StormRune

I was looking at a photo of another 997 yesterday and noticed the alumi-look (or silver painted?) console: see attached photo. This got me thinking again...

The dealer had someone do some sort of a recoat on my black console as part of their prep for resale and so far it is looking acceptable but I figure one of the things on my eventual upgrade list is either a painted, leather, or alumi-look console. I figure the alumi-look will look pretty good with my arctic silver plus the car already has a lot of alumi-look trim.

Does anyone here have experience with the alumi-look console or an arctic silver or black painted console and how well they hold up over time? Also does anyone have any experience with the Bumper Plugs multi-coat repaint and how well that has held up for them? I'm thinking that a factory leather console is too pricey as are the carbon fiber ones, plus I've seen reports of problems with the carbon fiber ones.

I'd appreciate any input that you can share.

Ray S

I had several interior pieces painted alumi-look by Eric at Bumper Plugs on my old Boxster. The finish was absolutely top notch and it help up perfectly in my Boxster for about 8 years until I sold the car.

Eric does good work.

StormRune

Thanks Ray, it is good to know that the Bumper Plugs route is a viable option. 8 years is very good!

gota911

Storm,

Eric's (Bumper Plugs) shop is located in Charlotte, NC. A few years back I lived near Charlotte and was able to meet Eric in person when I needed some bumper plugs and a door plug for '04 my 996. He showed me a center console they had painted for a customer. The piece was flawless! Eric has excellent customer service and is a Rennlist Sponsor. I highly recommend him and his work.

BTW, I have no affiliation with Eric or Bumper Plugs, real or imagined.... stated or implied... your mileage may vary... without the expressed written consent from the National Football League, is prohibited... and all of the other legal happy horse ****. Just a very satisfied customer.

workhurts

Sent you an email. Had one in my CS for 2-3 years and maybe even longer. It held up very well. Looked as good when I took it out as the day I put it in. I was going to swap it into the 997 but my car is white and was thinking of going with a white or cf console.

I got mine from euromotorspeed. Not sure if they are still doing them or not.

Sniff

I have the factory alumi-look center console and door trim pieces and I really like them. I've seen several soft touch painted consoles (even on low mileage cars) that seem to show every blemish. The alumi-look holds up really well in comparison, and I like that the color is the same as the silver pieces on the dash that came standard on the S models. Also, the factory painted consoles have a clear-bra material on the sides, so I don't worry about my seat belt receptacles scratching the paint.

Sean

StormRune

Thanks for the good information guys. I didn't realize the factory ones would have protective material on parts of them, that is good to know. One of the reasons I'm worried is what happened to the aluminum trim on my BMW 335i. It got beat all to hell by the seat belt over time.

Workhurts, thanks for pointing me to your alumi-look console over on Planet-9.com. It is in wonderful condition... but I'm not sure I'm ready to pull the trigger on it yet as I had other things on my more immediate to-do list. If I were, I'd be jumping on it.

If any others reading this thread are considering a console, I'd highly recommend you look at the one workhurts has posted on their marketplace equivalent. He's a stand-up guy that I've had the pleasure of dealing with before.