[urq] RE : Dashboard restorations

[Louis-Alain Richard]

"Louis-Alain Richard" <laraa at sympatico.ca> wrote:
> 
> > Anyone tried to restore a cracked dashboard with these guys ? this is
> their
> > USA operation, but they are from down under originally.
> > http://www.dashboardrestorations.com/ 
> > Their technique seems to be quite interesting. Now, the big question is
> how
> > much...
> >
> > Louis-Alain
> > 1983 Quattro with a small crack on its 26 years old dashboard
> 
> I had an extended email correspondence with a/the owner, even
> to the extent of sending him many photos of my 5000CS dash/console
> and obtaining vinyl samples. In my case, this plan did not seem to make
> enough sense to pursue. First of all, it's very expensive. The "dash,"
> meaningthe main dashboard piece only, would be _many_ hundreds of dollars.
> The glove box fascia would have been a _separate_ project but one
> that would be required since it must match the main dash and
> the available vinyl grain patterns were not all that close to the
> original. Then, too, the center console pieces also ought to be
> matching vinyl -- where to stop? Furthermore, the 5000CS dash
> is an extremely complicated shape so there was much doubt in
> my mind that it could be re-skinned perfectly, in which case, why
> bother at all? My guess is that to do all the things required to
> make the job look truly excellent, the price would run to
> nearly $2k. Maybe the situation is different for a '83 Quattro.
> 
> My plan is to locate a really good dash repair service and
> have them fill the cracks.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> DeWitt Harrison
> '88 5000CS

Thanks Dewitt,

Since I have no other options, no more new dashes available, I will explore
this avenue, maybe locally. The other options, Dashmats or other covers, are
less interesting than a refurbished dash pad. The 1983 and less dashes are
very simple, a single piece to refurbish. The lower parts are all hard
plastic, as well as the instrument cover. This would render the operation
more $$$ feasible.

The other option is to bring the parts to a leather guy, and ask him for a
custom envelope, either in Alcantara, vinyl or genuine leather. The lower
parts would be easy, only the top portion would be a challenge. I really
like the looks of the faux-suede Alcantara, but the stuff is $150+ a yard...
as much as real leather.

Louis-Alain