**** I'll buy a NOS GM piece if I can find one. There are some things the aftermarket just can't replicate.

 

ls14jay,

Do you remember the address from the original and/or return labels. I read elsewhere that ACCU-Form Plastics, Inc. of Hurricane, UT, purchased Plastic Parts, Inc. of Pompano, FL. I am curious which location is actually producing the 4th Generation Dash Pad now. I have been following discussion relating to this problem for over a decade, and specifically the PPI replacement since LS1tech member LS6427 mentioned it ~ August 2014. I purchased a PPI unit through eBay 8-2016, but have yet to do anything with it. My 98 interior is the stock, Dark Pewter / Grey, and I have no intention of putting a black pad in mine. I am trying to develop a comprehensive understanding of the whole debacle that is our dash pads before I make a determination on repair, replacement, painting, etc. Thanks.

 

 

ls14jay, thank you.

 

Not certain of relevance. However will post this related information for archival purposes.

PPI’s ebay user ID was partsbyusa. This is verified by the feedback profile page which has the Plastic Parts, Inc. (PPI) logo, and the associated PayPal account which lists PPI and its website. However, the ebay account was deregistered in the last 12 months. Unfortunately, it appears the feedback just prior to deregistration was extremely negative, with feedback after feedback indicating no communication and failures to ship item.

Feedback for partsbyusa (PPI)

Florida Dept of State shows PPI as still being registered.

There is an apparent Part # on the shipping box for my 2016 PPI dash: CF9801D. Accu-Form Plastics, Inc of St. George, UT appears to be currently producing a black, 1997 – 2002, F-body dash pad with Part # CF98-01D under a pending trademark name of Accutrim. There is an ebay account with current user ID mulliganprice which appears based out of St. George, UT and is selling the Accutrim CF98-01D.

One additional piece of info: IIRC, there was a lifetime warranty on the dash pad when I purchased it from PPI.

 

 

I got one of these from them on eBay and the fit was horrible. I had to send it back and go for a real GM dashpad.

 

I ordered a GM Crash Pad for my 1994 back in February/March and picked it up from the dealer over July 4th. Those are no longer showing as available on GM Parts Direct and the dealer I ordered from was only showing 1-2 available nationwide when I placed my order.

 

Well I sent the 2nd one back becuase the hump was way too high above cluster, almost an inch. They tried to blame poor istallation and whatever else they could think of. She wanted it sent back to inspect before sending out the next attempt. I told her I would send it back once I recieved the 3rd one.I pretty much had to threaten to sick Bank of America after them. The 3rd one fits way better but color isnt even close. I told her the 2nd was different then chevy camaro, dark grey, and she assumed she could wing it and get it right. Nope. I now have a light grey.When someone says they can color match chevy dark grey, I would assume they have some kind of reference to go by, like a color chart or something. I wonder how much a body shop will charge to spray it? I also told them the date the 2nd one would be removed from car and wasnt sure it would come out in one piece. It did with much effort but they sent ups 3 days straight before the date I said it would be ready to pick up. Also the warranty card says does not cover warping due to heat. LOL. Yeah not much heat on dash pad in south florida. I will have to make sure it gets a sunshade when Im done.
To recap.
1st one was blemished in 2 spots and sent back, never tried to fit it
2nd one, the fit was terrible and color was off but could live with.
3rd one fits much better but needs to be painted and they put the wrong part of velcor pads on dash pad. Fuzzy part should be on dash pad as support has the other part. They stopped responding to emails all together but were never really good at that either. By far the worst company I have ever dealt with on the internet of local, period.
Thanks Accuform plastics of Utah.

 

It is unfortunate you are having such problems.

I have not made a decision on the upper dash in my car. I think the average price of a new OEM upper dash for my 98 TA (GM 10422746) from authorized GM OEM parts sellers has continued to rise. Most appear to be over $500 shipped to Michigan now. Should be the same color as your OEM unit: Pewter.

Just in case you are considering painting it yourself, AFAIK, the closest SEM color match to Pewter (1997-1999 Gray) is Graphite (15303).

 

Trust me, just bite the bullet and get the OEM. I have tried this unit before, it is hit or miss and when its miss the fit is HORRIBLE. You will end up spending close to the same in downtime, frustration, re-shipping, ect as it would cost to just get an OEM one. It sucks but remember...you get what you pay for. There is no free lunch.

 

I read through your posts on the dash pad previously and am aware of your problems. Thank you for your concern.

I am well aware of the risks of doing nothing now. When I purchased my OEM replacement dash pad for $135 shipped late 2006, I considered both purchasing a second unit (to put away until needed) while they were available and fiberglassing the back before install. I did neither and it appears I may pay a price for those decisions. However, I also am not willing to amortize $500+ on an inflation-adjusted basis over every subsequent 10 or fewer years, for the rest of my life, to have an uncracked dash pad in this car. Additionally, I am not certain of the long-term effectiveness of fiberglassing the back of an OEM unit as I have encountered ZERO long-term feedback of that preventative measure.

 

 

My imagination stems to believe it would hold out pretty well if fiber-glassed properly and there are absolutely no errors during the process of removing the dash and fiber-glassing - I've heard good results on it but if your dash pad is so fragile that it breaks into pieces from just removing it, don't think it will just be a walk in the park. You won't beable to do it on your own if you have had no prior experience working with fiberglass and fragile ABS and if you pay someone to do it, you will come out paying the same if not more than a new GM upperdash as it is a tedious time and labor process. Those fragments will have to be refitted PERFECTLY or the whole thing will not properly fit over the upper dash area. I tried this route and it didnt turn out so well which is what forced me to replace the upper dash.

I agree with this. $500 for the upper dash isnt really alot of money considering the part and life time..not like you have to buy these things every year and its a guaranteed fit. The inflation is there because the part is now 2 decades old and keeping a part like that (which has no functional equivilant and is propietary only to two specific vehicles, Camaro and Firebird) on the parts list for a car they don't even make anymore, and havent for over a decade, manufacturing them and knowing that the part likely can not pay for itself unless sold in larger volumes, which it no longer can be sold in volumes - is more so a favor being done for us in my opinion.

 

I am undecided as of yet, but I am leaning away from any option that does not result in a near stock-appearing upper dash. I personally have not been real impressed with how the defroster vent was addressed with most, if not all, wrapping jobs I have seen. One option for me could be pulling the current dash pad and using it as a test unit for fiberglassing the back. I would want some practice before doing a new, OEM piece. I assume I would damage it further when removing and would be piecing it back together first. While that one was out I could install the unused, 2016-purchased PPI dash and check for fitment. I could then re-evaluate options at that time. If my cracked, OEM pad reinforcement turned out well, but I decided I did not want to use if for myself, I suspect I could sell it in that condition for at least enough to cover my fiberglass materials.

I would be more agreeable to the $500 dash pad purchase if I was confident it would last 20 years and other expensive-to-replace components did not also start disintegrating. I have looked through production numbers for Pewter interior Camaros and Firebirds. Was also pondering the market and the likelihood some other, better, replacement option may appear yet. Probably unlikely.

 

it amazes me that even though millions of these cars were made no one can make a good aftermarket pop of these pads. maybe there is no money in it. maybe most of these cars are in junkyards or sitting in front of trailers an the owners don't care. i wish i would have bought a OEM replacement in the first place. Now I'm on the hunt for one.

 

Not even close. I suspect that is part of the problem. ~280,000 Camaros and ~176,000 Firebirds manufactured 1997-2002 model years. I believe 97-02 dashes are same exact shape, just different colors. 1996 model year has a different shape. Specifically, the edge near the dash comes to a sharp point near the right side of the defroster vent.

 

i guess if we drove mustangs this wouldn't be a problem then.......

 

My car is now a garage car, gotta keep it out of that Texas sun or good bye dash.
I'd use either a sun shade in the windshield or at the very minimum some UV protection sprays.
I'm pretty sure if you can minimize sun damage, the upper dash will last a very long time.

It's mainly the market, most people who get cracked dashes end up putting a cover over it and throwing their $500 into go fast goodies.

The shapes are the same but I believe on the back some of the mounting tabs are in slightly different locations...I could be wrong though.

 

Not certain about the mounting tabs.