I figured I would show my current progress. (I'm starting this as a write-up for anyone who is cheap like me) Disclamer: TGO nor I am responsible if you happen to screw up your car. This is not (yet ) the end all, be all dash pad repair. Materials: 2 Devcon Plastic Welder- $2.50 each Dupli-Color Vinyl paint- $7.50 Random pieces of sand paper I lying around. An old plastic spreader Some mesh screen I had. 1. Remove Dash pad. 2. Wipe down dash pad. (I used a wet paper-towel) 3. Grab your 400 grit sand paper and start sanding. Its kinda like working on plastic body panels. You want to to feather the edges of the cracks or holes. You have two options when dealing with high or warped spots. You can try to get the epoxy under the pad and hold it down, or you can break the piece off and 'build' it back with the epoxy. Method 1 I didn't have a lot of success with. The epoxy had really nothing to attach to besides the foam, and that wouldn't stay still. Method 2 I had good success with. (So far) It takes more epoxy and more time to get it right, but it looks good. Take your time. You don't want to fill the whole crack, or hole, in at one time. Make multiple passes with the epoxy. Thats it for now. i got caught up in another project and wasn't able to finish it today. Will get it done tomorrow. Feel free to ask questions, state comments, or criticize my work. I'm a big boy, I can take it. Mods- If there are too many pictures, let me know and I'll link them instead of thumbnails. Heres what I started with: After one coat of epoxy: After two coats and sanding:

Take pics every step of the way if you want to do a good write-up. Also, you should wait until you're done so you only post useful info instead of all the wrong paths you started down before finding the best way. You found a good topic, but everyone will want to see the progress pics and results to see if you really came up with something useful for them.

Pics up
I'm looking for ideas for the speaker gills. They're shot and theres really no way to fix them. I was thinking of cutting out the gills, and putting something in there place.
The problem is I can't think of anything to put there. Any ideas.

Thanks man,
This is very helpful, my dash cracked this winter, I was thinking about replacing it, but I should give this a try,
give you props for this one man.

If you had started with a dash pad like mine, you could have popped the speaker grilles right out. I hate to say it, but you might have better luck with a junkyard dash pad with the grilles. It will probably be cheap, and might not be quite as bad as yours.

If you choose to go that route, you can always use the one you have now to practice painting / prep so that you dont screw up trying it on the better pad.

looks good so far, will check back in for the finished product.

only the Firebird dashpads have the separate grills. And what they lack is the notch that the Camaro pads have for their center vents. The depth of the dashpad (distance from front edge to windshield) is also different for a Firebird dashpad than a Camaro's. It'd be interesting to see if you can retrofit the firebird vents into the camaro dashpad, or I'd suggest using a perforated metal as a replacement grill.

I guess he could always cut out some rectangle's of his dash pad, and then finish the cut edges with his "plastic welder". Sand them real nice.

Then, he could fabricate some wooden frames that would press into the rectangles he cut out. Cover the wooden frames with some black fabric, and staple it tight to the wood. Press the frames tight into the dash pad, it would look decent.

Day 2:
Fixing a Corner-
1. Clean and sand the area

2. Use some sort of backing material to go over the dash pad foam. (A mesh screen was used here)

3. Apply epoxy in small amounts. Try to build the corner with multiple coats.
Coat 1-
After Coat 3 and sanding-

Painting- Using the passenger side of the dash as an example here.
1. Wipe down the entire dash. Use an air compressor to blow the dust off. Use a tac-cloth.

2. The first three coats should be light.
After one coat-
3. The next two coats should be heavy. Focus on the areas you sanded. I tried to create orange peel here to cover up the sanding that was done.

so you have to paint the whole thing then? what about matching the texture like the OEM?

I painted the whole thing because it was faded pretty badly.
Getting the texture is hard. I tried to get orange peel on the areas I sanded and it looks good from a distance.

I would have sanded the whole thing, applied a skim coat of that flexible bumper filler (bondo like stuff), sanded again, then painted with a good duplicolor.

Very useful info. Will have to try on my old dash pad. Did you get the stuff from a local auto parts store? Please keep me posted.

The epoxy was bought a wal-mart and the paint at my local auto store.

Thanks for the info.

Good write up. I might be inclined use some textured paint on it. Rustoleum makes a nice textured paint that I used on my HVAC box after fiberglassing. You can play with the coats and make the texture however you want. It also dries nicely with a more of a matte finish, that I think could match the dash pretty nicely.

I also use it for any interior plastic pieces. Just easier to get a texture out of it and not have to worry about it looking glossy and glassy.

I dont have a good picture of the finish... but this is as close as I have.



J.

I gave the idea some thought, but I was worried about it sticking to the dash pad and I was trying to keep the price as low as possible. If someone wants to give it a shot, by all means, go ahead. I just wanted to show that a cracked, old dash pad can be saved.

yeah I'd try something textured to help hide all the imperfections and avoid anything glossy like the plague..

No doubt! You did a good job fixing it, and a good job documenting it for us!

I generally dont have issues with rustoleum paint. Its the only spray paint that Ill use other than the duplicolor engine enamel, or exhaust paint. Might be worth a shot on an old junk pad that is beyond repair. Just to experiment.

J.

i plan on trying this method on my dash pad soon. is the mesh only used when trying to rebuild a big part like a corner, or should it be used in the big cracks as well? im a noob when it comes to fixing stuff myself any help is appreciated

Looks like something anyone can do, good info ghettocruiser,just wish someone would start making reproductions I bet alot of us would buy them.

Theres a company called SEM that makes products for professional use, so you'll have to go to an autobody supply shop to get it, but its called "texture coating"(imagine that) and its made to do just that, match factory texture on things like dash boards, fiberglass tops, bumpers, etc. Trust me, it works excellant. I used it on my Jeep's flares(I did NOT have to repair any cracks though) and it matches the texture perfectly. Its not exactly cheap, I think it was like $18 for a 16oz. can but its more then enough to do a dash (I have a third of the can left after 4 flares) and you will have professional results. If you seriously want to attempt something like this and want it to look factory, Id highly suggest this product. Its got a part# of 39853

Really depends on how wide the crack is.
If it is narrow, just feather the edges of the crack while sanding and fill it in.
Theres no exact size it has to been. Use your judgment.

Quick Update: Its been about 4 weeks, and its held up nicely. The Dash has some new cracks in it since it was re-installed. The Cracks that were repaired are still that, repaired, no flexing or tearing to report.

thx for the input, i will let you know how my project goes when i start it

well i took off the dash pad yesterday, and i plan on sanding it down today and might start the epoxy work. i will keep you guys updated and will try to get some pics on here

Very nice job! My dash pad has two cracks about 3 inches long, other than that it's in great shape. If I can do this, it may save me the $$$$ of a new one. Thanks!

You mean no one makes a new replacement dash pad!!!??? Crap!

Hi, nice work! Very informative. I'm doing a quick fix for now, have some black vinyl with cloth backing, a staple gun and I am ready to rock this weekend. Then maybe use your method later on.

Someone in another forum mentioned using speaker box covering material, black fuzzy stuff, and I bet places that make custom speaker boxes would be willing to cover a dashpad, and mount some speakers while they are at it.

Side note, there is a company that makes a plastic dashpad cover, that fits over the old one and looks pretty good, the link is on here somewhere. It's around 120.00.

my project is finally finished! here are the step by step pics

After Sanding:


After Epoxy and Sanding:


Primed (DupliColor Filler Primer):


Painted (DupliColor Vinyl and Fabric Non Glossy):


In Car View:


Outside Car View:


The Good:
- Cheap Fix
- A Lot Better Looking Than Before
- Looks Great From Outside the Car

The Bad:
- Bumpy
- Some Cracks Slightly Noticeable
- Epoxy is Hard to Work With and Sand
- Eventually, You Will Still Want to Buy a New Dash Pad

I might use this thread to fix the edges on mine but Ill most likely just get a dash cover for the top parts

Hey guys, I'm working on a dash pad fix myself.
needed a project to keep myself busy, and this thread gave me a nice little kick in the ***, so I'll do a little before and after to help contribute.
along with some tips and warnings before you jump into this

Heres a picture I took first thing when I got the car home and in the driveway


NOTE: its late so when i get up in the morning ill find some batteries for the camera and take a picture of my progress.

wow, that's a nice looking interior! too bad the dash pad ruins it (like it ruins mine)

Thank you, it actually looks a little better now that I cleaned it up a little bit.
man, couldnt they have made our dash pads out of something a little more resilient?

I'm thinking about pulling all the padding and whatnot off, and fiberglassing it. then fabricating up some firebird-like speaker grilles

has anybody done this before?
it would have to wait till after i get out of the hospital though, which wouldnt be too long at all, but i already have a little project figured out to keep me busy durring my recovery.


ive been a little busy in the last couple days, but considering tomarrows my last day before pre-op, ill scrounge up some batteries for the camera in the morning on my progress, and then do some work on it and take another after that, then follow up a few weeks later asap.

I suggest using a flat black. I painted one I fixed on an RS with gloss black (Fushion by Krylon) and the reflection on the windsheild was quite annoying. Just saying.

i havent seen a fiberglass one yet, but it sounds like s good idea and im sure it will look cool

Sorry guys, I'm gonna have to put a raincheck on this topic for now, I've got my surgery tomarrow and am going to bed as soon as i hit that "Post" button
have to wake up at 4 am

good luck in surgery dude

thanks for the thread...
used it as a jump start to fix my dash. doing the last of the paint now, and it should be good as new in about 10 minutes. doesnt look brand new or anything, but it sure looks alot better then before.

Good to see this thread is up and people are adding to it. Its nice to see new ideas and techniques come up.

6 month update:
The hole and the corner have held up nicely. The spider cracks on the driver side and passenger side are, not so good. Some the cracks have held up nicely, some have re-torn.
If I would to re-do it I would either sand the dash down to get rid of the texture. Or use the textured paint. I also would have drilled some holes on the side of the cracks in order give the epoxy something to grab.

not to resurrect an oldie, but that wire mesh like they are using for the grilles on cars, lowe's sells it 2'x1' i think.....

Is Epoxy flexible / heat resistant? I would think it would start coming apart when the sun hits that dash pad. I think if I were doing this repair I would use bumper repair compound. It is designed for use on body panels that would expirience flexing and varying arrays of heat. Good job though. You will have to let us know if that shiney spot where the cracks were fade into the paint. Also if I were attempting this I might try and either sand the dimples off the whole pad or pick up some of that Duplicolor textured spray paint. You can get it in wrinkled, dimpled, and stone finishes.