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My center radio shroud is trashed and was just thinking about going with the race look. Also since a couple of my gauges seem to be dying anyway, figure this would offer a good place to mount new gauges. I've got an 83 with the sliding selector for ac (all mechanicals and such) and the analog clock (thats broken) and was wondering if anyone else on here has done this before with good results or something like it.
I wish I had that dash cluster, so much cleaner than my 83. I'm in the thought of replacing the whole plastic center with stainless or aluminum and then doing a shifter pattern cutout to replace the plastic surround with all the broken tabs. I think if done right it'll look really good, but I'm not much of a machinist and my last escapade with stainless sheet metal was... less than desirable with an emphasis on garbage.
I wish I had that dash cluster, so much cleaner than my 83. I'm in the thought of replacing the whole plastic center with stainless or aluminum and then doing a shifter pattern cutout to replace the plastic surround with all the broken tabs. I think if done right it'll look really good, but I'm not much of a machinist and my last escapade with stainless sheet metal was... less than desirable with an emphasis on garbage.
Yeah, it is a clean console for the year. I picked those gauges because they match the color well and I like the way they look installed. It wasn't exactly the easiest thing to make, and if I put my gauges back in that spot there will be a better setup than this one installed.
I had a couple of spare center consoles so decided to make this one. I took the section with the holes and cut it out and flipped it. I then took a single DIN radio insert to ensure the spacing was correct for the radio opening. By doing it this way I get factory edges. My new gauges now have a new home. I used JB Weld to bond everything and then sanded down. I'm thinking about removing the ashtry and putting in a panel to hold any extra switches and aux radio ports and a USB charging port.
From past experience, I would shy away from a metal one unless your very talented. Moding a plastic one is easy and if you make a mistake it can be fixed or redone. Making one out of metal is a onetime shot.
Last edited by KansasCityREPU; Dec 21, 2017 at 09:06 PM.
I made this when I was 17, and am in the process of redoing it. But I'm only changing the gauges and redoing it in aluminum. I basically layed metal over the factory stuff, then drilled through both for the gauges. If you do a seach on threads I've started you'll find more info.
Kevin made a nice metal center console for his SA(S1), which is similar to your S2. I will probably go that route with my SA eventually. He also has a lot of great information on his site.
