Herbie

Wonderful!

I suspected only my dash was warping; I own a cabrio, whose interiors could be sun-exposed by previous owner.

Tried to mount the defroster grill with some nut spacers, to cover the dash and keep it in the right position, pushing on the bunge, but... no result!

Please, are there remedia also for not leather-covered dashes ?

Thanks

Randall G.

>Please, are there remedia also for not leather-covered dashes ?

I was thinking the same thing, Herbie. I'm no expert on 911 dashboard anatomy, but it looks to me like Madrid's fix is only applicable to (or appropriate for) leather-covered dashboards.

Ruairidh

Yep, despite the Texas origins of my car, I'm a qualifying member of the "old and warped" club

MSchett2

Mine looks exactly like the one in the picture. I try not to think about it.

Madridcab

For more details, here it goes based on memory (unfortunately my digital video connection to the PC is not working - hence no pic´s, but I will try to be descriptive:

Warped dash cheap fix process:
Works for leather dash - If you have stiches in the dash top around the instrument cluster, you have a leather dash (here in Spain, I have not seen a 964 without leather dash). If you do not have a leather dash, I guess your options are - live with it (the sensible choice), or buy a new dash top (the expensive choice??) Or perhaps you could consider cutting it and get a professional leather upholsterer to cover it (god knows it might work - or not..)

The process:

Step 1: remove dash top:
- Remove windscreen vent - unscrew and pull up and away from screen (careful not to lose screws into the ventilation system)
- Remove centre vent - look for two springclips just at the top of the vents (just inside under the top edge), push back and down with screwdriver, and push vent out (I think it was bottom part first? but not sure)
Remove plastic covers at each end of dash top where it meets the doors (just push out, no screws)
Unscrew screws for brackets in the hole left by the windscreen vent, unscrew one screw at the end of dash top each side.
At the centre vent, 9 o´clock (between vent and clock) there is a bolt in the dash top going through the dash with a 10 or 12 mm nut on the backside. Unscrew, and you should then be able to take the whole dash top back and upwards.

Step 2 Fix dash top:
The dash structure itself (under the leather) is some sort of thick plastic foam, with a black plastic coating. The leather is glued and then stapled (normal paper staples) around the edges of the dash top. Take off the staples along the front edge of the dash top, and loosen the leather. (I did this all along the front to have room to perform the cutting and sanding job, the glue was not causing much resistance, and using a letter opener, the leather came lose easily) The next step is to take a sharp knife, and cut the lifted part (hump) off, to make a flat surface. I then sanded the area (most importantly the borders where I had just cut through the plastic coating as it was easy to get a slight edge there(the leather is fairly thick, and will hide some imperfections, although for best results you should probably use plastic filler and then sand down, although I did not do this) The next step is to glue and staple the leather back around the edges.(I actually only put some glue on the edge, as I thought any imperfections might more easily show if glued down, but if your preparation is perfect, you´re probably better off gluing it all down)

You then mount the dash top back doing Step 1 in reverse - and you´re done...

And may your dash top be flat

horst

Thank you!

Anatol

I bought a warped leather dash and did not notice it was warped until my mechanic told me. So I bought it too expensive.

However, he had a remedy: if you look at the way 993 leather dashes look like then you will notice that they have a leather covered metal plate fixed on top of the actual dash. This plate blends nicely with the outline of the dash and stretches the leather. My mechanic fabricated it from sheet metal after a cardboard sample I sourced from Techart in Germany.

Even though the leather on the plate does not have quite the same grain like the rest of the dash it looks alright and made me overcome the exaggerated price I paid.

Anatol

Nagib

I have the exact same problem in my 964 and I saw the same bulge in a friends 90 C2 Targa tonight. However, both dashes were not leather (no stitching). I am going to attempt to remove it this weekend, and see what I can do as far as repair. If I am successful, I will post pictures and directions.

Also, there is a Porsche tech bulletin about this problem. It basically says to get the dash fixed and then use a slide hammer to modify the clips that the defroster vent screws into in order to have it sit just slightly on top of the dash.

Nagib
90 C2 Cab

tchanson

Nagib,

Would you happen to have a link or a copy of that TSB you could share?

Thanks,
Tim

Herbie

I tried a similar way, applying some washers on the defroster vent screw, to keep it on the dash, but it wasn't enough.

I'm very interested abuot this TSB...

Thank you

Nagib

Okay here it is.. (don't blame me for the crappy picture quality, that's what I got too..)

Dashboard Cover - Deformed


91porsche05

October 11, 1991

Model Group

911 C2/C4 7
911 turbo

Part Identifier Number

7019 9101

Subject: Dashboard Cover Deformed

ATTENTION: Service Manager/Service Technician

Models Affected: 911 Carrera 2/4, model years '89 (K), '90 (L), '91 (M)
911 turbo, model year '91 (M)

Concern: Wavy appearance of dashboard cover in the area of the defroster vent.

Repair Information: Dashboard covers which have a wavy appearance in the area of the defroster vent can be repaired. In addition, after replacement of a damaged dashboard cover, the defroster vent should protrude over the edge of the dashboard cover.


<a href="http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/tsb1.JPG" target="_blank">http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/tsb1.JPG</a>
Figure 1


<a href="http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/tsb2.jpg" target="_blank">http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/tsb2.jpg</a>
Figure 2


Where repairs are necessary, remove defroster vent. Use slide hammer with a suitable tip (Figure 1) to move defroster vent brackets straight rearward (Figure 2).

Careful: Only light tapping of slide hammer is required to move the brackets.


Additionally, washers can be installed between the defroster vent mounting points and the brackets to obtain a good fit for the defroster vent.

Install defroster vent and check alignment.

Warranty Claim Information: Damage Code: 7019 30 000 1
Labor Operation: 7019 190 A 50 Time Units

tchanson

Nagib,
Thanks very much for the info. <img src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" border="0" alt="[cheers]" />

Tim

Bob Haase

Nagib,
You have provided yet additional evidence that paying for Rennlist membership is fully worth the minimal investment. (I'm not being paid for this endorsement, but I'm open to all forms of bribes )

Nagib

Okay, looks like I'm the sucker. If you have a vinyl dash, do not attempt to repair it. I took a knife and carefully peeled back the edge of the vinyl, then cut away some of the foam, and glued it back up with contact cement. Initially it look ok, but after letting it dry overnight, it looks like crap. Now instead of having a bulge, I have a crater. No idea what happened.. I'll post a pic tonight or tomorrow. Guess I'm in the market for a new dashboard top (which was the case anyways..)

Nagib

Wachuko

Add me to the club. I too have the same situation in my car.

I will try the Porsche way and see if that works.

I am both glad and sorry to hear/read that I am not alone on this problem.

Thank you all for the great information. I will post some pictures tonight on how mine currently looks but it is very similar (if not identical) to the photo Bob posted.