Difficulty Level for Dash Swap

[MR 325]

Can you do it for $50?

Haha, no way.

[MR 325]

What about rattles and squeaks and shit? Has anyone replaced their dash and had an irritating noise crop up from a piece of plastic that didn't like getting pulled apart and put back together again? My car needs it too, and I know I could do it no problem but i'm concerned about disturbing the no-squeak karma my dash currently has going. then again, nothing to ruin my nice clean interior like having to look at the dash...

Mine makes no creaks or noises. Mine was not an option, it was easily the worst looking E30 dash ever so it had to be changed. I wish I had a pic but my friends destroyed it before I had the chance.

[markseven]

http://www.strictlyeta.net/technical/dashboard.html

All you need. Did it myself and yes it is time consuming

Thanks dude! That combined with the e30DIY article should do the trick.

[markseven]

Difficulty Level 5 and $100 are tied at 20.83%...

[Jean]

It's not difficult, just gotta do it all in the right order, basic stuff really. Can be done in about 2 hours.

[markseven]

Thank you everyone for the advice and the votes. I'm gonna do this myself. I was able to swap the cluster on my own, so...

[markseven]

Crap! Four of you rated this as 66% as difficult as rebuilding an M20!

[zydio]

i just did mine the other day. it took me 13 hours but i really was just taking my time and learning. i had a full walkthrough with detailed photos that i printed out on 4x6. i had a horribly cracked dash and everything else in my car is new and the dash was the last piece. i had rattles in the dash before i swapped it and that is another reason i swapped it. now that its back together and i made sure everything under there was secure and tight, there is not a single sound coming from under there. smooth as can be, it feels like im driving a new car now. i go over a bump and it doesnt sound like there are rats in there going crazy. i voted 6 not because its difficult but because its time consuming. would i pay $100 for an experienced someone to do it? no if it was my first time doing it because i like to learn about my car but when i get my original dash recovered in vinyl i will more than likely pay the dealership $600 to install it for me just cuz i dont want to do that again anytime soon.

[markseven]

i just did mine the other day. it took me 13 hours but i really was just taking my time and learning. i had a full walkthrough with detailed photos that i printed out on 4x6. i had a horribly cracked dash and everything else in my car is new and the dash was the last piece. i had rattles in the dash before i swapped it and that is another reason i swapped it. now that its back together and i made sure everything under there was secure and tight, there is not a single sound coming from under there. smooth as can be, it feels like im driving a new car now. i go over a bump and it doesnt sound like there are rats in there going crazy. i voted 6 not because its difficult but because its time consuming. would i pay $100 for an experienced someone to do it? no if it was my first time doing it because i like to learn about my car but when i get my original dash recovered in vinyl i will more than likely pay the dealership $600 to install it for me just cuz i dont want to do that again anytime soon.

Thanks man, I hope mine comes out as good as yours with no squeaks or rattles. I wanna know as much as possible about these cars cause I'll prolly always own one. Being able to maintain it myself is not only rewarding but cost effective, too.

I thought I could own this car without putting money into cosmetic improvements, but I like her so much that I can't stand to see her with a crappy interior. And thus I have stepped onto the fabled 'slippery slope' :roll:

[markseven]

2 hours into it...

[markseven]

2 hours into it...

Dash is out... now for a few hours of cleaning...

[markseven]

Dash is back in. :shock:

[ak96ss]

Cool. I have to do the dash in my car at some point.

Best way to learn about these cars is to part one out. What a friggin' ball that is! I've got damn near every part that was bolted onto the shell of my parts car in a plastic baggie in the garage.. :)

[GaryE30]

Its easy. Sounds like you got it in w/o any problems!

[markseven]

Oh Crap!

Um, uh....

I can't remember where this VDO unit goes. It's dangling from above the glove box, but for the life of me I can't see where it's supposed to go. Help!