Well, it was a damn good day at the wreckers.
I've been looking for a cool dash in various cars at the wreckers for some time now, searching for one that would suit the car perfectly without much luck. I've looked at everything from newer Impalas to Hyundai's (Yikes!). Nothing's really jumped out at me and said "Yes! This is the one!" As far as Oldsmobile dashes are concerned, there's really not much to choose from. They never made a really "sporty" looking dash as far as I can tell.
.
Truth be told, the dash that I really wanted to put in the car, I had in my first car, a '76 Cutlass. I loved that dash. It angled the controls towards the driver kinda like a cockpit, and had the speedometer and tach tunnelled in either side of the column giving it a bit of a musclecar feel.
That particular style of dash came in Cutlasses from '73-77.
Now, I don't know what the selection of 40 year old cars is like around you guys, but around here, finding one is like looking for hen's teeth. I'd been watching for one for about 7 or 8 years now, but had long ago given up hope and resigned to looking for other options.
I had spotted a lower splash panel for my Lincoln LS that I'd been searching for at a yard yesterday, so I got up bright and early today and grabbed it.
On my way home, I decided on a whim to hit another local yard to see if they had any G's in stock yet. Found 2, but neither had anything I needed. I was almost ready to leave empty handed, when, in the second last row from the end, I found a '77 Cutlass!
Whoo Hoo!
No brainer, I pulled the dash as fast as I could!
It's pretty rough to be honest, but after all, it IS almost 40 years old. It's got cracks and some damage, and it's a hideous orangey-red color, but it was complete with everything. To be honest, I'm really not too concerned with the condition or the color, I just need it as a starting point.
Here it is after a thorough cleaning and I had stripped out the HVAC and other stuff I wouldn't need:
Don't mind the level in the pic, it was needed to prop the dash up for pics. Lol
I can picture a cool aftermarket tach and speedo in the holes, and a flush mounted shift light between them...
... the inner bezels blacked out and some custom aluminum panels to house more gauges and air ride controller in the sides...
...as well as house the switches for fans, cutouts, etc, with everything accented in carbon fiber.
Of course, all the cracks and damages will need to be repaired, and it'll go black to match the rest of the interior.
Some ******** before me smashed the glove box door undoubtedly searching for lost treasure, but I was able to piece it together enough to get it to stay closed at least. I've seen the GB doors on flea bay, so I'm not too concerned there either.
The bad areas:
Glove box door fits like s**t, that'll have to be made better...
It's going to take some work to fix it all up and fit in the car (it's about 3" too wide), but I have a couple'a cool ideas rattling around in my brain I'm gonna try.
You guys might think I'm kinda wacked for getting excited over this turd of a dash, but I can picture it all fixed up and dyed, and it should look right at home in the car. Also, this way I get to keep the car all Olds with an Olds dash. No Hyundai junk here!
Anyways, I look forward to your comments and feedback, let me know if you can see my vision for this in the car, or if you think I've lost it completely!
Cheers,
Donovan
