Custom Dash Coating

[NSX2NV]

Has anyone ever used Exotic wood dash to have the whole centre trim piece done. I've recently had my system done and I'm not happy with the carbon fibre look sticker the stereo shop applied. So I thought I might give these guys a try.

http://www.exoticwooddash.com/coating.htm

 

[Chris W]

I just called them and the guy quoted me 95 cents per square inch to coat the surface. I am going to try to visit them sometime in the next week so they can give me an estimate for my center dash console piece. I'm interested in the black/gray carbon fiber. I have severe blistering on my dash piece due to the Arizona heat.

He said the carbon fiber is much nicer than the crappy imitation stuff you normally see. I'm pretty picky when it comes to stuff like this so I will give you my honest opinion of this product when I actually see it in person.

 

[NSX2NV]

Thanks Chris,

I sent an email with some pics of the items I want done to exotic wood dash but haven't received any answer yet. When you do go if you get a chance please look at the brushed aluminum coated samples as well. I'm after the black/grey Carbon fibre coating as well but I have the centre console ans the nav system display pod to do as well. Another thing you may want to check is how close they can match the adhesive carbon fibre window trim pieces to the centre coated piece. It will save you having to remove the door panels and send those pieces in as well.

Thanks look forward to your thoughts about the product.

Johnny

 

[Chris W]

I went to Exotic Wood Dash today to check out their coating process. There definitely is a difference between real carbon fiber and their synthetic coating but it looks nicer than the carbon look peel and stick tape with all the little black and silver squares that you may have seen. The guy brought out an entire dash piece from a Chevy Blazer that looked really nice indoors but as you can see from the pic of the sample their are a lot of tiny pieces of glitter in the paint that reflect when the sun hits them just right that makes it look like a rainbow. Another thing you will notice is how the synthetic pattern creates a diagonal line in the sample. You don't have this effect in real carbon fiber. Also as you move your head to look at it from different angles the pattern does not move or change like the real stuff. He quoted me $342 to do the entire center console piece, ashtray, the trim around the clock assembly and also for both door pieces. The turn around time is 6-10 working days. There processing plant is located in New York. They are just a distributor for the product. For those interested they will be at this year's SEMA show with all their samples. I'm not convinced that this is the best solution for ME. I really want the real carbon fiber console without the stick on decal look. There are a couple of sources that are working on this as we speak.

As for the brushed aluminum coating the guy showed me his own car that had this finish and it looked more gray than it did brushed aluminum. It was in the shade so I probably didn't get the full effect. If you look at the sample again you will notice darker gray lines on the edges. These lines run completely through the sample. The photo didn't come out quite right. You have to be at the right angle to see the darker lines. They look more like dark painted lines than they look like brushed aluminum etchings. www.imagestation.com/mypictures/inbox/view.html?id=4247254020&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.imagestation.com%2Fpicture%2Fsraid35%2Fp8567d23be0cdaafdd5926256d19e59ca%2Ffd27f404.jpg&caption=s ample

These are my honest opinions and you can be the judge yourself. Good luck with whatever you decide to go with. Hope this helps.



[This message has been edited by Chris W (edited 17 October 2002).]