74 cj5 dash

Hello:
I am new to this forum stuff, so be gentle.
I am doing a complete restoration of a 74 cj5 w/258 i6
pretty far along right now. wish I found this place earlier.
I live in San Pedro California.
My question for starters is:
on the dash of my 74 there I do not know what the hole right above the steering column is for. it is between the wiper and hazard switch.
I cannot make out the picture in the original service manual.
My best guess is that it is a high beam indicator light, but the hole has an index slot in it. Any one have some ideas or pictures of the original dash.
THX
Dave

 

My 74 had a manual choke linkage pull lever installed in that hole. I doubt that was original, although the hole is very cleanly cut. The high beam indicator is in the large instrument cluster.

 

There was just some discussion the other day about this.

It turns out that that hole was for a brake warning light that was either some part of an optional package, or was being fazed out in 74.

Most people seem to have a metal plug in that hole and my 74 sales brochure shows a plugged hole.

The parts catalog has the warning light in the illustration of all the dash components. The hole has the index to keep the "BRAKE" letters down on the installed bezel.

I would say that if yours has a plug in there, that is original for your particular build.

 

thank you so much for the info
you guys just saved me alot of time trying to figure it out on my own
I will try and get some pictures up on my project
I am currently installing the painless wireing system
thx again

 

This is what mine came with there.

 

rgr that:
Thank you for the input
Does the lead for this light come off the brake combination valve mounted on the frame rail???

 

mine comes off a switch mounted on the parking brake pedal. the original one was toast so we used a micro momentary switch from radio shack. when the p. braking is pressed it makes contact and pushes it in making the light come on

 

oh kk i get it it is the parking break light,,,,,thought it was something to do with hydraulic pressure or lack there of..... got it now,,, makes sense
THX

 

On my 74, it had 4 rectangular cutouts WIPER, HEADLIGHT, BRAKE, HAZARD. It was wired to the differential pressure switch on the brake system to notify you of a failure in one half of the brake system. The round hole was plugged just like the sales brochure picture shows. Mine didn't have the switch on the parking brake. Interesting and confusing. Gotta love old Jeeps
Hadn't had my coffee this morning just remembered the light served dual purpose on some vehicles as parking brake reminder and brake failure warning been a few years since I thought about it.

 

ignore the air rectangle cutout on mine, I just needed something to plug the old hazard hole cause I went with a GM column.