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CENTER CONSOLE REPAIR
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Now as most of you 3rd gen firebird people know the center consoles have a common problem. Over time, the padded rubber wrap starts to pull away from its plastic backbone.
Why? Well best I can tell its heat that causes the 2 materials to expand and contact at different rates. The adhesive used to help hold things in place breaks down over time. Then the outer material begins to pull away from the bottom of the unit...
The top of the unit actually only has the small plastic fingers which hold the top of the wrap in place. This top part sits up to frame the plastic panel that mounts atop the center console. All it takes is someone leaning the wrong way on the delicate fingers and they snap. They allow the wrap to pull away from the plastic backbone.
The common fix for this is to take the unit out of the car and assess the damage. You then clean things up as best you can. Then get some epoxy. I chose a 2 part epoxy, like JB weld. This style seems to have better hold then the regular air hardening style glues. See the 2 materials are inactive until they are mixed. Once mixed you have X amount of time to apply them before they begin to harden. They don't need air or heat to harden fully. I got a clear style for this job.
Once I had mixed up a decent amount I Applied it b/w the rubber wrapper and the plastic backbone. Then the key is to apply pressure to the 2 pieces to hold them together till the epoxy dries. Now the best way to do this is with C Clamps. Now you can't just go attaching them, or you will leave horrible dimples in the wrapper. It�s best to get a thin piece of wood. Place it on the outside edge that will be visible. Place it across the glued area and then attach the clamps in an even placement.
This will ensure a uniform grip across the entire gluing surface and give you a clean ripple and dimple free finished repair.
Here you can see the bottom inside edge where the clamps are holding the inner lip.
Once dried the top repaired area will look similar to this.
In my case, I also had the arm rest pulling away from its back bone. I had to glue it and place wood on both surfaces the clamps would press down on since both would be visible.
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DIRECTORY FOR RAIF'S INTERIOR SITE
01 Site Overview
02 Power Windows and Door locks
03 Miscellaneous Trim Pieces
04 Smoked Plexiglas Covers, Flush Mounted KITT Light Box
05 Carbon Fiber
06 Carpet Swap
07 Overhead Console
08 Red & Black Seats
09 Seat Cover installation
10 Red & Black Door Panels
11 Red & Black Rear Cargo Panels
12 Kick Panels &Lower Dash Panels
13 Car Motor Sports Mats and T-Top bag
14 Neon
15 Center Console Repair <<<
16 Painted Center Console
17 Dash Repaint
18 Repainted Gauge Cluster
19 Autometer Pillar Pod
20 Seatbelts
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