1993 Viper Dash

[DJ'sviper]

My dash is starting to look its age. People have scratched it and it is worn with the rubber paint that is on it. I am an artist and was able to repaint and touch up the dash but it doesn't stay long. How has the viper community been able to deal with this issue. I saw some after market dashes on eBay. Are they any good?

 

[MoparMap]

I plastidipped my mom's 94 dash. I just went ahead and painted it black to match the rest of the car better. So far it's been holding up well and theoretically it's reversible by just peeling the paint off, though I'm really not sure what it will do to the old "soft touch" paint that's under it. All told it still looks better than it did before, so I'd say it was worth it.

 

[lane_viper]

I took the dash out of my 96 GTS and spray painted it Black. It's not perfect, but it looks 10x better than before. I hate that rubber paint stuff.

If you go the remove and paint route, be very careful not to break the dash cover! Its mega expensive, and that's if you can reasonably find a replacement.

Plastidip may not be a bad route if you want the same rubber texture in stock form.

MoparMap, any chance you could give more details on how it's holding up, and how long it's been?

 

[MoparMap]

So far the dash has held up pretty well. She doesn't drive it all that often, but I haven't really seen any noticeable issues. The bezels around the door handles have pulled at the edges some since they see more hands and wear than the dash itself, but they are easy enough to recoat if you wanted to. I think it's probably be a few years since I did it, maybe 4-5 if memory serves. Haven't ever tried to remove it though, so not really sure if it actually stays "removable" that many years later.

 

[ViperJay]

I went flat black with flat clear coat. Looks sooooo much better.

 

[ricktessmer]

I removed the dash, not hard to do, stripped it with a "goof off" type stripper and repainted with a Dupli Color hammer type paint that very closely matched the original in both color and texture. Unfortunately, I do not have an old can available to provide more information, but I do recall finding it on their website.
Good luck

 

[jboegn1]

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[jboegn1]

I had my body shop repaint the dash after I removed it. They had a hard time removing the original rubberized paint. The paint that they used is the same as the body paint. Seven years and 20K miles later, it still looks good. Very happy with the results.

 

[ViperJay]

Also, this is not a hard job. I am no mechanic but found it to be pretty easy. Its probably best as a winter project. I have a bunch of pics I can send you of when I did mine back in 08.

 

[DJ'sviper]

Love to see the process Viper Jay. What about originality, etc. Being a 1993 and one of the first produced in 93 Is the car worth more with the original dash. I have about 20,100 miles on the car. I also have several tops for it, as well as all the covers they first came out with, bra, interior covers etc. Never used. The only thing I wish it had air conditioning. Thanks for all the replies, guys I really appreciate them. Does anyone know of a paint that can cover the dash? Is Duplicolor hammer paint that rubberized paint they coat tools with. Where do you find it and can buy it. I'm an artist and can air brush any paint. I used a paint for photo retouching that wasn't bad. But was hoping to find something better.

 

[ViperJay]

Any time you mess with originality, you will devalue it slightly. On the other hand, you have some miles on yours. Things like separation cracks on the hood, I would NEVER touch. That is part of the story for early original Gen1's. For my '95, it was just getting to the point of embarrassment for me. In my opinion, if you are going to paint the dash you should probably go with a flat paint. Getting foamy or rubberized paint is not going to help with originality and will probably not look as good. I would be more than happy to send you the pics. Just message me your email. There is no description on them but the only thing you really need to be aware of are things like how to remove the headlight switch. There are threads on here where I got the info to do mine.

 

[ViperJay]

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ViperJay]

Hmmm, I didnt think I could post pics anymore. Well, here you go:

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ViperJay]

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ViperJay]

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ViperJay]

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ViperJay]

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[ViperJay]

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[MoparMap]

The dash really does look better black. I always liked the two tone effect it gave the early cars.

 

[DJ'sviper]

Thanks viperJay When its all apart is looks like a big project. Thanks

 

[48 Viper]

My dash is starting to look its age. People have scratched it and it is worn with the rubber paint that is on it. I am an artist and was able to repaint and touch up the dash but it doesn't stay long. How has the viper community been able to deal with this issue. I saw some after market dashes on eBay. Are they any good?

 

[48 Viper]

My dash is starting to look its age. People have scratched it and it is worn with the rubber paint that is on it. I am an artist and was able to repaint and touch up the dash but it doesn't stay long. How has the viper community been able to deal with this issue. I saw some after market dashes on eBay. Are they any good?

 

[48 Viper]

Never reply on a phone... Anyhow, the dash will probably need some repairs. If iterested, I can send pics when I return from AK.

 

[48 Viper]

Lots my first reply, I think. I had mine water dipped to look like carbonfiber. I think it came out well. Needed a parts store fiberglass kit and a few washers to strengthen attachment point.

 

[DJ'sviper]

Really like all the feedback I'm getting. The whole process from Viperjay is really helpful and pretty amazing. I contacted a custom house that did a project for a hot rod and they used a clear coat to give the paint a suede, rubber feel. I'm investigating it right now. this weekend is the Good Guys Hot Rod convention at the Iowas Fairgrounds. Huge Hot Rod show. Going to see if there might be someone who might have done something. Want to investigate all options before I commit.

 

[GA- Viper]

I recently purchased a one owner 95 with only 7,700 miles. Pristine condition with the plastic still over the carpets. The dash however, has numerous scratches/scuffs. And I quickly learned any attempt to clean it only makes it worse.

I really would like to keep it original but my research so far seems to be that the original paint is not available. And would be difficult to properly mask off around the gauges.Another solution I have seen is having it covered in leather, beautiful and not cheap and requires bezels around the gauges. Painting it black would be the easiest solution, but again prefer keeping it original if possible.

DJ any update ?

 

[DJ'sviper]

It turn out quite nice, I ended up getting a PPG paint that they tried to match and then they gave me some red to work with. I kept working with the paint until I got a perfect match. Being an artist I taped off the areas I didn't want to paint. VERY Important. Then airbrushed the paint onto the dash. I took out the council and painted that and the top door panels so there wouldn't be any overspray. It looks really good. I noticed that if I took black 200 grit sand paper after it was painted and very carefully sanded it by scuffing it. The paint looked perfect and soft like the original.The sand paper is very tricky and I had to make do overs several times. Lots of patience. post some photos. when I get a chance.

 

[Cookieman00x]

I recently purchased a one owner 95 with only 7,700 miles. Pristine condition with the plastic still over the carpets. The dash however, has numerous scratches/scuffs. And I quickly learned any attempt to clean it only makes it worse.

I really would like to keep it original but my research so far seems to be that the original paint is not available. And would be difficult to properly mask off around the gauges.Another solution I have seen is having it covered in leather, beautiful and not cheap and requires bezels around the gauges. Painting it black would be the easiest solution, but again prefer keeping it original if possible.

DJ any update ?

Keep your dash, remove it and wrap it up and put it away. Find someone selling a dash and paint it. Then you have the original tucked away and a nice one. Then you can paint the new dash at your leisure and just swap.

Undamaged they sell for 200 to 300... Ebay there is one now for 380

 

[ViperRed]

Re-finished mine in black as well.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[DJ'sviper]

I had a aint shop match the pain but they weren't close enough for me so the gave me some extra paint to match the interior. I matched it perfectly and it is a perfect color. ou can get the suede look betaking sand paper and scrubbing the paint and you can't tell the new from the old. The paint is still soft even though it is enamel. Lots of trial and error. I masked all the area off and painted it inside the car with an artist air brush. I have one scratch to repair as I took off the panel by the shifter and it scratched the side. Just enough to annoy me. I will go back in an retouch it. Looks like it came from the factory. I'm very pleased.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach