With the mounting screws and the upper bracket out, I could reach in to remove and install a bulb. The green membrane cover had partially fused to the spent bulb after 29 years of use, causing a minor rupture in the course of moving it to the new bulb; nonetheless it worked fine. Visibility was good through the windshield. THANK YOU irowoki, archinstl, Petros, and gang for leading me thru the jungle.