Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Oh no, what have I done?

I chanced across a spotless, uncracked oval dashboard on eBay and clicked ‘buy’. Now I’m going to have to fit the damned thing when it arrives.

Not looking forward to this job … I’ve seen pictures of what a 944 looks like with the whole dash off. It’s madness, I tell you!

I did a heater on the TR7 when I had it. It's a complete dash out job, doing it in relatively slow mode it took 2 of us a day & a half.
Book time for a dealer to do it was 6 hours & that's probably doable. I suspect the 44 is around the same level of work.
It's worth whilst you're behind the dash, cleaning & remaking EVERY electrical connection. Also strip & clean instruments & swap
every bulb for a new one, whether it's knackered or not!

Yes, I come across a picture of a 944 having it's dash replaced the other day. (I wish I could find it again.) It was not a pretty site. I would never attempt this.

i suspect you have bitten off more than you can chew with this project, upside is a feature for all torque perhaps

I’ve actually had most of the bits off at one time or another already, either on my Turbo or the Lux. I’ve just never tried taking everything off at once, giving access to remove the actual dash itself.

I plan to have a good long look at it and if I can’t face the job in the end, I’ll get my local specialist on the case instead.

Replacing the cracked dash has always been one of those ‘if I ever come across a cheap replacement’ notions … and yesterday I did. Doing it will be the finishing touch, my Turbo will then have an perfect interior.

It's not difficult. Be methodical, have loads of yogurt pots or similar for the myriad fixings & don't rush.
If you pay a specialist it'll be a waste as most of it is a phillips screwdriver!

… and there’s always Clark’s Garage to help me out. Never fails.

I’ve managed all the way up to point 7 of their guide many times in the past, just haven’t tried the steps from glovebox onwards. None of it looks impossible … *crosses fingers*

I did this a few years ago and whilst it looks really daunting it is very straight forward if you follow the Clarks Garage guide, do it step by step, and put the parts from each section in labelled plastic bags as you go. Took about 6 hours in total with a stop for lunch when everything was out.

Here's what it looks like when it's all out



and here's what the hall looked like at the halfway point:



I took the opportunity to clean behind everything whilst it was out and amazingly the interior was quieter and squeak free when I put it all back together again. It's just a shame that the replaceent dash is now starting to crack

Haha … that’s the exact photo I was thinking of as I clicked the ‘Buy’ button. Didn’t realise it was yours!

It is a horrifying-looking mess, but my thought is that all that guff is behind the dash, not part of it. I don’t have to dismantle or worry about all the wires, hoses, etc … just not get scared by them. Everything electrical is just a matter of labelling and unclipping connectors, for instance.

Slow and steady, tortoise not hare … should be okay.

All the best with that one Poprock. Your getting as bad as me. Perfection comes at a price. Total Lunacy
Ebay is how my obsestion started. No sign of improvement yet.

take photo's at every step of disassembly and use to compare on reassembly

That looks like the photo I saw the other day. (But couldn't find it.)

You could always get the new dash top covered in leather.

The dash arrived on Friday, and now I’m not sure whether to go ahead with this job or not. It’s totally uncracked, which is fantastic … but there’s a nick out of the dash right above the instruments, in the centre. I just can’t decide whether it’s better or worse than the cracked dash I already have!

Damned eBay sellers, advertising things as spotless when they’re actually damaged.

Megs interior trim detailer should do the trick, easier to apply than STL and cheaper.