I did my swap a couple weekends ago. Huge,
HUGE thanks to
@Shadious and
@Bueno and @
FPLPowered for their work! I ended up using a Rev G from a 2017 Model
X with ~32.9k miles off of eBay. I only used the panel and not the entire cluster.
My swap went pretty quick because of the ground work those guys laid, with their pics and description of that 2nd connector on the back of the Gen 2 cluster. (It has a "gated" lever that will "push" the plug out of the connector when thrown. I was somehow able to just use finger pressure and throw the lever with the other hand.)
I also studied these three videos and made combination notes on the sequence of the teardown I wanted to do. The order in the first video is not "wrong", but for example, I popped the side panel off and disconnected it before moving to the next item:
...and this gem. It's long and covers other parts of the interior, but a really good video, especially the advice on how to pull off the trim beneath the steering wheel (tug it straight back)
AND advice on how to pop the decor from the right side of the steering wheel (hand tug at an angle, plus a little tool lever action):
That video isn't perfect either, but it was certainly helpful.
I also took notes on which direction the decor clips were oriented (horizontal vs. vertical) and their location for easy tool placement and popping off, especially after seeing one of the guys on Rich Rebuilds break a decor piece in a
Model X Part 5 video, about 6:15 into it.
I had one speed bump I figured out before it caused damage. It was NOT in either video. On my car, and probably other older Model S, there is a single Torx 20 screw on the
SIDE of the dashpad, which prevents it from easily raising to the height it should. (See below for screw location)
I did buy an "air shim" from Home Depot (Calculated Industries Model 1190). It was about $15. Did I have to use it? No, but it made the job easier.
I bought two, figuring I'll need both when it comes time to deal with the MCU memory fix or if I do a decor swap. The dashpad chrome trim has a spot that is prone to flex and crease, right where it covers the left edge of the MCU chrome trim. Here's a pic from another guy who had Mobile Service out to do his MCU; note the hanging squeeze bulbs for the air shims:
BTW, I had a Rev D in my car... and it was gooey when it came out, but thankfully, not inside the dash area:
I started to clean that off the metal "cage" with rubbing alcohol... then asked "why"? I used the new clean cage from the Rev G instead! I did transfer/swap the sticker from my old one easily with a razor blade, just for the heck of it.
My Rev D motherboard was dated 2014. My 2017 Rev G replacement had a motherboard dated 2015 (didn't use it, but thought that was interesting). Hopefully all those revs in between were for the panel.
What else? I did only use the Power Off button in the MCU... but the screens did come back alive at least a couple of times during the process. I just kept hitting the Power Off when they did. I did do a couple of steering wheel MCU resets afterwards for good measure.
