WHAMspeed

My 86' 951 is a beauty, she spends most (99%) of her time protected from ultraviolets, however today I spotted a potential problem.

What I thought could be whisked away by a shammie, turned out to be a small crack...less than a quater inch in length and not much wider than a few hair strands orignating from the far passenger side defrost vent, none the less than a crack.

I am Houston based so the sun is HOT and summer is approaching and I do not want a very small problem (most likely only noticed by the owner) to turn into a large one.

My 951 ("Code Red" for fellow Rennlisters) only see's 30-50 miles a week, tops...she's all oringinal so those are miles pampered but enjoyed!

If in the sun, the rays are reflected by an appropriate sun shield.

My question...

Is there a product that applies a sunscreen to the dash to eliminate potential spread of the small crack while conditioning the dash material...

And, is there a product/solution/fill to keep the small existing crack from spreading?

I appreciate the feedback in advance.

Tenacious_G

Dash wax was always the **** ( i don't know where they sell it anymore; i can't find it, but Aerospace 303 cleaner and protectant have served me well enough.

J Berk

I am in a similar position...right now no cracks...let us know what you find!

Techno Duck

MY '87 n/a had no cracks when i bought it. I never used a sun shade for about a year and had two cracks start to develop. I started using the sunshade again and the cracks stopped. Also liberal cleanings with Vinylex.

Scootin159

There's a product you can get from most retail auto stores called "Vynilex". I've used it myself with good results, and have heard nothing but good about it. It's similar to "ArmourAll" in how it goes on & looks, but it's got a different chemical makeup which doesn't dry out the Vynil (the reason it cracks).

Another technique I've heard to stop existing cracks is to drill a small (1/32 or 1/64") hole at the tip of each crack. This will give the crack room to grow width-wise, without growing lengthwise, helping to contain the damage.

porschefig

Anybody know what bad ingredient to look for... curious if the vinyl protectant and cleaner that Meguiars sells is any good....

I'm in the same boat... one tiny tiny little crack in the corner that I don't want to spread!

elf89

Ditto on the sunshade. I bought mine with no cracks and after reading about the problem here, I've been religious about putting on the sunshade anytime I'm parked outside.

Mighty Shilling

303 Aerospace protectant or Prima Nero applied weekly will moistureize it enough. the thing is, it dries and cracks. keep it moist, you'll be OK but ya gotta be RELIGIOUS about it. my perfect dash was Nero'd every week last summer, I missed 2 weeks, on vacation, come back to a couple cracks. small, but none the less they're there. for what it's worth, the car doesn't have a garage, and I religiously use a sun shade. in the garage, it's best.

philcav7

I have also heard a lot of great things about the Aerospace 303 product. It does have UV protection which is a plus.

As others mentioned a sun visor is critical to maintaining a crack free dash.