Dash cracked :(

[TraceZ]

Went out in the Camaro a few days ago and noticed the very small crack in the passenger corner of the dash cover had trippled in size.

Sigh


Tonight I removed the dash cover from the car, cleaned it with dish soap to remove any contaminants, sanded the backside to give it some tooth and used some fiberglass mat and resin on the back side to bond it all back together and prevent it from ever cracking in that spot again.

It seems to be holding well so far. Stronger than new.

In the process of doing all that, I noticed that the fabric covering on the header panel along the top of the windshield (My car is a convertible) was disintegrating. So I removed that panel and will take it in to the upholstery shop to be recovered.

It's been a while sinse I posted, just thought I'd check in and say hi to everyone.

[Blazer]

Are you still going to them car shows with your red pants and cowboy hat. You were the man of the show back than.I wish I could find a picture to show the new members. He He He

[TraceZ]

Dangit! That was Kevin, not me!

But here is the infamous red pants and cowboy hat picture...

[Blazer]

Ya the good ol days. I still laugh like hell at that picture.

[Injuneer]

I've seen a couple posts on another site, where people have repaired the cracked dash panel with fiberglass, as you did. Then they got a piece of vinyl fabric to match the interior, and glued it to the top of the panel. Looks great.

Headliner.... I noticed after 16 years mine is starting to sag right above the mirror. Ive read about repro rigid plastic shells that can be used as the base for the headliner fabric, to eliminate the problem completely. I may have to go that route, and cut it in 2 pieces near the middle, so I can fit it between my roll bar and the roof. There's hardly any space at all.

[Trash man]

welcome back tracez, ive gone to the dark side, but on another note, theres this stuff its like a place gel that hardens and you can mold it into anything you want. we fixed many grills and center caps with it.

[TraceZ]

The header panel is now at the upholstery shop getting recovered.

I'll post pics after I get it all back together.

[TraceZ]

I've seen a couple posts on another site, where people have repaired the cracked dash panel with fiberglass, as you did. Then they got a piece of vinyl fabric to match the interior, and glued it to the top of the panel. Looks great.

Headliner.... I noticed after 16 years mine is starting to sag right above the mirror. Ive read about repro rigid plastic shells that can be used as the base for the headliner fabric, to eliminate the problem completely. I may have to go that route, and cut it in 2 pieces near the middle, so I can fit it between my roll bar and the roof. There's hardly any space at all.

As far as covering the dash in fabric - mine didn't crack that bad. THe entire crack is only 3 or 4" long and it's right at the edge where it's not very noticable. THe fiberglass job I did on it made it almost invisible.

[Kevin - Blown 95 TA]

Just so everyone knows, my sense of fashion is still awful, but I no longer have those red pajamas cause I wore them out

Tracy, sorry to hear your car is falling apart. It's probably doing that because you have been using the Corvette too much and ignoring the Camaro.

[TraceZ]

Just so everyone knows, my sense of fashion is still awful, but I no longer have those red pajamas cause I wore them out

Tracy, sorry to hear your car is falling apart. It's probably doing that because you have been using the Corvette too much and ignoring the Camaro.

Yeah, the Camaro is getting old and needs attention. I drove it tonight after fixing the dash and header panel and now the radio is acting goofy. Every once in a while the display switches to fade or balance and there is a noticable crack sound in the speakers when it does it. I think the potentiometers for the knobs are dirty. I'll have to remove the radio, get some electronics cleaner and clean them up. I tried turning them from lock to lock 50 times each and that didn't help, maybe made it worse.

And the tires are old and hard as rocks, so it really rides like crap. My uncle Joel has a set of second generation Corvette C4 dymags I'm trying to convince him to sell me for the Camaro. If I can pry them out from his hands I'll mount new tires on them and roll those.

Also, the front and rear main seals both leak a little. That'll be a fun project.

That new pinion seal we put in a couple years ago it is still holding. No leak there any more.

We've noth moved into new places sinse we last met. We should make an effort to visit eachother before the snow flies.

A buddy of mine I work with just bought a 09 Z06. Atomic Orange. He let me take it for a "break in ride" with only 235 miles on the odometer. He told me to drive because he didn't have the guts to open it up and break it in the way it needed to be. I think I did a pretty good job! Lots of wide open throttle but kept the revs below 5500.

What the heck, as long as I'm writing a book..... I went to the Corvette assembly plant in Kentucky this past week and got the plant tour. Got to see how they screw them together in person. It was a really good experience. Too bad I didn't have a new Vette with museum delivery for me to drive home.

How is your Z06 holding up? How many miles have you put on it?

[Kevin - Blown 95 TA]

Agree - we need to meet up.
My Z06 has maybe 6500 miles and it's doing fine. Clutch fluid gets dirty with contamination and that's a known problem. Otherwise I like it a lot and no other issues. Matter of fact, it's awesome. I tried to get the atomic orange vette too but couldn't get one when I bought mine - just not a lot available - boy has that changed since then along with the resale market.
My TA is doing OK but the Moser rear end is finiky with needing anti-slip additive too often and the fuel pressure gauge needs replacement. Other than that it rides like a tank compared to the Corvette, although it seems to handle almost as well - (vette still has run flats holding it back). It went 11.1/126 last time at the track but I was having fuel problems and running real lean. I've since completely rebuilt the fuel system and it's ready to go again but I have not been back to the track. I did just buy a 6 speed console so that project is always a possibiliy.

Anyway, email me sometime and we'll get together. I'd like to have you stop by my house, cause it's pretty strange. See ya soon.

[ConElite]

Dash Mat gets rid of crack on dash.

[TraceZ]

Dash Mat gets rid of crack on dash.

No, dash mat covers crack in dash. I'm not a fan of covering things up.

[ConElite]

No, dash mat covers crack in dash. I'm not a fan of covering things up.

Ahh. Yeah an Ex was "showing me" her heels and put a hole in my dash, so I just got a Dash mat.

[TraceZ]

Ahh. Yeah an Ex was "showing me" her heels and put a hole in my dash, so I just got a Dash mat.

LOL, showing you... Sounds like you were getting busy in your car!


Anyhooo.... I fixed the radio today. I had a "spare" radio in my basement that had a bad CD player in it. I raided it for parts, swapped out the circuit board that has the potentiometers on it. Problem solved.