ibtisam.jawad

I've read almost all the threads on here and that other forum regarding interior restoration. I've read how seats and leather/vinyl can be restored using Leatherique products and how SEM Color Coat or even VHT dye can be used on the vinyl.

I however still have a couple of questions:
- How would you go about restoring the harder plastic interior pieces e.g. A-pillar trim, top part of the door panels, center console, AC vents etc. or even the parts that house the rear speakers? Would VHT vinyl dye or one of the SEM color coats work on these too?

- What's best for filling dash cracks: silicon caulking? leatherique flexible filler? devcon epoxy? permatex repair kit? something else?

I will greatly appreciate any help I can get on this. Just to clarify, I'm not looking into buying a used dash or have my dash recovered or buy a dash mat, just trying to see what I can do with the one I've already got.

My car is an 87' Turbo with two tone interior - the black and the tan one. The picture I have displayed is my older car.

Thank you so much.

gregeast

For the plastic interior pieces I'd use the following SEM products:

1. SEM Plastic/Leather prep 38353
2. SEM Colorcoat Landau Black 15013
3. SEM Low Luster Clear 13023

Prep is key, the pieces need to be clean and free of oils, which is what the Plastic/Leather prep does. Landau Black is the best match for our interiors and the low luster clear protects the black and give the finish the right sheen without being shiny.

Sorry, no magic sauce for you on the dash repair, I ended up getting mine recovered.

Cheers.

ibtisam.jawad

Thank you, gregeast.

FRporscheman

The problem with dash cracks is they slowly but constantly widen. If you fill them, after a while you will see separation cracks.

Some of the parts you described are not even plastic, they are vinyl. The rear side panels (parts that cover the speakers), the entire door panels, and a-pillar trim are all upholstered in vinyl. Late 944s had vinyl center consoles but early 944s had plastic.

gregeast

Arash is right, the rear side panels and a-pillar trim are vinyl. The SEM Colorcoat with adhere great to vinyl as well but you should probably use SEM Vinyl Prep rather than the Leather/Plastic Prep for those pieces.

MAGK944

I have used "Showroom New" vinyl & plastic dye in the past and it works great. It dyes instead of paints, prep is still important but once it's on it will not scratch or peel off like paint, ever!

As for cracks I filled with expanding foam in a can, the stuff you buy at Home Depot. Get the flexible type for outdoor use and apply with a spatula after spraying into a bowl. Once dry you can cut off any excess with a razor blade and paint over the cracks with Plastic Dip. Both the products will expand and contract with heat/cold so the cracks shouldn't open up.

ibtisam.jawad

I went and grabbed sem products from a local parts store yesterday. Any idea where I can pick up the showroom new dye locally? I Will probably recover the dash.

MAGK944

Got mine from fleebay, no affiliation...
Showroom New

ibtisam.jawad

It's sad when you can't buy stuff locally ... The wait for products to ship kills me. However I would prefer dye to paint so may be I can wait ...

ibtisam.jawad

One more question ... I'm thinking that Showroom New will look less tacky. Does the SEM stuff look OK or does it seem like you've painted stuff over? Do you retain the Vinyl texture with SEM?

gregeast

SEM is dye, not paint and yes, it retains the grain of the surface. My door panels were dyed with SEM 6+ years ago and still look great.

MAGK944

SEM is a paint not a dye, it sits on the surface of the vinyl. Does a good job though if prepped correctly. http://semproducts.com/index.php/product-catalog/flexible-coatings/color-coat/

mhr

I did all of my plastic with sem color coar. Including all the hard parts even the trim around the top where the roof meets the windsheild frame (I have a cab) and the fabric for the rear shelf.

All came out great and retains the original texture and look.

Like others have said prep is key. I cant tell you how much gunk came off the bug trim pieces during prep.

Good Luck

Mark

ibtisam.jawad

I started the tear down today and have most of the interior panels from the front out. Won't get around to prepping them and start painting until next week, so might as well get some dye too. Does Showroom New make a light buckskin or tan type dye? I only saw black and grey on their website.

gregeast

I stand corrected on the distinction but stand by the recommendation, in my experience it's easy to apply, turns out great and wears well.

Good luck with your project.