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HybridZ

Custom Fiberglass Dash


zohanisback

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Oh Fontana?  Yeah I go there all the time for estate sales, car parts (you guys have tons of yards over there), and industrial supplies.  Pretty good place.  :D

 

Ahh yes, the 91.  I swear I'll never do it again if I can avoid it.

 

And yeah, we should check out each other's projects.  Do you have a build thread?  One of my fellow classmates is the one who got me into Z cars and is redoing a 240z and 260z in our spare medical school time (ha!).  Anyway, you're always more than welcome to check it out.  :D

 

AND NOW FOR UPDATES:

 

I did the foam yesterday afternoon.  Today was too cold for the two part urethane, so I didn't bother trying to foam anymore.  Here are the pics with the foam on part of the passenger side after two pours:

 

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And....a video for you viewing pleasure...

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi all!  Here are some updates on the dash. I apologize for the delay.  I went ahead and have been doing work on the dash without doing updates.  Medical school just started again today, so I am stretched for time like crazy now.  With my BMW project done and my buddy back from break, we'll try to work hard on it over the weekends.  Just not going to happen that much during the week as I need to study.  Here's where we are now:

 

  • I finished foaming the entire thing
  • I shaved and sanded the foam to shape
  • Jon (fellow student) and I started applying bondo and finishing the last shapes
  • We poured a little extra foam over the instrument hood because it was just gonna be too much bondo.  :P

And the pictures and videos from what you saw last until tonight:

 

Here is how I shaped the instrument shroud/hood.  It works pretty well, but the foam will leak out, so you have to seal it well with electrical tape and hold it in place if it starts to push out.

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Starting to pour the center part of the dash.  This was actually the most fun in my opinion because it transformed the dash so much...

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Edited by zohanisback
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Plastic piece leftover after the pour.  The cardboard is what I use to keep the foam from expanding really think, and instead expand vertically.  The foam actually exerts quite a lot of pressure, and when pouring this stuff in pontoons, they have to cut relief holes to keep it from damaging the pontoons.  :o

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A little behind the scenes sneak peek at what the metal work looks like.  So glad that is done!  :)

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A heating technique to preheat the metal, then keep the foam warm for maximum expansion and curing speed.  It's amazing the difference heat makes.  I wasted so much of this stuff by not knowing how to pour it correctly the first few pours.  By the time I got to this part, I was spot on pretty much every time.

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Edited by zohanisback
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Left side of instrument cluster foamed in.  End caps of the dash all foamed.

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First pass sanding.  Final shape on the passenger side pretty much all set. I'm very pleased with the way this turned out.  Driver side still needs tons of work.  I like the curves from the center dash to the bottom passenger side and will attempt to mirror (though at a higher level) on the driver side.

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Side views

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Closeup of the center.  Needs some body filler.  lol

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Edited by zohanisback
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Here's the good stuff!  :D Body filler going on last night and tonight (technically also last night since its now past midnight. . .)  lol.

 

Second pass sanding the end caps.  Still a little tight in the car.  Might go down another few mm on each side.  More foam added to the top of the hood to shape it better. 

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That's all guys!  More updates by this weekend.  I'll go back and add some vids to these posts, too.  :D

Edited by zohanisback
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Wow, really good effort and attempt to do something different but seriously, youve ruined one of the prettiest interiors and dashes and created that absolute monster. why?

 

Not only would it be dangerous in the event of an accident, but purely on aesthetics its a big fail from me. But i hope you prove me wrong. I just dont think you can enhance perfection....

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Well I suppose it depends purely on your own personal taste. Don't get me wrong I do really value these cars and their interior. They really are very beautiful. The problem is I am making a HybridZ, including body kit, fender flares, roll cage, racing seats, etc. The epitome I always give is TwistedSixx on TunerZine.

 

http://www.tunerzine.com/view-article/twisted-sixx

 

I love original z cars, but I'm not an absolute purist, which is why I am on HybridZ. I like one of a kind custom cars, too. With a car like TwistedSixx, why would you want to keep a 70s dash in it? Not me. But again, this is simply a difference of opinions and I respect, and to a certain degree, understand your love for the original interiors. For my car, I doubt the interior will look anything like a z car when finished.

 

The only thing I don't understand is why you say it will be more dangerous. Granted, the original dash is padded, but it is on a metal frame. My dash will also be somewhat padded, but on fiberglass or carbon fiber. In the end, both are unpadded and have no airbags. Furthermore, with a 6 point roll cage, harnesses, and racing steering wheel, I am not sure how safety is relevant, especially when we're talking about a car that is essentially a death trap to begin with. Lol.

 

For what it's worth, I would definitely consider substituting another material over airbag areas and work in an airbag system. But it obviously would not be endorsed by any safety regulatory entity. :P

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  • 2 weeks later...

So sorry for the slow updates guys! Medical school is back in full swing, and we're working our butts off again. I didn't get to the dash last weekend, but I WILL be doing more to it tomorrow for SURE! May not be huge steps, but we'll see what I can crank out. I've been building a rotisserie for the datsun, so of course that takes time, too. The main problem we're having is the fact that the dash is technically below the window trim in the center. We wanted a v shaped look to it both from the top and front, which is what we did, but unfortunately now we have to built a small extension running across the dash. It will be a "bar" basically that covers the window seal and finishes off the look of the car. Not to fear, many cars have these, including the RX8 I'm modeling it after. I just didn't think it would be necessary. But...I was wrong. Here is a picture of what one of these bars might look like:

 

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And now for the picture "updates." I just basically fit it in the car and finished molding the gauge cluster "shroud."  More bondo and the bar work tomorrow.

 

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 months later...

Yes, sorry for the delay guys. School took top priority up until about two weeks ago, so I had to lay this project aside for a bit. Kinda the story of my life, lol. Plan is to have the plug done this weekend and reverse mold within a few weeks. From there I need to make the gauge pod, then it's done. Here are a few more picture updates and a video update!

 

 

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The main thing I did in the last 4-5 days was added more bondo and started sanding like crazy on it. It's starting to come together pretty good now, actually. Just filling on where I cut the foam too much (ugg) and sanding down where I had too much. Then sanding the bondo coats and getting it as perfect as possible.

 

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Edited by zohanisback
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The 240sx dashes look pretty good.  I almost went with one before deciding to design my own.  The ultimate deal breaker for me was:

 

  • Limited room for an 8" touch screen
  • Poor vent placement
  • Oval, instead of the slicker round bezel vents
  • Not enough 3-d styling, particularly when it came to the center dash to passenger dash transition (I love a good line and curve)
  • Too big--I really wanted to open up the s30 interior quite a bit. It's already pretty cramped, and ultimately I want to make a clean performance vehicle with a touch of luxurious flair
  • Outdated climate control bar
  • Outdated (think ford escort) gauges

Things I like about the 240sx dash are:

  • Fairly easy adaption to s30
  • Great surface area
  • Plenty of switch room
  • Lots of gauge cluster room
  • Lots of behind-the-dash room (bigger climate control components)

 

I'm really struggling right now between a carbon fiber wrap or a synthetic leather on my dash.  I was thinking maybe a nice carbon fiber over the center dash and gauge cluster area, with a sweet synthetic leather wrap over the rest.  Just one idea.  But agreed, a purely carbon fiber dash can loose a lot of weight.  The dash we are currently building discards the existing metal frame. A carbon fiber dash could cut out a significant weight from the stock dash. Probably at least 60% by very conservative estimates.

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Alright guys, I got the pics from last night pulled off and another video put up. The entire dash has bondo on it. The corners and the transition line to the passenger side dash are not complete.  As I mentioned, I decided against the symmetry on either side of the center dash when it comes to the lines, in favor of asmmetry which I felt ties the center dash and gauge cluster together.  Making a "V" out of the center dash sides would have been cool, but in the end I think this will also give more styling options.

 

Here's what I had in mind for the center:

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Here is what it ultimately ended up as:

 

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Here are the rest of the pictures:

 

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Pretty good so far here.  The gauge shroud is the bane of my existence, but Jon did a good job laying the bondo.  One more layer and a good sand and it should be pretty close. *fingers crossed*

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Your input needed guys:

 

Got the final layup for the fabric and area around the trim. I had to use fabric to get the angle and fiberglass close enough to hide the window rubber seal. What do you guys think before I lay the resin down on the fabric and plug? No going back pretty soon!  Thanks!  :)

 

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More updates guys!

 

I did three lay-ups with the fiberglass on the fabric to give three layers, then added more here and there to fill in where the fabric sagged from the weight of the resin. After that, I started applying resin over the entire dash in preparation for making a glass smooth surface for pulling the mold. So far so good, and by this weekend I hope to have a mold pulled from the original dash. By next weekend we might have a pulled dash, and hopefully a week later I can start upholstering it as a prototype. Will keep you guys updated! grin.gif

 

Fixing a couple spots:

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Fabric with resin plus one layer fiberglass:

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Two layers fiberglass:

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Dash removed in prep for final resin coat

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3 layers of fiberglass plus fill where there were low spots. Dash will be cut back on top about 2 inches. It will provide full concealment of window glass lower seal.

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Two thick coats of resin over the entire dash in prep for popping a mold off the plug.

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