Dick Ruddell

I also installed a black coverlay dash cover about a year ago and am very pleased with the improvement.
One thing to watch, however: It is a real beast to remove the instrument cluster after the coverlay has been installed.
I installed the 9xAuto Gauge illumination kit and then a month later installed white gauge faces. It can be done but the difference if difficulty is greatly increased

Sean

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I may go ahead and install a gauge illumination kit ebfore gluing down the Coverlay.

With regard to the permanent Coverlay installation... How difficult is the removal of the side air vents?

I found some instructions on removing the instrument trim and can see the screws.... I know the air vents are probably simple.... But for the air vents, I only see screws that are located on the outside of the dash. Advice, por favor?

PorscheG96

Wow!

Mark Parker

Just today a fellow autox'er gave me a ride in his '87 951. It was immaculate inside, and as I complimented him on the unusually crack-free dash, he told me " oh,,it's got one of those covers on it". If he hadn't said so, I would never have known.

El Schön Toro

First off, that dash looks great Sean.

Secondly, there have been some questions regarding the steering wheel that Sean has on his car. He mentioned the options in a earlier post, be it the 930S wheel or the 930S wheel from AJ USA. I actually prefer the 968 CS (Club Sport) wheel myself and ordered it over a month ago. I just found out that I will receive it sometime next week. Yes, they normally will have to order it from Germany, since they don't stock it in the US. In some extreme cases it may even take up to five to six months if they have to have the third-party manufacture make the wheel.
Chuck at Paragon (1-800-200-9366) helped me with the order and did a lot of leg work bugging Porsche on when the wheel would come in and so-on. The part number for the 968CS wheel is 968-347-084-00-8YR. If you want one give Chuck a call as he, Skip, and Jason have been huge supporters of this list. Just my two pesos.

BTW-Thanks goes out to Tom Pultz with his help on the steering wheel part number.

bs

any chance of getting a pic of what the coverlay looks like *off* the dash before you glue it down, sean?

i'm having trouble visualizing how thick and rigid it is, and how it will look around edges, vents, defroster holes, instrument cluster, etc.

does the "grain" on it match with the rest of the interior?

Outlaw952

Does anyone know if there is a dash cover made for dashes with the passenger side airbag?

Gundo

That 968 Club Sport wheel is pretty hot - I too like it better than the AJUSA wheel - the embossed cloissone crest is much more appealing than the stick-on painted one that comes with the AJUSA wheel.

Guy - Maybe you can save me a call - how much is the wheel from Paragon?

FityOne

Check this place out. They have the dash covers and they are a little more expensive, but thay come in 6 to 8 different colors to match most interiors instead of just black and brown.

<a href="http://www.dashtops.com" target="_blank">web page</a>

I was able to get the right shade of brown that I needed for my car.
I was wondering though, for the airbag guys, what if the cover was cleanly cut around the airbag, so that if it deploys, all hell will not break loose. Also, the airbag area does not seem to develop cracks as much as the top of the dash does.

El Schön Toro

Gundo,
It was about $400.00.

Matt O.

Be careful - pictures can be deceiving. I am not saying AT ALL he is not telling the truth, I am just saying that in that picture it does look awesome, but I had one on my 924S and I hated it. Not worth the money IMHO. There is a better way.

I am working on figuring that way out, but I know there is a better way.

The pictures do look good though. Nice 930 wheel.

-Matt

ram_one

Gundo,
I've got the AJ-USA wheel and I really like it. The Club Sport wheel does look better, but the difference for me was price. The AJ wheel came very quickly and was &lt;$300 if I remember correctly.

my944

That looks GREAT!!! <img src="graemlins/bigok.gif" border="0" alt="[thumbsup]" /> It completely changed the interior aesthetics! Great job & AWESOME steering wheel!

Sean

A few responses to questions / comments...

If you want to vinyl dye a dash cover to match your interior, look for SEM vinyl paint at your local auto paint store. It comes in spray paint style cans that cost $10, and is made for use on vinyl, plastic, and carpet. I'll bet that this is what dashtops.com uses. (Note that I have no preference with regard to Dashtops.com vs. Coverlay - it would be interesting to know how these dash covers compare.) BTW, you can use the SEM paint to restore other parts of your interior.

The grain on my Coverlay dashtop is a pretty close match to factory - but it is not exact. If you really examine the dash cover, you will notice a slight discrepancy in grain.

The same goes for color. The match is not 100% exact - but it is very close.

The dash cover is not very thick. This could work as an advantage; I think it might actually be possible to cover the cover in leather! But I have not priced this possibility. I am satisfied enough with the present appearance to install the cover as is.

Obviously, the best possible solution to a cracked 944 dash would be a brand new factory dashboard. Since that's impossible, a nice used dashboard is the next best solution. But those are going for around $400 on eBay, and installation would be a two-day (or more) chore. For $75, I have yet to see a better solution than the dash cover. The difference is amazing. I have shown the car to several of my friends and they swear it looks factory!

I will post more photos when I get a chance.
Thanks to all for your feedback!
<img src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" border="0" alt="[cheers]" />

jordanolder

Does your coverlay have small slice marks on the vents where it looks as if they cut the top of the dash just a little when they were cutting out the vent holes?

I just got one that does that I am returning.

Where did you get yours?