DIY gen 3 HVAC mod

[Nfsdude0125]

Howdy all,

Welcome to my guide for changing the colour of the HVAC display in your gen 3 Liberty/Legacy.

As some of you know, there was a product available on Yahoo! Auctions and Import Monster that did exactly what I'm about to show you. It came with a replacement screen cover and a set of LED's to change the overall output to white. It's no longer available and I wanted to know how to do it.

So, for this procedure, you will need

A sharp knife/scissors
VFD light filter (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/VFD-Display ... 2749.l2649)
Some LED's, T3 I think (and hopefully you actually receive them..)
Double sided tape
Screwdrivers
Black tinted perspex/acrylic glass
a Dremel/multi-tool
an accurate cutting tool (I used a milling machine - read more to see why)

Let's get started.

I'm assuming you have either the knowledge for removing the control unit or have already done so.

1. Disassemble the HVAC unit totally. There are 4 screws on the back part of the case and tabs that need to be clicked open. Remove the backing and you'll see another 3 screws on the PCB, as well as a ribbon cable, remove those too. Careful with the ribbon cable and tab, these are easy to damage. Once you have removed the screws and un-clicked the plastic tabs, the entire unit should pull apart.

2. Once it's all apart, take the front panel and carefully remove the front layer of plastic glass. It can be tough to remove but it will come off. Keep it as you will need it to make a template.

3. Cut the filter to size.

Now comes the fun, trimming/shaping the perspex. Few places will undertake it and if they do, it'll be expensive. The difficulty in this process starts with the bevel and the contour.

4. Leave the paper on the perspex, and carefully outline the shape of the piece you removed earlier.

5. Using your cutting tool, trim the perspex down to size. Make sure to be careful with this as it is remarkably easy to mess up. If you have/have access to a milling machine, I suggest using one with a medium feed rate and high RPM.

Once the general shape is cut out, I suggest using a Dremel/multi-tool with a sanding attachment to round the edge where the temperature adjustment is. Once it is curved close to the factory piece, start contouring. I suggest holding at about 30-45 degrees and sanding uniformily from one side to the other for a nice finish. I used some nail paint stuff from Woolies to paint the plastic and it's un-noticeable.

Make sure to keep test fitting and get it right. As said, easy to fk up.

Once you've got to a point you're happy with, apply double sided tape to the plastic frame. I found some clear and extremely thin stuff again, from Woolies. Works perfectly.

Do the same to the filter on the actual display itself.

Reassemble (in the reverse order) and fit your LED's.

Assuming war were not declared, success.

DIY HVAC mod, done.

Hope this helps you guys, yell out if you have any questions.

Thanks, Tim.

[Nfsdude0125]

The finished product didn't attach, sorry.

[Tresidder17]

Looks really good!

[Nfsdude0125]

Looks really good!

Thank you sir I'm happy with it!