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Michael Member
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I like the look of a GT dash and wonderered if it could be put in a JH II. If so, does anyone know where to find one? |
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Brett Gibson JH5 20497 Member
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It's been done a few times, last pict of one I saw was for a JH on E-bay in England, I dont have any pict's myself, best way to do it is to buy a parts GT and strip it out yourself, or advertise in the market place. Good luck, Brett. |
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Michael Member
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Brett, thanks for your input. The car is quite disassembled now, so it would be an ideal time. However, I worry that I will fail to secure a new dash in time to get the car reassembled for summer driving. Can this job be done later or does it require a the car to be stripped down? |
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Brett Gibson JH5 20497 Member
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My thoughts would be that it is something that would require the entire dash being out, hopefully not the windshield as well, one of those winter projects. Probably have to muck with the wiring maybe extending a few, not sure if there would be mods on the heating sys. but from what I've seen with these cars I dont believe the factory would want to spend allot of money changing things to much from the JH, so it would probably be quiet doable with patience and alcohol. Brett |
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Michael Member
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Thanks for the good advice. Barring a run of very good luck, I think I shall shelve this project for another winter. It might be best to put my limited patience to work on some other alcohol related endevor. Michael |
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Sander Member 
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I have a spare GT dash ... make me an offer. |
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Michael Member
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Dear Sander, Do you have a picture of the dash? And do you know anything about putting a GT dash in a Healy? Have you doner or heard of this project. Any input would be appreciated. I have no idea as to the price because I am new to this whole procedure. I have no desire to pay too much or to insult you with a wrong offer. So, would you accept 250 for the dash and console? Michael |
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Sander Member
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I'll try to get pictures this week-end. I've seen it done on a few cars and was told that no "serious modifications" were needed except for what to do with the extra switches, i.e.: A/C, Fan Boost, etc. One owner simply covered the openings up when he installed new veneer, the other used the switches for power antenna and fog lamps ... we can talk price later. I agree that wires would need to be lengthened. Understand gages, switches, wiring harness, steering-wheel, kick panels and heater-box would not be included. I do have all of those items ... but at a cost ... |
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Jensen Healey Super Moderator 
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I also love the GT dash and would like to fabricate one. I need an old knackered dash for a pattern. Anyone have one? Kurt Housh |
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richbthomas Member
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Yes. I have. Send your email address to richbthomas@comcast.net and I will send you a picture of it. I also used the wiring harness out of the GT, but you could get by with your standard harness and add extensions plus some new wiring. You really need to add a new fuse block for the extra applications. Rich Thomas |
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richbthomas Member
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Message for hotlanta. I might also be interested in your GT dash to put back in the GT I took one out of for my 74. My main requirement would be that the vinyl on the top of the dash and the center console be in excellent shape. How's yours? Also would need the kick panels. Write to richbthomas@comcast.net Thanks Rich Thomas |
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Sander Member
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Sold my perfect GT dash and console for BIG BUCKS to some guy in Maine!! (LOL JC!) Like some of you, I always wanted to put the GT dash in my '74 JH but finally thought WHY? I like the look of the dash in my JH. I like the 4 banger too. If I want to "feel" power and torque of an 8 cyl. snapping my head back and leaving rubber in 3 gears I'll drive my '62 365hp Vette. If I want to enjoy a light and nimble ear to ear smiling drive I'm in my favorite driving car, my JH. Enjoy what you've got or buy more cars!! Why try to turn a Ford Escort in to a Ferrari? Buy both in that's what you like. Now, if you really like the looks of the GT dash, AC and power windows, buy a GT! I've got one I'll sacrifice for 8K! Life's short. Drive fast and brake late, Sander in Atlanta ... '58 100-6, '60 Bugeye, '62, 84 and 85 Covette, '74 JH, 2 GT's, '75 TR6, '78 F-100 and a 31mpg '96 Geo for ever day!! |
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MikeIsotech Member 
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I know this is an old topic, but I'm currently putting a GT dash in my JH, so I thought that I'd share my experiences to date. You definitely will need to extend the wiring loom as some of the switches are in different places. I also had to add new wiring for things like the clock. I took my time to work out what I needed to do and used wiring from an old loom to keep the colours right. I soldered the joints and used heat shrink to make them safe. The JH wiring loom for the guages worked without modification luckily. The most tricky thing was the heater vents, the GT has four, the JH has two. I could've left the two centre ones unused, but decided to see if I could make them work too. A GT heater box is no good as it wouldn't go in without loads of work. I did see that there was just enough room to make two additional holes on the face of the existing box. I managed to cut these with a hole saw. The GT hoses could then be used to connect the box to the centre dash panel. It made it all a little tight to get the panel back in but, thanks to the help of a friend,it's in and all vents are working. In summary, it can be done but it needs to be done carefully. If I'd know how much hassle it was, I'd probably use a later JH dash instead. It does look fabulous though, so I have no regrets now. Mike |
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Art DeKneef Member
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What did you do for the center console? Use the one from a JH or did you have one from a GT? I have both a GT dash and center console and the initial fitting is fine and all lines up. when the GT dash is installed in A JH with the JH dash the two pieces do not line up properly. The JH center console is about 2 - 2.5" short. Since you are in the UK, I wonder if having a RHD car would make a difference in the wiring compared to a LHD car? I guess I'll find out soon as I am making a couple of GT dashes. One of which is going into a JH with its shorter center console. Art |
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MikeIsotech Member
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Hi Art I was lucky enough to get a GT centre console at the same time. I bought it all a few years ago and only paid £250 - a bargain I think. My car is a very early Mk1 and the original interior was very plasticy and cheap. It badly needed to be replaced in its entirety. I think you'll have wiring changes too on a LHD car. A lot of what I did was moving things and also making good use of the spare switch and indicator light holes. The GT has lots of things that a JH doesn't - A/C, heated rear window. For instance, I have an electric rad fan so I used one of the spare switch slots for a manual override. I've done lots of other upgrades as I've been rebuilding the car, so this is one of the many changes. Cheers Mike |
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Art DeKneef Member
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Sounds like me and my car. Making a lot of changes also. I got a GT that turned into a parts car so I am adding the dash, doors, AC, and other customizations to my JH so I have all the parts. Putting a GT dash into a JH and using all the JH stuff would probably be a little easier by starting with a blank center piece. You can arrange things as you would like them. At least that's the current plan for the second GT dash I'm making that will be replacing th JH console on Jody's car. |
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