Ok, so just like 1,000's of Dodge Ram owners who have had their dash boards cracked and ruined from a wide variety of explanations (heat/cold, expansion/contraction, screws too tight, defective plastics, pissed off about something, etc.) I have FINALLY decided to delve into replacing the whole damn thing. For about 7 years I have dealt with bits of dashboard cracking, bouncing around, then falling off. It was about 1 year ago when I just snapped everything off that didn't involve any tools to remove it. Today I made my trip to the auto salvage yard and picked up almost all of the replacement pieces for $75. The only thing I was not able to get was an undamaged dash bezel (surprise, surprise). And while I have the dash torn apart I am going to replace the leaking heater core and a/c evaporator core.
I am not a mechanic but I do consider myself to be fairly mechanically inclined (at least to the point where I am willing to try anything once - although sometimes I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not). The removal of the pieces at the salvage yard proved interesting enough, and I can only imagine that it will be exponentially more challenging to put everything back without breaking it.
Having seen and read a number of threads asking about cracked dashes and replacing or repairing or covering them, I figured that I would chronicle my adventure into this uncharted territory (for me anyways). I have included some "before" pictures for your viewing pleasure. For those interested in following along, I will post updates and pictures as the project gets underway. I'm not exactly sure when I will begin, but at the latest I hope it's no farther out than next weekend. Oh, and for the record, I have a 2000 Ram 1500 5.9L Laramie SLT.
To be continued ...
I am not a mechanic but I do consider myself to be fairly mechanically inclined (at least to the point where I am willing to try anything once - although sometimes I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not). The removal of the pieces at the salvage yard proved interesting enough, and I can only imagine that it will be exponentially more challenging to put everything back without breaking it.
Having seen and read a number of threads asking about cracked dashes and replacing or repairing or covering them, I figured that I would chronicle my adventure into this uncharted territory (for me anyways). I have included some "before" pictures for your viewing pleasure. For those interested in following along, I will post updates and pictures as the project gets underway. I'm not exactly sure when I will begin, but at the latest I hope it's no farther out than next weekend. Oh, and for the record, I have a 2000 Ram 1500 5.9L Laramie SLT.
To be continued ...
Talk soon neighbor. 
