Cleaning or painting a vinyl dashboard 2005 Journey 36G

[HiBanky]

The years have taken it's toll on my 20-year-old Journey 36G, and the dash has gone from a barely acceptable beige to a dingy yellow. Has anyone successfully cleaned or painted a vinyl dashboard and has good advice on how to get a new-like and durable finish. If I determine painting is the answer, what product will give me a beautiful and lasting result. If it is possible to change the color, say from beige to gray, how could I go about getting the leather/vinyl seats to match? Seat covers? Stain?
I would like to hear from some people with first hand experience.

 

[DanNavy]

I would like to do the same but just on the passenger side air bag panel. Maybe a white board finish so my wife can make notes as we travel.

 

[Bnystrom]

There are several companies that sell paints specifically for leather and vinyl. You should be able to find them online.

 

[MadMaxWinny]

I had the same issue (previous owners spent winters in FL and apparently did nothing to protect the dash). I had very good luck with the following:

- It's pretty easy to find quality vinyl paint at most car parts chains. You'll need 3-4 cans.
- Wipe the dash down with a mild solvent (rubbing alcohol, isopropyl, etc). This removes anything organic and is the most important step to achieve good paint adhesion.
- Now the hardest part. Remove what you can (vent covers, etc) and mask with blue 3M tape. You'll need to use clear drop cloth to create a "tent" large enough to slip into (one for the windshield, two for the sides, one above, and two several feet behind).
- Once you are confident that your "tent" is completely enclosed, step in and start spraying. I did three coats, and I'm very happy with the outcome.

Since I found a color that was nearly identical to the original finish, I didn't make a change, but that should not be an issue, should you choose to.

 

[HiBanky]

- It's pretty easy to find quality vinyl paint at most car parts chains. You'll need 3-4 cans.
- Wipe the dash down with a mild solvent (rubbing alcohol, isopropyl, etc). This removes anything organic and is the most important step to achieve good paint adhesion.
- Now the hardest part. Remove what you can (vent covers, etc) and mask with blue 3M tape. You'll need to use clear drop cloth to create a "tent" large enough to slip into (one for the windshield, two for the sides, one above, and two several feet behind).
- Once you are confident that your "tent" is completely enclosed, step in and start spraying. I did three coats, and I'm very happy with the outcome.

Since I found a color that was nearly identical to the original finish, I didn't make a change, but that should not be an issue, should you choose to.

Great Input. Just two questions, How long ago did you pain and is it holding up well?

 

[MadMaxWinny]

Great Input. Just two questions, How long ago did you pain and is it holding up well?

I painted the dash five years ago. It's getting to the point where I'm considering either painting again (unlikely) or looking into a way to cover it. The main reason for my looking into another solution is the condition of the dash itself. While the paint job looked great for four years, I think that the sun damage to the plastic itself might be causing the age I see now.

Had the plastic been in better shape, I believe that the paint job would have outlived me.

 

[tim myers]

Shade Pro makes a cover for your Journey, well at least they do for my 2007. My issue is not the color but that the previous owner must have had either cats or small dogs that walked around on the dash. The surface is all dimpled. From the picture on this link, I would not add the cover to the hard plastic portion of the dash as I have electronics mounted there, GPS, and RVI Brake Indicator. RV Motorhome Dash Covers

 

[Itasca2005-WO]

We have a 2005 Itasca Suncruiser. We have done renovations and one of them was the dash. I spray painted it 4 years ago and it has not shown any wear or fading. The Dash top and the vinyl were cleaned thoroughly and then spray painted. I used Krylon Brand Spray Paint for "Vinyl and Plastic". Color used was very close to the original. Very happy with how it has stood up. I also sprayed the ceiling light frames, the air conditioning ceiling frames and the floor heat vents. All matching up. Looks Great.

 

[FIRE UP]

Well,
Before I'd go throwing "paint" at that dash, I'd look into either what's been suggested, a cover of some sort or, I'd maybe even look into carefully measuring, then carefully cutting, then very carefully GLUING a new naugahide top layer on it in a color of your choice. If done that way, there's no worries about how long a "paint" will last or will it chip or peel off or turn opaque or change colors or whatever.

While this approach may be a bit more involved and time consuming vs paint, I think you'd love the results considerably more than what you'd find with painting. Our coach, an '04 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the CAT C-7 330HP is also about 22 years old and has at present, 123,700 miles on it and for about 98% of its life, the coach has been stored indoors plus, there's been a cover on that dash for the total time we've owned it which hovers around 14 years or so. I'd have to go lift that cover off to see what it looks like under there.

If I see that our dash is in need of a face lift, I'm pretty sure I'd either take a look into removing as much if not all the original vinyl to start with a clean slate or, if I determined that original vinyl simply can't be removed for one reason or another, I'd simply clean the bejesus out of it, SEVERAL TIMES and then, I'd carefully measure, carefully cut and VERY carefully glue on some new vinyl. Personally I don't think it would be all that hard of a job.

As usual, I'd watch a few thousand youtubes to find my best source for attempting this kind of project.
Scott

 

[HiBanky]

Thanks for all the good advice but I'm afraid I didn't make myself clear when I said "vinyl dashboard". I mean all of the dash parts including the vertical pieces along the windshield, the pieces on either side of the seats, the lower part of the dash. All of it. So a cover or a new sheet of top vinyl won't accomplish the goal. Others have had good success with paint so this will probably my approach.

 

[FIRE UP]

Roger that Sir,
Scott