Demand for 61-70 dash pads ?

fishslapper · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 11:43 am Post subject: Demand for 61-70 dash pads ?

Hey all !!

I am just trying to gauge demand on making early dash pads for the type 3's.
As i understand it nobody likes the fitment of the ones that isp west and all the others sell plus they are 1971-1973 style.

My brother in-law works at a place that makes all sorts of interior panels and dashes for BMW and Mercedes ,GM, Ford etc....
He is an injection mold designer and he said it should be possible to do.
He will be here on saturday to look at it and let me know a rough idea of how much and how hard it would be. I am not saying for sure if it will happen but i want to make one that looks like it is from the factory in germany.

Give me input !!! Very Happy

_________________
1968 L50f regatta blue notchback

The 7 "p"'s !!
Prior proper planning prevents piss poor performance. !!

supersuk · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 11:51 am Post subject:

If you search, there is someone in south africa making the dashes already. It only costs about $200 shipped to the US. However, if you can make something that is not as shiny, then i'm sure you'll attract a small crowd which might not be worth while...
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68 Fastback Build: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5396323#5396323

TxPunisher · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 12:01 pm Post subject:

I might be interested. Especially If he can beat the $200 shipped price. And American made better fitting early dash would be nice.

fishslapper · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 12:10 pm Post subject:

Those dashes are hard as a rock and not the same feel or texture . I am glad that guy is making them. At least somebody cares about our cars.

That being said I want a factory looking and feeling dash. His price of 200 shipped is good. Molds are not cheap (well......if done right) this might not be financially possible i don't know. All i know is we could use an exact reproduction copy thats all.....
_________________
1968 L50f regatta blue notchback

The 7 "p"'s !!
Prior proper planning prevents piss poor performance. !!

snj · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 12:23 pm Post subject:

The trouble is, there are three different styles within that year range. See here for the details: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=175512&start=0

Anyway, I'm sure there's some interest in better reproduction dash pads. Me, I need a nice wraparound dash (hell, I'd be happy just to have a cracked one at this point). I plan on buying one of Retrovan's LHD wraparound dashes if/when he decides to do another run of them. I'd gladly shell out much more for a more accurate wraparound repro, though.

fishslapper · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 12:32 pm Post subject:

Well that complicates things !! Haha

Well maybe i will start with doing a one off and get him to make me one just for me and go from there......i thought there was only 3 types and that they kind of all fit ...... Embarassed

I will still look into it.
_________________
1968 L50f regatta blue notchback

The 7 "p"'s !!
Prior proper planning prevents piss poor performance. !!

flyinglow94 · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 4:24 pm Post subject:

There is always a demand for Quality parts. 200.00 is cheep But you get what you pay for. If your brother in law can produce a product that can withstand the weather without cracking and that lasts he should easily sell them. It would be nice to produce the 61-65 eared dash and the 66-68 that can also be used for the 69-71 if needed. What Im saying is we need more choices and Im sure if he produced a better quality dash pad ISP would buy them and distribute them without a problem.

By the way how many people here have tried to put in these crappy dash pads? the gauges wont even snap in unless you do some major cleansing and then they still don't fit right. I just did mine two weeks ago.
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supersuk · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 4:47 pm Post subject:

I've cleaned up the plastic a bit to give it a better appearance and now my gauges fit perfectly. A lot of finish sanding is involved. However, I still need to try and fit it to the dash. Hopefully that won't be too difficult.

A really nice quality dash would be nice, but that only depends on the price. NOS dashes go for ungodly prices, so if you can beat those and have the same look and feel then i'm sure a small crowd would be happy.
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68 Fastback Build: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5396323#5396323

Sinklar · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:38 pm Post subject:

For what it's worth, I've been waiting for an early wrap around dash for my Notch since June from the guy in South Africa. I think the market is there for the different styles of dashes, but I don't know if the money is there. I would pay in the 200-400 dollar range for a good dash repop, with upper end of that figure being for something closer to the original padded style.
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Never argue with stupid people. They will sink you to their level and beat you with experience.

notchboy · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:47 pm Post subject:

The demand is very high at the moment. There is presently no one making an accurate coppy of a 61-65 early wrap around dash and a later 66-70 dash. The number one issue with the one now is that the grain of the dash is not the same as the OG grain. That same grain is found all over the place in the 61-65 cars and proves an issue with anyone wanting a correct dash for a correct as possible restoration. The later cars dont have the same interior components as the early cars so the grain is not such a hard pill to swallow.

We are all happy that some one is doing some thing, but the lack of detail and correctness has turned most people willing to spend good money off.

Imagine being able to make a Pigale Clone? How cool would that be? Or even an Azure Think

Shit Id roll a Fastback if I could do that! Start a Fastback only club Cool

All lowered and pimped out. Im not going there if I have to spend $800 on a OG Rolling Eyes

66 dash that Id have to paint, but if a affordable repop was made...... Think

If there is not a viable, accurate product for me to buy then Ill pass. It would be a shame too because Im part of the people will to spend the money for one.
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dcdubs · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:48 pm Post subject:

I need one. would pay in the 199-399 range. As said before it better be nice for 400 bones. and wouldnt care to waste 1-200 on a crappy repop. so either make real nice ones for 250 or really really nice ones for 400 and I would want the speaker pad area to be accurate.
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dcdubs/glcustoms
AllRightGarageDoorsNW.com

ataraxia · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 7:05 pm Post subject:

A correct early (to 65) wrap around dash pad that matches grain of other interior parts and will withstand weather could be a larger market than anyone might realize. For every person who says they might buy one is a skeptic that won't say either way because so many people have tried and failed to make this part.

If the early wrap around dash was made and made correctly, it would sell once a few went out and positive feedback came around.

I, for one, would definitely buy one if it was quality (matching grain, quality materials, correct speaker grill, durable and properly molded).

The other two versions (non-wrap around), one with split speaker grill and one without the split, have a much larger market because they cover far more cars would sell quite well.

fishslapper · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 7:07 pm Post subject:

I am not going to drop the idea too easily . I will talk to my brother in-law saturday and see how much of a pipe dream this is.

Again, if i can't do it to where you can't really tell it's not factory than there is not much point . The molds could run 20-100,000 dollars. But there are less expensive ways. What would the quality be though ? I have some major research to do. Its probably not easy or we would have a perfect repop that everyone was happy with.

Oh and i am sure color would be the least worry once mold gets figured out. Very Happy

_________________
1968 L50f regatta blue notchback

The 7 "p"'s !!
Prior proper planning prevents piss poor performance. !!

fishslapper · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 7:21 pm Post subject:

Ok ! I will make you guys and gals a deal....

I will look into this and i will keep you informed of everything including the exact quotes and dollar figures. That way all of us can see real world costs and work involved. That way maybe this thread can act as a record for the next crazy person who thinks that this is a good idea !!! Popcorn

I want to know just as bad as you.

Oh .......i might need a 61-65 dash....to copy.....
_________________
1968 L50f regatta blue notchback

The 7 "p"'s !!
Prior proper planning prevents piss poor performance. !!

ataraxia · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 7:21 pm Post subject:

Robert Bills · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 8:05 pm Post subject:

For those of you who have actually seen the dash pads from South Africa, what specifically is good and bad about them? I was under the impression that they are better quality than the ISP West version, and that the primary complaint was the lack of speaker holes for applications where the OG dash pad had them.

Since my Squareback is a 73, would the differences in grain from the original part be that noticable? How well does the grain in the South Africa product match the grab handle over the glove box? And what is the complaint about the South Africa dash pad being "too hard"? Also, what about gauge fitment on these? I can't tell from the comments whether the complaints are about the ISP version, the South Africa version, someone elses, or all of them.

As with so many of you, I need to do something about the cracks in my original dash pad, but until someone manufactures an exact reproduction I will have to make do with the best available on thr market today.

So, what is the best dash pad on the market today for a 73 Type 3?
_________________
Robert Bills
'73 Squareback [sold Feb 2013 Sad

]; Now in search of a Type 181/Safari

MonT3 · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 8:44 pm Post subject:

Below is the dash that was in my 67 before vwfanatic67 swapped it with a South African Dash

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

South African dash below. The color with the handle doesn't exactly match but I attribute it to age diff between pieces. So a new dash with a deep black color and an older (possibly faded by the sun) handle.

The grain looks impressive. The dash is hard and not soft, padded or has holes for the speaker as mentioned above. If someone wanted holes, you'd defintely have to create a template and spend some working the holes in. It would be a nicer piece if it had some weight to it as well as possibly some padding behind it. It sounds hollow but you don't tap on your dash day to day. The gauge area is spot on. I've read a thread where someone was having an issue with fitment but my piece fits.

Personally, I left the dash as is as I didn't want to put a speaker under it. I like it as it enhances the cars look. I don't have to deal with cracks or tears.

I have a 70s era, what looks to be a re-pop dash I got in a treasure hunt. I beleive it's from ISPW. It too looks great to me with good detail but don't have anything from that period to really compare detail. The grain is there. I'm not sure about how it'd fit but if someone wants it, send me a PM.

Hope this helps some.
_________________
MonT3
67 Squareback
64 Squareback
63 Squareback
Engine rebuild
Trailer rebuild

Bobnotch · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 9:36 pm Post subject:

sprintstar.com · Samba Member Joined: July 17, 2004 Posts: 89

A few observations...

I find it funny that there is a high demand for a 100% accurate dash pads... how many is a high demand? 20? 50? 100? 500? ( see the pan halfs threads ) was that a success?

I find it funny ISP gets noted for the " late " dash pad that " fits like crap " that is available thru 90% of the air cooled aftermarket and is 100% not manufactured by ISP but also fits very well when installation is thought through... ( thou aesthetically correct for 71-73 models )

most of you reading this might quickly conclude, I'm negative to the dash reproduction, or any non ISP reproduction and don't know what i'm talking about ect... but the information I am giving you is free knowledge... an enthusiast insider look / opinion

the dash pads everyone is dreaming of someone manufacturing, is a long ways away, originals are still out there, they are expensive and quickly snatched up by people with the cash and means to do so...

when VW made them, they made hundreds of thousands for a production car, and even made many changes to it throughout production, today the world's market you couldn't sell 500 in 5 years unless they were a high quality exact reproduction priced super cheap, which in turn will not pay for the tooling needed to reproduce such a complex high quality reproduction that everyone demands... ( see ISP cargo mat )

throw away tooling is not the option either, as we haven't seen any exact or close near reproductions of any vw part with disposable tooling... so savings in tooling costs are not a way to cut dash pad costs...

I as an type 3 enthusiast and employee at ISP will love to see the day an affordable correct reproduction dash pad comes to market, I just don't believe its today or any time soon, especially in this economy...

I hope someone proves me wrong

Anthony / SPRINTSTAR.COM

Tram · Posted: Tue Oct 30, 2012 10:12 pm Post subject:


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