idea on fixing the dash wihtout removing it

[pwayzjellyroll]

well my dash has been driving me insane with the peeling in the corners, but i don't have the time or the money to pull one, pull mine, then install it as much as i'd like to, so from what i've read the shape of the dashboard is the same under the foam i think it's a metal plate that makes the shape.. i guess it's the frame im not sure, but then i had an idea and im going to give it a go but only if you think it will work i want to remove the foam from where it has lifted, get a piece of wood and mold it into the shape of the dash, then gorilla glue the wood to the metal and the vinyl to the wood, watcha guys think? i of course would have to match the thickness of the wood to the foam, any opinions would be appreciated

 

[HighPsi92GST]

The foam is pretty thin, and yes the dash is the same shape under it. On the driver side there is a real thin peice of metal under the foam (around the gauge area) and on the passenger side it is plastic under the foam.
I think it would be kind of hard to get a peice of wood to fit right over the dash. Would probably be easier to just glue your dash cover back down, or get another one and glue that one in its place.

 

[Defiant]

And you think this would be less work than swapping dashboards? WTF

 

[wolf20043]

And you think this would be less work than swapping dashboards? WTF

Kind of what I was thinking
Mike

 

[pwayzjellyroll]

well from the tech sheets i looked at and the chilton's manual it seems like it would be atleast 3-5 hrs of work total to remove one dash, remove the other dash, then replace instead of getting out the dremmel and molding out some wood, not sure i might just use gorilla glue to hold it down but i had no luck with superglue any other ideas for thinks that would hold the foam to the metal? im a tad baffled because the foam is fairly porous

 

[ILLiCliPSE]

I would have a glass guy come and remove the front windshield for maximum access to the dash. Thats how my dad is gonna paint my dash black (its grey now). Then obviously have him come back and pop the glass back in for around 50 bucks.

 

[HighPsi92GST]

I would have a glass guy come and remove the front windshield for maximum access to the dash. Thats how my dad is gonna paint my dash black (its grey now). Then obviously have him come back and pop the glass back in for around 50 bucks.

Are you serious?

 

[FFeArXVI]

I would have a glass guy come and remove the front windshield for maximum access to the dash. Thats how my dad is gonna paint my dash black (its grey now). Then obviously have him come back and pop the glass back in for around 50 bucks.

Wow.. I found it easier to buy myself a black dash and just swap them, but I guess that's just me.

 

[ILLiCliPSE]

Hell ya Im serious...

I would rather do that then have to go through hell getting that dashboard out..have you seen whats involved? Just the risk of deploying an airbag makes me want to throw up

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=73670

Might not seem too bad but Ive heard from my friends and from people on this forum that it takes forever. Plus Im painting the dash a semi-gloss black to match the rest of the interior's aftermarket black color. I would swap for a 99 black dash, but to find one and have it match the paint perfect would be highly unlikely.

 

[HighPsi92GST]

have you seen whats involved?.

Yes, I have pulled and installed several. I would have made a tech guide for a 2g like I did the 1g dash but someone had beat me to it.

If you can get the windshield pulled and put back in for that cheap, then I guess its not too bad. I know it would be hard to find someone to do it that cheap around here.
If they happen to crack the windshield while doing this, are they replacing it for free or do you have to pay for a new one? I know when the guys come and do windshields at work alot of times they crack during removal.

 

[FFeArXVI]

Yes, I have pulled and installed several. I would have made a tech guide for a 2g like I did the 1g dash but someone had beat me to it.

If you can get the windshield pulled and put back in for that cheap, then I guess its not too bad. I know it would be hard to find someone to do it that cheap around here.
If they happen to crack the windshield while doing this, are they replacing it for free or do you have to pay for a new one? I know when the guys come and do windshields at work alot of times they crack during removal.

So true. I had a cracked windshield from a rock on a highway. They came to replace it and as they were taking it out it just kinda... shattered.

 

[Fayt]

Hell ya Im serious...

I would rather do that then have to go through hell getting that dashboard out..have you seen whats involved? Just the risk of deploying an airbag makes me want to throw up

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=73670

Might not seem too bad but Ive heard from my friends and from people on this forum that it takes forever. Plus Im painting the dash a semi-gloss black to match the rest of the interior's aftermarket black color. I would swap for a 99 black dash, but to find one and have it match the paint perfect would be highly unlikely.

I removed my dash, center console, doors, and all the plastic trim in my car last night in about 2 hours, I'm waiting for the paint to dry so I can put another coat on now. It really wasn't that hard, just make sure the connectors are undone. Those instructions were PERFECT and don't worry about the airbags, just disconnect the battery, put the key into the ON position, and start taking the car apart. Once you get to the part with the airbags, you'll be well past 1/2 hour.