Subaru Outback 2005-2009 Dashboard Removal 

lol! I had just quit smoking weed the week prior so it was like natural adderall. I can’t stand listening to myself in this vid, so annoying. Have since come down off the crack hehe

Glad it could be of some assistance! Feel free to comment any questions you may have. In my haste and inexperience the latter half of the video gets a bit jumpy and sloppy, lol

Same, my 05 Outback. I smelled the coolant and was like “please don’t tell me the heater core is leaking” found coolant on my side 😔

At about 17:20 it’s the yellow harness, you slide a tab down a good inch or so for them to separate. Once separated it’s easiest to pop the retaining clips on the side so the whole harness comes out with the dash, it’s probably about a foot long and will dangle off the side of the airbag.

@@chrislabbe9412 thankyou sir I ended up breaking it accidentally 😩

My next issue is trying to remove the airbag from the dash so it can be fitted to the replacement dash. Does it really matter which airbag is used? I've changed steering wheels along with a different airbag and the computer didn't seem to care.

Unfortunately the footage didn't actually show what you were doing to separate the plug.

@@matthewchild7927 sorry to hear about the break, you might be able to splice in a donor harness. As for the airbag I would say use your original as it will most likely trigger the air bag light on the dash if you use one the car doesn’t recognize. That’s the issue I ran into in my haste of the initial swap. It’s very easy to remove the airbags to swap them over, just get a couple flat screwdrivers and start prying back the dozen or so hook tabs, they’re the only thing securing the airbag into the dash.

Interesting, I didn’t have any issues last summer but I’ll look into that!

Yes, many dashboards of this era would get sticky and blindingly shiny and there was a recall to replace them up until a few years ago. Subaru calls for 6 hours for a dashboard replacement but that’s way overkill. In my case I had rodent nests under the dash and it reeked from them so I swapped in a donor dash that hasn’t deteriorated.

Sorry for the delayed response. Unfortunately yes as far as I know the dash needs to be removed to access the heater core, it’s in the back left corner of the heater unit behind the radio.

Good question, I believe it’s the only way to get enough room to pry the tabs and slide the old one out. The center support beam runs right behind it and gets in the way. Mine had a mouse infestation and they chewed away at much of the foam and it smelled terrible as it was soaked in urine. If you look along the glass the foam is all chewed, lol. So after about a year this dash also started getting sticky in spots when in direct sunlight. I wouldn’t recommend sourcing and swapping a dash if it’s sticky simply because it will happen again on all these dashes. I’m looking into either a carpet mat or a multi step process to clean and reseal the vinyl. Though if you do find a replacement I don’t see why they couldn’t swap it in when the recall work is done. They used to replace the dash under recall for being dangerously shiny from the stickiness so they better help you out!

@@chrislabbe9412 Oh man I was so annoyed when I realized the dash used to be a recall they don't honor anymore. I mostly just putz around town so the shine didn't bother me as much as the layer of dog hair the sticky accumulated. But I recently road tripped from MN to TX and back and holy hell I burned my retinas! I've also been looking at dash mats and the resin sealer which I know ill just get all over my windshield. Maybe I'll price a dash and seal it up uninstalled then try to charm the dealership lol I really appreciate your response!! I found your video looking for a guide to swapping my cabin fuse block. Any insight if that's too tricky after getting that kick panel off?

I pulled it from a local junkyard car for $60. A 2006 I believe, the early models didn’t have the sticky dash issue it seem.

@@chrislabbe9412 2004 JDM here. Sticky and cracked :(

I could, I’m in Maine though, lol. Not sure, it’s harder to get used parts these days as you can’t pull your own parts in junkyards anymore due to liability concerns. If you have a dash to swap in it’s an easy job.

I’m guessing you mean Legacy instead of Liberty. I’m 90% sure they’re identical between Legacy and Outback models. I know the 3rd gen Outback years 2005-2009 are interchangeable as I put a 2005 Outback dashboard into my 2008 Outback.

@@chrislabbe9412 yeah.. i think they all are almost same. I have 2007 outback and going to swap the dash with 2009 Liberty.

@@isurubuwaneka3194 yes they are identical. the outback is just a lifted wagon legacy.

@@Truslide12 Thanks mate.

Good points! Yes the helmet cam was a compromise as this was the 3rd dash removal of the week and I wasn’t looking to waste time, lol. Someone in my OB group was curious so I shot the vid for him real quick. If I do more thorough videos I’ll definitely mount it and use my hero 10, hero 4 is lightweight but noisy in low light. Feel free to ask any questions if you run into roadblocks during the blind sections! It’s really straightforward once you get started, I could do it blindfolded, no joke!