Hi everyone, I just picked up a 73 Challenger and have a few questions.

[Cartoon6pk]

Hi everyone, I picked up a 73 Challenger and want to know if anyone has used the plastic dash pad cover? I just don't want to put the money into a new dash pad yet. The car will not be a show car.
Thank you,

[Chryco Psycho]

Welcome 
 I have never used the plastic dash covers

[AARTA340]

Welcome to the site!  I have seen the dash caps on cars, but did not really look at them that close. If your pad is quite cracked up, that would be an easy way to cover the "ugly" up at a low investment. Hopefully some members who have one will chime it. 

[70chall440]

I have used one. They do not look bad but can be a pain to get on so they look decent. The one I received did not have a cut out for the VIN tag, underneath the pad there was an area that looked like it was for the VIN area so I cut it out, lo and behold it was not in the right spot. I called the vendor and they said that they had outsourced them and this was the first time they heard that the IN area was not cut out. So, if you get one and it doesn't have the VIN area cut out, measure many times.. I have seen some that had the VIN area cut out by the manufacturer and they look far better. The pad is depressed around the VIN area so it rolls down to the VIN and looks like it should be there. You will want to use a lot of silicon, tape, weights, etc. One of the Mopar mags did an article on doing it and theirs turned out well. Looks a lot better than a cracked up pad.

[dakota]

I used one on my truck dash ('02 Ram 1500).   It took a little tweaking to get the fit right around the vents, but otherwise it has worked well.  I put it in maybe 4 years ago and it's still in good shape.  It was held down with silicone adhesive.  The real trick was holding it in place while the adhesive set.  There was a lot of masking tape involved.  I have no experience with covers for e bodies.

[blown motor]

Try doing a search on here. I know it's been discussed before.

[moparman82]

I had one on my 73 challenger, looked ok.  I put it this way, it looked good enough that I moved "get a new dash pad" to near the bottom of my todo list

[dfrazz]

I had one on my '71 Challenger.  Looked like cheap crap and drove me nuts.  I was so thankful for the day I was able to replace my dash.

[DAYLEY/CHALLENGER]

Have had one for several years...............no issues at all..................But I put it in when the windshield was out..............much easier..........

[70chall440]

That cover looks much better than the one I had/have. good install.

[AARTA340]

That cover looks much better than the one I had/have. good install.

That is a nice looking cap install. I would sure consider one of that quality. 

[Archialfa]

Did anyone wrap the dashboard with leather? Sounds like a good idea, but it would be nice to know that it was done successfully by someone before.

[70chall440]

do a Google search, there are some that have. The big issue is that the substrate under the leather or whatever material has to be very smooth. Due to the fact that the original pad has some type of foam under it, I haven't been able to get one real smooth. I believe some have used fiberglass resin and bondo but I don't know for sure. I would really like to talk to someone who has actually done this. There are materials which are thin and stretch which the custom guys use on dashes and door panels; lots of glue and patience but doesn't seem that horrific.

[734406pk]

At the time there were bad reviews of the dash covers (2 years ago) so i bit the bullet and went for a new dash $$$. The new dash pads made today may be the way to go now. The foam pad is only around 1/4" thick anyway and the steel core dash holds its shape when then sun beats on it. The ABS core does not. Go with steel if you can.