My dealer asked if I had seen the new dash. I said no, not yet. He said "it's 'different'" with that tone like he wasn't to sure about or that I might not like it. I said I knew it was suppose to be grainier which will help hide scuffs and scratches and at least it's not maroon this year. He said "that's true". Those that have seen the new dash material, tell me what you think and how does it look?
I saw it at the dealer, it's not as smooth as the one in my '05. I would call it a "wrinkle finish." It does look good, but as I have a dashcover it would be hidden in any case.
The "New" dash material/textures, in a word bites! It actually makes me not want to recommend the car. It is obviously an attempt to combat the way that a smooth finish, as in the 04-05 Prius, may be damaged or marred by contact. The new surface just stands out and appears out of place, plus it looks like it will become a haven for dust and "gunk" It is really meant I think because of the penchant for common folk to put their feet on the dash.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Devil's Advocate @ Jan 8 2007, 07:43 PM) [snapback]372787[/snapback]</div> ....thereby getting their legs blown off by an airbag! It amazes me people don't think of that. The dash does hold dust.
I have a 2005 Prius, so my dash is smooth. I clean off the dust once a week, or every other week. I guess if a person didn't want to clean it, they could put a dash cover over it. As for the feet on the dash, I'm sure that somebody has already sued an automaker over broken/removed legs from an airbag deployment. This world has become "sue-happy."
<_< My 2007 Touring has the new textured plastic overlay - my 2004 had the smooth finish. I admit to mixed feelings. The 2004-2006 smooth surface was prone to scratches and marred scuffs and some owners had reported paint on the panels beneath the windows being damaged or removed from lotions - like suntan lotions - on their arms. For appearance, I preferred the old, smooth finish, but overall the textured overlay appears to be more durable. Sure hope it's well adhered and doesn't tend to peel off after a few years, you know, after the 3/36 warranty. As for Extended Warranties, it would likely be considered "trim" and therefore not covered. Bottom line: I consider it an improvement. Seems like Prius owners have been in the forefront of "Prius Beta Testers" :lol:
I recently read in a newspaper that the newer textured/foamy-feeling dashboards are filled with plasticizers that release particles in high heat. This is why your windows fog up with a strange, slippery substance every once in a while that you have to wipe off. The article also said that over time the material will have lost enough of the plasticizers that it'll grow brittle and eventually crack, exposing the foam inside. So that, plus the fact that it scratches so darn easily leaves me with a negative outlook toward the future (just about the dash material -- I love the car overall.) Ah well, at least it looks nice. Fake Edit: Found something on plasticizers in dashboards. Not the article that I had read, but informative nontheless. http://www.pslc.ws/mactest/work/dash.htm
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mitchbf @ Dec 16 2005, 01:17 PM) [snapback]174432[/snapback]</div> It was made by Dashtopper, but I bought it at the agency as it was cheaper than getting it from Dashtopper itself. I know that if you buy from them directly, you can have them do custom work, like extend the material over the MFD to act as a sun screen.
saw the '07 dash at an autoshow. think it's near hideous and cheap-looking. looks like a plastic rendition of treebark. plus my neurotic tendencies cause me to get the wiggins with some patterns, and the new dash gave me some of that.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Charles Suitt @ Jan 9 2007, 07:34 AM) [snapback]373009[/snapback]</div> For the latter part of your statement, I believe you mean 2004-2005 smooth surface. The 06 models were the first to get the new textured plastic.
