Vinyl Repair Recs

[Bonito]

Hello!

I've got some dents in the vinyl on my dash from some work I did previously. I attempted to fix them myself and well, at this point I should probably just hand it over to some professionals. Anyone have experience with this or have any recommendations for this sort of work in the Atlanta area?

Thanks!

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[Icehawk]

Pics?

 

[Clark_Kent]

No specific recommendations, but I would try the popular local shops. AP3, Detailed Designs Auto Spa, Atlanta Protective Films, Sun & Shield, et al. Some time ago I was looking to have vinyl work done and several of the shops said they weren't willing to "mess with it". That was a while ago so perhaps things have changed. Let me know if you find a shop willing to help.

 

[Bonito]

Pics?

I was able to heat gun some of the deformity and creasing out and then use a matched vinyl stamp to keep the texture but now it’s shiny and still not fully corrected. Before I mess it up worse I figure I should just pay a professional.

 

[DeVo]

I attempted to remove that plastic piece when I first got the car to discount the artificial engine noise. After one crease I stopped out of fear of destroying those pieces. It drives me crazy. I may try some slight heat..

 

[type r fanatic]

How recent are the dents?

If they are recent, chances are that when it warms up outside you can leave it out in the sun for a few hours and they may "pop out" and fix themselves. I had a minor dent in my dash previously from reinstalling the a-pillar cover, and it has since completely disappeared.

 

[Bonito]

I attempted to remove that plastic piece when I first got the car to discount the artificial engine noise. After one crease I stopped out of fear of destroying those pieces. It drives me crazy. I may try some slight heat..

Be VERY careful. I know people say to just heat gun it all the time but you can go from "this seems ok" to "i've heated the grain right out of this" which is where I was a few weeks again. Thankfully I kinda restored the grain but the shine is driving me nuts.

 

[Bonito]

How recent are the dents?

If they are recent, chances are that when it warms up outside you can leave it out in the sun for a few hours and they may "pop out" and fix themselves. I had a minor dent in my dash previously from reinstalling the a-pillar cover, and it has since completely disappeared.

They've been there for a while (9 months?) because I was going nuts removing the AC grille assembly trying to find a buzz in there. Turns out the buzz was actually in my passenger A pillar and I messed up the vinyl for nothing

 

[TypeRD]

That’s the kind of thing that has kept me from chasing rattles too hardcore. I’m no pro at dismantling car interiors. No matter how careful I may be, there’s a chance I could mess something up worse than just leaving it alone or letting a pro do it.

 

[TypeRD]

Be VERY careful. I know people say to just heat gun it all the time but you can go from "this seems ok" to "i've heated the grain right out of this" which is where I was a few weeks again. Thankfully I kinda restored the grain but the shine is driving me nuts.

Yeah, any time a heat gun is brought into the equation ALWAYS go very slowly / gently. When you reach the malleable point of the material you have to remove the heat, because not too far from the malleable point is the melt point…as you discovered. It’s not an easy nor trivial thing.

Sorry to say this, but I think you ruined your dashboard. I don’t think it’s possible to make it look like it never happened. It’s the nature of plastic. Once it’s molded the first time…it is what it is.

 

[Clark_Kent]

That’s the kind of thing that has kept me from chasing rattles too hardcore. I’m no pro at dismantling car interiors. No matter how careful I may be, there’s a chance I could mess something up worse than just leaving it alone or letting a pro do it.

This. Sometimes it's better to leave well enough alone. At some point we've all messed with things in pursuit of perfection only to make them worse. No rattles so far, but when they pop up, I'm not chasing them. In a lot of cases I've found they eventually just go away.

 

[Bonito]

This. Sometimes it's better to leave well enough alone. At some point we've all messed with things in pursuit of perfect only to make things worse. No rattles so far, but when they pop up, I'm not chasing them. In a lot of cases I've found they eventually just go away.

Take me as a cautionary tale for sure. Feel free to try to figure out WHERE it is coming from but don't take any action, let the dealer or whoever handle it. If they mess it up it's on them and you're covered. I can live with the dash issue for the most part, especially if I can take the shine off it. It isn't that noticeable otherwise honestly.

 

[Icehawk]

I attempted to remove that plastic piece when I first got the car to discount the artificial engine noise. After one crease I stopped out of fear of destroying those pieces. It drives me crazy. I may try some slight heat..

You shoudn't need to touch that part of the dash to get the glovebox out where the module is hiding.

 

[Shrapnel]

I learned the hard way today how delicate the soft touch dash material is when installing a dash cam. The A-pillar trim piece left two marks on the dash vinyl and I am so upset. I can‘t stand that I damaged it. Most people would laugh and say “that’s it?”, but to me it’s a very big deal, to the point that I’d replace the dash if possible. But I’d probably just make things even worse and be out a wad of cash if I tried that. Had the car a month and already damaged it. Let me tell you, be very, very careful around the dash, I’ve never had a car with such a sensitive dash before. FML.

 

[Bonito]

I learned the hard way today how delicate the soft touch dash material is when installing a dash cam. The A-pillar trim piece left two marks on the dash vinyl and I am so upset. I can‘t stand that I damaged it. Most people would laugh and say “that’s it?”, but to me it’s a very big deal, to the point that I’d replace the dash if possible. But I’d probably just make things even worse and be out a wad of cash if I tried that. Had the car a month and already damaged it. Let me tell you, be very, very careful around the dash, I’ve never had a car with such a sensitive dash before. FML.

I looked around and I think the dash part itself might be around $800? I'd imagine labor to replace it would be pretty expensive and I'd be concerned with how much other stuff would get messed up in the proces. I might still get it quoted so I can at least think about it down the road.

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