fuse block removal

[erikh09]

Hi all,

I am sure this topic has been beat to death, but I am having a tough time pulling the fuse block from the firewall. (67 GMC). It is loose but will not budge. The bolt in the center just spins and will not come out. The panel inside the passenger compartment is loose as well. I am stumped! Also, how to the plugs come out? Do they pull straight out or up or ????. I do not plan to reuse so I guess I can always rip it out if needed.

Thanks for any help you can lend!

Erik

[ray_mcavoy]

The bolt in the center on the outside is what holds the engine & front light harnesses in place. It's held in place with a retainer so it won't come all the way out of the plug. But with the bolt loose, you should be able to unplug the engine & front light harnesses by pulling them toward the front of the truck (might need to wiggle the connector a bit if it's stuck).

Then form inside the cab there should be a couple of hex head screws (about 5/16" heads if I remember correctly) that secure the fuse box & bulkhead connector assembly to the firewall.

[erikh09]

Thanks for the info Ray. Well I have pulled and wiggled to the point it seems it is going to break off. I am out of ideas. It just seems as though it is fused together or something. I attached 2 pics to show where I am at. Any other tips or tricks from anyone would be greatly appreciated!

[michael bustamante]

the firewall plug side seperates top and bottom pull the lower one out first, you ll see the tangs on the side if i remember correctly

[FirstOwner69]

From your pictures, it appears you can turn the engine side 90 degrees. If you can do that without the inner part of the fuse block turning, then the electrical connectors are disengaged. I'd say the only thing that can be preventing complete separation would be the bolt on the engine side of the firewall. Have you tried turning the bolt a few more turns counterclockwise?

EDIT: I now see you aren't able to turn it. Sorry. But, as stated above try loosening the bolt some more.

[ray_mcavoy]

Originally Posted by erikh09

Thanks for the info Ray. Well I have pulled and wiggled to the point it seems it is going to break off. I am out of ideas. It just seems as though it is fused together or something. ...

That's a possibility. If some of the terminals inside are corroded they could be stuck together enough to prevent the connector from unplugging as easily as it should. Similarly, if any of the terminals have gotten hot due to resistance from a poor connection or from the circuit being overloaded they could have melted/distorted the inside of the plastic connector enough to prevent it from separating easily.

If additional loosening of the center retainer bolt doesn't do the trick, you could try spraying some penetrating oil into the connector around the wire openings ... that might help if the terminals are stuck together due to corrosion.