Looking for HALF of a Dash Cover (reg. covers are too big!)

Strieby
Thanks for the info, it looks nice. How does it work for airbag, is there any velcroed section that pops loose if the passenger airbag has to go off?

Where did you get the wood, and what color is it, beautiful!
Fernsmom

 

Here is the site where I purchased the wood trim.

Toyota Prius 2004-UP Dash Kit Toyota Prius Toyota Prius 04-up, Full Kit, 43 Pcs.,=

 

The color selection = SMBW Medium Burl Wood

 

Medium Burl Wood???!!! I was thinking real Rosewood. ON the website you attached the med burl looks downright brown, but in your pics, the dash looks like a red wood with nice grain (like rosewood). Is it really reddish or brownish in person? I am looking for a reddish tone with nice grain which is why I was thinking real rosewood, or Japanese Cherry
thanks
Fernsmom

 

OK, I am ready to order but when I came to the fabric selection I couldn't decide between Suede and Sedona Suede. After 20 minutes of web searching I still can't find "Sedona Suede". Wikipedia talks about "Microsuede is a newly popular microfiber knit blend fabric" but I don't know if that is the same thing.

Anybody know exactly what "Sedona Suede" is and how it differs from regular Suede fabric? I am assuming this is not real leather Suede as I would think leather would dry out. And the price is too low. Does it being $10 more make it better or just different?

I am looking at the charcoal color. I think it would go better with my red car and black dash but then the seats are tan. The Beige 58 looks pretty light on the web site.

Bob

 

Sorry I lied...I should have said RRW Real Rosewood (+30%) I got confused with my wifes car. I had to look it up. Also the dash cover does not interfere with the airbag.

 

You may want to contact the Dashtopper folks and ask them. They have an 800 number and you can speak with a sales rep.

 

I just got off the phone with Dashtopper. The difference between Suede and Sedona Suede is that the Sedona has all the little holes in it. They serve no purpose except for looks.

I was also told that Dash Designs just purchased Dash-Topper. They are in the middle of merging the two product lines but the products offered are the same. It sounds like Dash Designs got their product from Dash-Topper before the merger.

What I do not see is the Suede at Dash design. I don't know if that means it will be dropped or not. I think I'll call in my order. She said they are about 10 days from order to shipping.

Now to decide on a color. I know the lighter colors (silver) should reflect more heat but then it is trapped in the car so does that really help? The darker colors (charcoal) may be easier on the eyes when driving. <BIG SIGH> The sun here in Florida can be brutal.

I think strieby said his was grey but that is not a choice on the Dash-Topper site, only Black, Charcoal, Beige, and Silver. Maybe he actually had silver, that would look grey in a fabric.

I guess it is another call and talk to sales. <another BIG SIGH>

Bob

 

I sent an e-mail too, but have yet to hear anything.....

See my last post: Dash Designs just purchased Dash-Topper.

Bob

 

OK, time for an experiment....

Tomorrow I have to go on a trip, 200 miles each way. I have white and a dark brown bath towels. I'm going to spread each on on the dash for each half of the trip and see how it goes. Should be able to decide on dark or light by the time I get back.

Anybody know the color of the Barcelona Red interior? The dash is black but the seats -- OK, my wife says grey and I say light tan. Normally I would just defer to her judgment but this time I want to get it right.

Bob

 

I noticed that too, but not until I got off the phone. Another reason I'll call my order in when I'm ready. Since I am looking at the Suade it didn't really matter. My Guess: Since they just merged, the web sites haven't caught up with one another. Who knows what the final prices will look like. Maybe they don't even know yet.

From what the lady said it sounded like this is pretty recent. She apologized for the 10 day to delivery time saying the office was a mess trying to merge the two businesses. (I thought in might be because they build to order since they offer so many different covers, for just about any vehicle made.)

This sounds like something that should be in the PriusChat Shop. As soon as I get this done, I'll drop them a note.

According to my phone call, they are the same. They all come from Topper.

Tomorrow is the big light vs. dark test drive.

Bob

 

Don't get light. You'll get glare off the dash.

I got black.

 

I get some glare off of the original dash even though it is black. They have it textured which helps. I think tomorrow's test will be my deciding factor.

Bob

 

Light vs. Dark Dash Cover Testing

Today I drove a little over 400 miles. I decided to do some testing on proposed dashboard covers. First, do they really keep the car cooler? Second, is a light cover better than a dark cover? My daughter was with me on the trip so she helped with the testing.

First was 20-30 minutes in full sun with the AC set to a comfortable level. We started out about 11:00 AM. The car had been in the shade before the trip.

During the first 20-30 minutes the dash was left uncovered. We both reached up an laid a hand on the dash. It was so hot we had to remove our hands in less than a minute.

Next we spread a white bath towel on the dash covering as much as we could without obstructing the speedometer. After another 20-30 minutes we slid our hands under the towel against the dash. While the dash was still warm, it was not at all uncomfortable. The towel was about 6" short on each end. As we moved our hands to the sides the dash got VERY warm near the uncovered edges. No surprise there.

Next I had a dark brown towel. Again after 20-30 minutes we slid our hands under the towel. The dash was noticeably warmer but still not uncomfortable. As before, the ends were very warm near the uncovered part of the dash, even hot.

Light vs. Dark

While the white towel provided the best heat protection it was very bright. I wouldn't call it glare but more like looking across a field on a sunny morning after a fresh snow. It was so bright that it was virtually impossible to read the speedometer. (Yes, I checked that it wasn't covered.) There was just too much contrast.

The dark brown towel provided adequate heat protection compared to the bare dash and was still comfortable looking at the speedometer and the highway ahead.

The whole point of this was to decide if I should order a light grey or charcoal colored dash cover. Based on my observations today I have decided to purchase the charcoal suede cover. It should provide the best balance between heat protection and visual comfort.

In all cases, the actual dash material was MUCH, MUCH cooler to the touch when covered with a towel, dark or light. Covering the dash I would expect to reduce the AC load quite a bit.

Bob

 

I knew I didn't want carpet. Just seems like it will be too "crude" or rough.

I looked up Velour on Velour - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. it says it is "...a knit fabric, allowing it to stretch." I got to thinking that in the hot sun it might start to sag after a while. I could be wrong, however.

That left the suede. Again Suede - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia seems to indicate that it has a soft finish. Real suede is made from leather but at this price I knew it wasn't real leather but a soft finish fabric. Just seemed more to my liking.

I think I stated earlier that the Sedona Suede just means that it has a bunch of holes in it. A stying thing that, from the pictures, didn't appeal to me.

Due to the merger of Dash-Topper and Dash Designs I'm going to call in the order, instead of trying to use one of the web sites, to be sure I get what I want. I also want to ask about washing. It is bound to collect dust.

Hope that helps,
Bo

 

Dash Topper was IMO a much better product then the other company Dash Designs based on my getting a Dash Designs cover for my MINI Cooper and sending it back for extremely poor fit. The dash topper on my 96 ImpalaSS fits great and is still doing it's job. Go with the Sedona Suede in charcoal and I'll bet you will be very happy! I'm going to see if a friend of mine who owns an automotive trim shop can make one for me .... and will report back.