quote:Originally posted by Bosswrench:
Depending on what area is giving problems and it's an early dash, know that Ford/DeTomaso addressed this issue while the Pantera was still in production and released a series of black trim pieces that penetrated the shrinking vinyl with tiny nuts behind the dash to hold the upholstery. It's described in TSB Bulletin 5, Article 31. I have recently seen such a complete NOS kit at a vendor's shop (rare!), or you could probably rig a duplicate at home, if you are handy with tools.
Hum? Not an argument on my part, just an observation...my car, 4460, had the early dash and had the as described trim retainer strips already installed.
I always just presumed that it was factory installed, but since I am not the original owner, I have no way of knowing that.
The upholstery is still loose in the concave area above the glove box.
I'm not a "Flex Seal" rep but you might want to consider an "over the top" adhesive like this.
The caution that I would have is that the material is so thin, that any kind of adhesive used is likely to show through in a transparency situation.
Since "you" are trying to correct a cosmetic situation to begin with, the "correction" could be worse then the symptom.
My solution was more drastic. I was never a fan of the early dash configuration so I replaced it and went to the single pod dash which simply put, retains upholstery much better.
The one I am using literally is a fiberglass reproduction of the "European late dash" by Precision Proformance. It is a thick fiberglass version, not the original thin molded plastic '74 US version.
The '74 US version is notorious for cracking because of the thinness of the plastic it is made from. The fiberglass is not known for that.
I am told that after the '74 US model year, the dash panels were fiberglass.
My solution is not a suggestion to anyone but you may be trying to fix an un-resolvable situation.
You do want to fix this the first time that you remove the dash. It is not a simple, Saturday afternoon project. It is a major pain in the butt, among other body parts,to remove and reinstall the dash.