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OK, OK, I know you're never really finished with these cars, but....
I was doing a final interior clean for the season and found that the vinyl on top of the instrument binnacle is very thinly split, maybe less than a millimetre !
Pics to follow.
Is there a way to "smart repair" the split - a filler? Vinyl weld? The interior is Dark Blue (Midnight Blue I think!)
Utilize a hypodermic with superglue gel to get under the split and have a rag with very little acetone to quickly wipe off any that comes from the seam when you hold them down/together. It's an art, be careful.
How is everyone preventing those splits in first place? I've been using Meguire's vinyl cleaner/conditioner, hoping to keep that thin surface from drying out and cracking.
Uncracked pods are becoming unicorns.
Kept indoors and never used Armor All on it or other dressing. Barely damp cloth water only or swiffer to clean. Couple small hairline cracks extending out from defrost vents but less than an inch long and they've always been there and not getting bigger. If you can find a shop to do it, consider a window tint on windshield to reduce infra red (mine removes 70%). Your dash and AC will thank you. Cannot distinguish that the tint is there.
I showed your photo of the damage to a local friend of mine who has a Smart repair capability in his local premises over here and reckons he could easily repair the damage with the kit he has. The system he uses is a Swedish system that can be seen here:
Whether or not such service might be available local to you or somewhere you could send the part off to for repair I have no idea - they do have some mobile outlets or so I understand but I suspect the costs mights be many $$$'s.
There are various "bodges" that might work to some extent or other but invariably will fail again sooner or later. Apparently this system will not fail but whether or not the rest of the panel will hold up without failing who knows. The ideal solution is to get it recovered and that may be just as easy for a component like this that can be removed relatively easy and posted/delivered to a workshop. Sadly calling anyone out in the UK these days probably costs around 100 pounds plus the cost of the work.
I showed your photo of the damage to a local friend of mine who has a Smart repair capability in his local premises over here and reckons he could easily repair the damage with the kit he has. The system he uses is a Swedish system that can be seen here:
Whether or not such service might be available local to you or somewhere you could send the part off to for repair I have no idea - they do have some mobile outlets or so I understand but I suspect the costs mights be many $$$'s.
There are various "bodges" that might work to some extent or other but invariably will fail again sooner or later. Apparently this system will not fail but whether or not the rest of the panel will hold up without failing who knows. The ideal solution is to get it recovered and that may be just as easy for a component like this that can be removed relatively easy and posted/delivered to a workshop. Sadly calling anyone out in the UK these days probably costs around 100 pounds plus the cost of the work.
Thanks Fred (as ever!)
I've emailed a local company who have done some interior 'smart repairs' for me in the past, so fingers crossed!
i have tried about everything. Best to just get it recovered....best thing i did was sending mine off to classic9 and using black Alcantara
the issue is with temp changes and the expansion/contraction involved. it may look fine on your bench in the garage but bring it inside to a warm environment or sit it near a heater (think dash in the sun), the split WILL reappear....and vice versa ..hot to cold.
or raise the pod/binnacle so its out of your sight line
While that HBC kit looks promising and I would probably try it if I were not retired, there are many variables to consider.
The most disheartening is that I had several unicorns (928 pods, 928 dashes and some 911 dashes) I horded in the early 90s. I kept them in a clean, dark, climate controlled area of the shop.
Upon inspection when it came time to proudly present them, almost every one had developed cracks.
My first 928 I bought back in 85 was an 82. The pod cracked six months into ownership.
One theory I heard from a Porsche rep back in the 80s was that European manufacturers put chemicals in most automotive plastics that would promote deterioration over the years.
Dunno if its true or not but it would explain a lot.
While that HBC kit looks promising and I would probably try it if I were not retired, there are many variables to consider.
The most disheartening is that I had several unicorns (928 pods, 928 dashes and some 911 dashes) I horded in the early 90s. I kept them in a clean, dark, climate controlled area of the shop.
Upon inspection when it came time to proudly present them, almost every one had developed cracks.
My first 928 I bought back in 85 was an 82. The pod cracked six months into ownership.
One theory I heard from a Porsche rep back in the 80s was that European manufacturers put chemicals in most automotive plastics that would promote deterioration over the years.
Dunno if its true or not but it would explain a lot.
Rob,
As you can imagine cracked dashs have been part and parcel of life over here. Keep them out of the sun to the extent possible and the problem tends not occur. Common approach over here was to put custom pads over the dash as a protective layer.
Repairing the crack is perfectly viable but my concern would be whether it will crack somewhere else adjacent once the rot sets in as it were which is why I think the best approach is to get the thing recovered once it goes.
My 928 has spent just about all of its non operational life in a sheltered environment- the dash is perfect. The other thing i have noticed is that more modern vehicles do not appear to have this problem. My wife has a 12 year old Mitsubishi Pajero that has spent its entire life outdoors in the open on our driveway [my 928 and Cayenne get the garage] and not a blemish. We use sunshades inside the car whilst it is parked up but that is it.
Binnacle vinyl split
