Removing oil pressure/water temp gauge?

[z boy mn]

Hey everyone, I tried my luck at removing the oil pressure / water temp gauge on my 71 Datsun 240Z. I have a spare gauge (lucky me!), and the one in the dash seems to have a voltage regulator problem (the oil pressure and water temp needled) drift back and forth together in unison and there are other changes (i.e. engine is consistent).

So, this weekend I looked in the FSM and tried to take out the center panel. Seemed tricky, and even with all the screws out it didn't want to come out. Not wanting to break anything or separate wires, I tried another option. The updated FSM for the '72 says use the glove box option. The glove box liner came out easy, but the oil pressure / water temp gauge is so far away, I'm afraid even if I got it out, I'd never be able to get it back in and connect the wiring harness.

So...any ideas? Do I just need someone with a smaller hand, or should I look again at removing the center finishing panel?

[AZ-240z]

In upper right corner of this page, click on advance search. Then, do a search for "removing heater control panel". Takes a little time but not hard to do. Good Luck.