Dash caps

[260 z]

My dash has a crack between the speedometer and the tach. I was going to put a full face cap on it but was told that if I did that, removal of these instruments in the future would required removal of the cap !!!

Can the original dash be repaired in Houston, Texas ??? or is there a better solution to this problem??

[78zcar_blue]

You will not have the remove the dash cap if want to remove your gauges because they are removed from the back of the dash, I repaired my dask and placed a full dash cap over it and it is really nice, or you can just put a dash cap over you craked dash that is up to you.

[hls30.com]

Even if you do, if you are careful about installation of the cap, and use only a few daubs of silicone, the cap will come off easily, and add only a couple of minutes to r/r the guages.

I wrote an installation postin another thread-post #18 in the following thread.

http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12725&page=2&pp=15&highlight=dash+cover

Edited March 10, 2011 by hls30.com

[260 z]

Thanks for the information.

him30, have you removed the cover that you talked about in the 2004 thread??

I was aware that the gauges go out the back of the dash but I was concerned about the Tach and Speedo.

[Travel'n Man]

Tach and Speedo come out the front - very tight fit. The fuel, clock,and oil pressure (I think) come out the back of the dash. It will be difficult to get the tach and speedo out with the dash glued in place. See if you can heat the dash cover and let it glove fit with no adhesive............

[hls30.com]

Yes, I have pulled my dash cover to replace the large gages-if you take your time when originally fitting the cover, you will only need a little silicone at the edges of the dash, and the down near the console-with only enough to hold it down, you can pull the cover with no issues-you just need to clean the residue off before applying the adhesive to put it back in.

Note, if you were very careful installing the cover, and are very careful pulling it off, you probably will not need any adhesive when you put it back on-time and heat will have reset the covers stresses, and drape formed it to your dash-but clean the residue off the dash and the cover anyway!

Edited March 11, 2011 by hls30.com

[260 z]

Thanks, I'll try that

[ezzzzzzz]

The other point of minimal silicone is the cap won't warp as badly when it heat cycles over several months showing every dab of adhesive. I've seen many caps that were really wavy from excessive silicone usage including the 75 280Z in my driveway (installed by the PO).

Removing the speedo/tach from the back is a pain in the arse. I much prefer pulling them through the front.