I'm hoping these pics and writeup help others; I read a bunch of threads in other forums, and combined some of the techniques. I am an amateur at this stuff, so feedback is appreciated.
While waiting to get up the gumption (and $) to tear into the body, I have been doing little engine compartment and interior projects.
I pulled the carpet "dash cover" off of the dash pad the other day, and realized that my dash pad was worse than I had originally thought. I seriously considered burning it, but then looked at the price of a replacement core or dash cap, and decided to try and repair mine.
First thing I did was to cut out the bad foam and vinyl and then sand down the raised vinyl.
Next I used expansion foam (like Great Stuff for the house) to fill in the majority of the voids. Once that foam had cured, I shaved it and sanded it. I still had some large voids, so I refilled those and some other small cracks.
I was worried about the structural integrity of the pad, so I decided to fiberglass the top. Sanded the whole thing, cleaned, then sprayed adhesion promoter on everything. I ended up applying one layer of mesh and two coats of resin, with sanding between resin coats.
Once the resin dried, I shot a light coat of primer on the dash so I could see where my pin holes and dips were (there were quite few). Sanded the primer a bit and then added Bondo.
I was a little apprehensive about how the body filler would stick, but it really took hold. Sanded the first application, then added another layer to fill in any lowish spots.
Once I had sanded, cleaned, and sprayed more adhesion promoter, I sprayed rubberized undercoating on the dash pad. It won't match the rest of the vinyl texture, but it won't be too bad either IMO.
After the undercoating had cured, I topped the pad with a satin black plastic/vinyl appropriate paint. Overall, much better than what it was, and it seems fairly strong too. The real test will be when I put back in .........
While waiting to get up the gumption (and $) to tear into the body, I have been doing little engine compartment and interior projects.
I pulled the carpet "dash cover" off of the dash pad the other day, and realized that my dash pad was worse than I had originally thought. I seriously considered burning it, but then looked at the price of a replacement core or dash cap, and decided to try and repair mine.
First thing I did was to cut out the bad foam and vinyl and then sand down the raised vinyl.
Next I used expansion foam (like Great Stuff for the house) to fill in the majority of the voids. Once that foam had cured, I shaved it and sanded it. I still had some large voids, so I refilled those and some other small cracks.
I was worried about the structural integrity of the pad, so I decided to fiberglass the top. Sanded the whole thing, cleaned, then sprayed adhesion promoter on everything. I ended up applying one layer of mesh and two coats of resin, with sanding between resin coats.
Once the resin dried, I shot a light coat of primer on the dash so I could see where my pin holes and dips were (there were quite few). Sanded the primer a bit and then added Bondo.
I was a little apprehensive about how the body filler would stick, but it really took hold. Sanded the first application, then added another layer to fill in any lowish spots.
Once I had sanded, cleaned, and sprayed more adhesion promoter, I sprayed rubberized undercoating on the dash pad. It won't match the rest of the vinyl texture, but it won't be too bad either IMO.
After the undercoating had cured, I topped the pad with a satin black plastic/vinyl appropriate paint. Overall, much better than what it was, and it seems fairly strong too. The real test will be when I put back in .........
You may want to see if J Mack will discuss his repair tactics too.
