blueb3

Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the plasti-dip



well lets see, I've had the car for all of 13 hours, and I've already started the mods!!!
Dash started out with this crap :thumbdown:

After reading up on it on nabisco, I picked up a can of plasti-dip in a rattle can, and got to work. I will say that the nice thing about subie's is that they are pretty much the same, in that the interior came apart just like my old legacy.
Here's what I'm painting. That's the center console forward, and both door switch plates as well.

Here it is an hour and 3 coats later (cheated and used a hair dryer since it's pretty chilly out tonight)



and installed

note how well it matches the stock switches!!

 

JCT

That Is Awesome!

__________________
2005 FXT 4EAT

scans007

SUPER huge improvement, I gotta give this plasti-dip a try

__________________
My Rides - My Journal

blueb3

Took less than a can to do all those parts. The white smudges are from my skin when putting the peices in. Wipes off with a wet cloth.

KeNd0

I loved the fake wood in my 01 NA :(


Looks great though ;)

kamil212

Yup, got 4 cans of this stuff ready to go, just waiting for it to warm up a bit (hopefully this weekend).
I already painted one of the lower door trims as a test and it looks great. Will be doing all of the gray stuff as I'm really not feeling how it looks.

How many coats did you apply? I'm thinking to do 2 coats.

BAC5.2

Wow, the fake wood really looks a lot better with the tan interior! I would hate it if my trim was black instead of wood.

__________________
The Aggressive™
09 SWP Outback 2.5XT 5MT
RIP Edwin

blueb3

all the rest of my interior is black and grey, the wood trim REALLY stood out. I did 3 coats, a little more heavy on some of the high traffic areas (like that bin in front of the shifter). This stuff levels off real nice too. I've also got a line on a 2002 wrx headunit (black one) to go in there soon. Still kicking myself for selling the one from my legacy (has a silver faced one from a 2002 wrx as well)

Next up is the leatherette on the door cards, it's starting to peel away on the drivers side and looks like ass.

vintage42

I put fake wood in my Scion...
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f2...h/WoodDash.jpg
Now how do I find it for the Forester ;-)

neoshi

ebay hehe

__________________
05 XS
WTB 4.44 Rear Diff LSD

Albino83

Very nice work! I like the resourcefulness.

Drewso

Hi Vintage 42,
Did you get a wood dash for your forester?
I have a new 2010 one on order and I am thinking about getting a wood dash for it?
Does it actually look ok when you stick it on?
I have found this guy,
Wood Dash Kits, Dash Trim Kits - WoodDash.com
Do you recommend anyone?
Thanks

vintage42

I have a 2008 and wood dash trim would look like the first photo in this thread. Except that factory wood look is cast into the plastic dash parts, not stuck on top of the parts.

I looked at this vendor:
2007 Subaru Forester Wood Grain Dash Kits | Carbon Fiber
And I found a couple of other vendors. But I have not bought a kit for my Forester mainly because I am afraid of the curvature required for the big central piece. The curvature makes it harder to install the trim, and increases the likelihood of it coming loose.

I did buy a kit from Veneerz.com for my 2006 1st Gen Scion xB, and only installed the flat central pieces because the rest of the kit looked fussy and I was concerned about how tight it would be in ten years. http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f2...h/WoodDash.jpg

I think that probably there is one manufacturer in Asia and all the vendors buy from it, because all the kits look the same. You have to buy the big kit even if all you want is the center dash item.

The pieces are semi-rigid plastic with 3M adhesive backing protected by tape. You pull off the tape and stick the pieces on. The pieces are supposedly removable, with possibly some clean up of adhesive residue with 3M's standard adhesive remover. To make the adhesion stronger, the kits come with a tube of enhancer, but I did not want to be that permanent. After a year, the corners of the xB's bottom piece started lifting below the ash tray, because of the curve down there and the fact that the narrow edges gave the piece so little adhesive area. So I put a dab of enhancer on the corners which locked them down.

The pieces are critically difficult to install. They grab and can't be repositioned. If you are sloppy, there is no forgiveness and you will look at it for years. The 2006 Scion xB had a convex curve to the center dash which made installation easier. I am afraid of the concave curve of my 2008
Forester's center dash.

My Scion xB is garaged day and night, but if it was parked in the hot sun for years, I wonder how the trim would act. I think more edges might loosen. I do think it's removable without damage, unless the enhancer has been used. Enhanced pieces would no doubt stay tight, but probably pull the paint off the dash parts if ever removed.

EvilDan

Stop calling it a wood dash, it's a cheesy plastic sticker for your vehicle.

Sorry guys, tastes vary, but that's kinda tacky.


THIS \/\/\/\/ is a wood dash.

__________________
2004 Subaru Forester XT. 5MT Java Black Pearl.

Peaty

He said death the Fake Wood not the real stuff.


Nice job on painting you trim, looks good!

__________________
Peaty

2010 Legacy 3.6 R - Limited

2006 B9 Tribeca - Limited

1999 Miata - MX5