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I did mine a few months ago and had no luck finding one. However, I was able to find a complete European non-ac unit on ebay with the acrylic plate in good shape. I took both units apart and switched the acrylic over. You'll have to de-solder the AC and defrost/recirc buttons though, unless you have the late style with pull-out switches. Be very careful not to overheat the switches soldering them back in place.
The euro style climate units have the blue-red gradient around the temp **** instead of the numbers.
Broken Acrylic on HVAC unit, European parts donor in the background
Last edited by GWright; 10-17-2016 at 08:05 AM.
Reason: add image
Unfortunately this *was* a separate part and is still listed in the PET but is very much NLA. If you have any contacts in Porsche Classic, it would be worth reaching out to them and let them know the community needs this piece. Anymore, I'm surprised when I find a HVAC control unit with a good condition clear plate. I've tried emailing [email]contact@porsche.de[\email] to inform them of parts that are no longer in production but very much needed in the aftermarket but have had mixed results. On a side note, if you contact your local dealership and request the part, Porsche will remanufacture them if they can get sufficient interest. This is how the 968 CS coin tray was brought back to market.
The euro style climate units have the blue-red gradient around the temp **** instead of the numbers.
How ironic North America got Celsius and Europe got blue to red. It must have made it more exotic in the states to have to decode the temps, but why even make two different parts? Blue to red would have sufficed for both markets.
Someone else was looking at making those a while back. I guess it never happened. My Japanese market 968 had Celsius marked on the HVAC but there's a chance the PO swapped it with one from a NZ market 944 turbo. It's in my 944 now.
Gwright, do you still have the non-A/C HVAC controller? (minus the clear plate you used of course)
That would be awesome. It would have to be something pretty stiff. I don't have a file, but could you make one from a good plate?
I can print in nylon which is pretty stiff. It would be white instead of clear but that should not matter.
I would need a 3d scanner to make a file from a good plate and I have not picked up a 3d scanner at this point. OTOH, I have a good CAD program. I might be able to design one on that.
Print feels pretty good. Not brittle, decently strong, and enough flexibility to include the snap fit design.
Will never achieve true transparency due to multiple print layers, but clear filament should improve light transmission.
Looks like there's some detail on the backside, including fine teeth - these would be impossible to print (with most home printers). Are they necessary?
How much work is it to dig into my dash and remove the original for measurements? Do I even want to do this and risk breaking my own?
Does someone have one handy and can sketch out the dimensions?
There's actually a ton of detail in these, I looked into cutting one from flat acrylic, as well as creating a mold and pouring clear acrylic into a mold. The edges of the acrylic piece have tabs that the trim cover clips on to, and on the back it has the clips that the rear housing attaches with. Also the dial face graphics are raised and adhered to it as well. It was much easier to purchase the donor parts and swap it out.
J1NX3D, I dug around for what I had left, but I suspect it was the victim of a "cleanup" of my workbench, as all I can find are the two round *****. It seems to always be the case that I'll hang on to something for ages, then finally get rid of it just before it's needed again.
10-17-2016, 07:31 AM
