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Registered
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: California
Posts: 20
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Need dash cover advise
There is a small 1/2" crack on my dash between the speaker grille and the defroster vent on my '71T. Is there a way to repair without the expense of replacing the the whole thing? I've seen ads for covers but don't know how they look when installed. Can the crack itself be repaired as I've seen kits for vinyl repair? Want a solution that looks decent but doesn't cost an arm and a leg, maybe just an arm. Thanks.
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05-03-2005, 06:55 AM
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Designer King
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Toronto, ON Canada
Posts: 5,499
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I have been planning to try some flexible, paintable latex or silicone caulk to fill the gap in a small crack in my dash, after masking off the good areas, and then painting the infill. I haven't tried this yet, however, so I can't vouch for the idea. It seems that it would work, as long as you do it neatly.
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Paul Yellow 77 Sunroof Coupe/cork interior; 3.2L SS '80 engine/10.3:1/No O2; Carrera Tensioners; 11 Blade Fan; Turbo tie rods; Bilstein B6; 28 tube Cooler; SSI, Dansk; MSD/Blaster; 16x7" Fuchs/205/50 Firestone Firehawk Indy 500s; PCA/UCR, MID9 Never leave well enough alone |
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05-03-2005, 08:25 AM
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Paul have you gone ahead and tried your latex/silicone caulk idea? I want to fill some cracks in my dash before I try and recover it. The biggest problem is that I have found, from seaching, that the material that you fill the crack with expands and contracts at a different rate than vinyl causing cracks to show up again soon after.
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Think Intergalactically Act Interplanetarily |
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05-15-2005, 04:55 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2000
Posts: 6,950
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I just recently connected my friend with dash pad for his car. He got if for $325 which wasn't bad ($550 PartsHeaven). So, yes, they are pricey. If the dash itself isn't damaged, couldn't you just recover it with some upholstery adhesive and some good vinyl after filling the cracks. Even if you had a professional do it, it has got to be cheaper then what is out there now price-wise.
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05-15-2005, 05:38 PM
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Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Southern California
Posts: 5,067
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None of the fill-and-patch ideas work. Your best bet is to try to find a new or used dash, or pull your dash and send it to www.justdashes.com. Spendy, but top notch.
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1984 Targa |
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05-15-2005, 05:57 PM
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Recreational User
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 888
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I've had great success using black liquid electrical tape to fill dash cracks:
 I mask-off the vinyl surrounding the crack and then fill it with the liquid tape. It takes several coats to fill the opening and make it flush with the surrounding vinyl. Sometimes you have to cut the liquid tape off the masking tape using an Exacto knife in order to get the masking tape off. |
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05-15-2005, 08:24 PM
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Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Quad Cities IA
Posts: 1,238
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I've always thought about using this stuff
 but don't know if it work.
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Jay '08 E350 Wagon '74 914 gone '72 T gone |
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05-15-2005, 09:14 PM
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good ideas...darryl, do you have pics of your repair?
ryan
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To the memory of Warren Hall (Early S Man), 1950 - 2008 www.friendsofwarren.com 1990 964 C4 Cabriolet (current) 1974 911 2.7 Coupe w/sunroof 9114102267 (sold) 1974 914 2.0 (sold) |
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05-15-2005, 10:07 PM
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Recreational User
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 888
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Hey Ryan!
Sorry no pics, I don't own the Karmann Ghia and Fiat Spyder I did the repairs on anymore. I forgot to mention that you can spray the liquid tape with vinyl dye to hide the repair better too. |
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05-15-2005, 11:06 PM
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Couple of dashes on EBAY:
From the pics, looks like LA Dismantlers would be worth calling to see if they have something in your color/year. Jason 88 CAB |
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05-16-2005, 04:26 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: So. Cal.
Posts: 9,104
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I drilled small holes in the dash at the ends of the cracks to stop them from propagating. Seemed to work OK. Never have had any luck at filling them though.
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Marv Evans '69 911E |
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05-16-2005, 04:55 PM
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Join Date: May 2004
Location: SK, Canada
Posts: 419
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Depending on the condition of the dash, there are thousands of vinyl and leather repair specialists all around that can easily repair most damage to a very good state.
I hade these guys fix a leather couch with a 6" tear. Can't even tell unless you are acutally looking for it. I had a small (1.5") dash-crack done for $80 CDN. Was awesome. |
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05-16-2005, 06:05 PM
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1974 Porsche 911 2.7
