Yes it looks bad but,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,if you number all the wires, take pictures and read Clarks Garage it isn't bad. I did mine several years ago. I took my time and removed my dash, A project like this is mental as most are. You got to say to yourself, a person installed it, how hard can it be to disassembe it. It doesn't take special tools. Just time and patience.

Good luck

Taking the radio out isn't hard at all. Getting the rest of that stuff out isn't really easy, though, because behind the radio is kind of tight.

That little drain thing for the A/C seems to clog all the time too.

For those who haven't been there before, those pics aren't necessarily reassuring. I suspect that planning-to-do-ers might be better off not even looking at the pics, and keep words like "easy" and "not that bad", in their minds. I think what jim is trying to say, is that a positive attitude is your best card to play, when getting into this game.

P.S. - Glad to hear that there are only 6 to 8 screws involved in removing the console. I guess I took the statement the wrong way.

It's a good time to replace/upgrade blubs.

There is a downside here. Once you have replaced the dash, nice, new, no cracks, beautiful, it is going to make the rest of the interior look older; carpet, wheel seats, door panels.

Yes it is a little tight in behind, but it has been that way for awhile and all fits. All of the wiring is on plugs that only go back on their original spot - no wories. The only thing to watch out for are the three small bulbs that slide into place by themselves (One like the little light that lights up the vent arrow), these you will have to remember to put back into place, and they are easy to forget/miss.

Remember these dashes and related parts are over 21 years old so be careful of breaking some of the fragile plastic pieces - most of which are not that expensive to replace.

only problem I had with the picture was almost having a sezure trying to focus on the door panel and seat. What year was that a option?

928 Leather Shop has do-it-yourself leather covers for the 944's

A leather cover for 85.5 and up is only $259.95 - and is real leather...

Classic 9 Leather Shop: Dashboard, Leather Console Panel Covers Porsche Automobiles

Wasn't trying to reassure. . .trying to tease/frighten.

Doable, but large scale PITA.

no disrespect, but NFW to justdashes. they want over $1400 to redo a 944 dash. you can buy a NEW black one for 2/3 that. and have your existing one redone in leather for half that.

I will be doing this in the next 30-60 days. I bought the leather dash re-cover from Classic 9 Leather. I've seen some pictures after those have been installed and they look fantastic. Think it was $350 for the dash and ventilation cover. I didn't get the lower half of the dash but I might as well get that also. Also, if you take out that dash, make sure you replace those lovely dash light bulbs that burn out faster than a lit marlboro red.

Did you ever do this?

IMHO the dash covers look/feel cheaper than a Honda interior. The dash carpet rug things look even worse - they look like they were stolen from a 1970s Vegas brothel.

If you're that concerned, there are a number of threads about how to pull the dash, inject crack filler, sand it and refinish the dash either with a rubberized type of vinyl paint or other material that will look good and last a long time.

Or you can hold out for someone selling a good one (they're out there) and install it. I have maybe the only non-cracked original, un-recovered early car dashboard in existence in my early '85 and I do my best to keep it supple and in good shape, but who knows - it could crack tomorrow. I had to look for a couple of years before I found someone selling one and jumped on it immediately.

Again, YMMV.

I did my own dash with the help of "928 Leather shop"

Classic 9 Leather Shop Porsche Interior Restoration Automobile Reupholstery Craftsman

I purchased the leather cover and the dash vent trim peace (Vent trim makes it so much easier to recover your dash), and as soon as it arrived took out my dash and recovered it. I did not get into a hurry, so it took me about 5 days to complete it (Steady work would have been 2 to 3 days).

The dash removal was helped by Clark's Garage Shop Manual, and took most of the time. Although not terribly difficult to do removing the entire dash was a daunting task to start with. It turned out to be easier than I thought mainly because of all of the electrics will only plug back into their correct spots upon installation.

Clark's Garage Home Page Garage shop manual & dash removal

Avoid the cover! Terrible look. I replaced my dash, i have no mechanical ability and it took me four hours, and i was drinking.

I have maybe the only non-cracked original, un-recovered early car dashboard in existence in my early '85 and I do my best to keep it supple and in good shape,
Again, YMMV.[/QUOTE]

Sorry, a friend in Santa Barbara has an 84 that was featured in Excellence a few years ago, still looks and smells like it just left the factory....ALL original, everything on the car is PERFECT (numerous PCA Parade Concours wins)...and less than 40,000 original miles too, and it's for sale. So there may be TWO original, un-recovered early car dashboards out there. LOL

Lol! Good to hear (and I'd love to see that car sometime!)

Crack-free dashes are out there but hard to find. I call mine "my unicorn" - legendary and sought by many, but never seen by most. :p

I've had really good experiences with the plastic dash caps from COVER LAY. Right about $100 and they look great. We usually have to point out the fact that it's a cover and not an original dash. You need to prep the original dash so the it's flat and clean, then get creative about holding the new cover in the correct place nice and tight! Test fit it with no adhesive. We use heavy books on top of the dash, clamps, any number of towels and braces, - and whatever it takes to hold it perfectly in place overnight.
This is a great stop gap expenditure until you get yours recovered in zebra belly leather or whatever. Or you might find that elusive crack-less dash?? Good luck with that!
BTW, the wild checkered black and white interior in the pic is called "Pasha."

Those plastic overlays look and feel like crap - they are so cheap looking it's hard to look at them even on a Honda. I guess people that sell them, or make them, think they are OK.

New to you un-cracked dash , or recover your dash with suitable (Leather or German Vinyl) material.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1321099980.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1321100023.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1321100104.jpg
Before and after. Dash was recovered by Classic 9

Coca,
You're certainly entitled to your opinion, but I have real world experience and customers that say otherwise.
Cheers!