Not my luck ordering stuff lately!

[bigblock73]

OK, I won a nice new GM reproduction 73-78 dash pad on E-bay, and it arived at my house today.

This thing had NO CLIPS on it for securing it to the windshield side of the dash, and everything from the left of the antenna provision was warped and bent.

Here are a few pics of this thing, hopefully the seller will refund my money on this piece of crap, they should, they are a reputable seller and business.

[87Silvy]

Ouch, hope you get your money back for it.

[76sierraclassic]

Good luck getting your money back. I feel your pain. I have a blue one just like it in my garage that I need to get rid of. I bet yours is a "Dashes Direct" from JC Whitney. That's what I originally bought...WHAT A MISTAKE!!!!! They talk them up with phrases like "full metal backing" and "will never crack or fade" but what they don't tell you is that the metal backing is basically aluminum foil and they won't crack or fade because you'll never leave it in your truck long enough for that to happen (assuming you put it in there at all, like I did). I thought maybe the "warping" would go away after leaving it in the truck for a few weeks, but I was wrong. Now I have a $200 hunk of "rubber" in my garage in the way.

Oh well, I got lucky and found a NOS GM Original still in the box on eBay a few weeks later and paid less for it than I did the one from JC Whitney. Maybe you'll luck across one too!

Mike

[bigblock73]

Originally Posted by 76sierraclassic

I bet yours is a "Dashes Direct" from JC Whitney. That's what I originally bought...WHAT A MISTAKE!!!!! They talk them up with phrases like "full metal backing" and "will never crack or fade" but what they don't tell you is that the metal backing is basically aluminum foil and they won't crack or fade because you'll never leave it in your truck long enough for that to happen (assuming you put it in there at all, like I did). I thought maybe the "warping" would go away after leaving it in the truck for a few weeks, but I was wrong. Now I have a $200 hunk of "rubber" in my garage in the way.

Yup, Dashes Direct!

[swervin ervin]

Dang Jeff. You're sure not having much luck with ebay lately. Think maybe it's time to find somewhere else to shop?

[bigblock73]

Originally Posted by swervin ervin

Dang Jeff. You're sure not having much luck with ebay lately. Think maybe it's time to find somewhere else to shop?

I don't think so...the tilt column worked out in the end, and this is really only the second bad transaction I have had out of 150 or so. The place I bought this pad from had 4745 positive feedbacks and a 99.6% rating...I figured I was safe.

You roll the dice with E-bay, but so far I have done extremely well. I am sure this place will refund me the money...I asked up front before I won the auction and they said they would if I was not satisfied.

Now I need to find another dash pad.

[Captkaos]

I was going to add Dashes Direct to 73-87chevytrucks.com, but decided against it when I saw one of they pieces.

[76sierraclassic]

Originally Posted by Captkaos

I was going to add Dashes Direct to 73-87chevytrucks.com, but decided against it when I saw one of they pieces.

It's just as well...I just tried to go their website, and all of the links for searching for parts are dead (404 errors).

Mike

[bigblock73]

Originally Posted by Captkaos

I was going to add Dashes Direct to 73-87chevytrucks.com, but decided against it when I saw one of they pieces.

Suuuure, now you tell me that Chris.

I wish I knew it was a "Dashes Direct" before I bought it.

[N2TRUX]

I'm glad I read this. I was just looking at Dashes Direct for a project too...

[Jonboy]

nnnnnnnooooooooooooo..................

[N2TRUX]

Hmmm? I have no idea how my 76 Blazer post ended up on this thread.... I moved it out though....

[Captkaos]

Originally Posted by bigblock73

Suuuure, now you tell me that Chris.

I wish I knew it was a "Dashes Direct" before I bought it.

Hey, you didn't ask, you KNOW I would have told you.

[79BIG10]

Thanks for the heads up guys. That's one thing I'll need later on and need a good supplier. Looks like I'll keep looking.

[bigblock73]

Well, here is an update on this dash pad deal...

first off, if shopping on E-bay or in the Chicago area, DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH "THEPARTSPLACEINC"!! These are the rudest people I have ever dealt with, I will explain.

Prior to me even bidding on this pad, I e-mailed them and asked if there was a problem and the item was damaged when it arrived to my house, would I be able to get a refund. I received an e-mail back the same day and they said yes, just have UPS come and get it and we will take care of it. Well, as you have already read, this dash pad is NOT a GM pad, not even close! The metal used is less sturdy, and the dash pad itself feels like a big chunk of flexible rubber...it literally bends...unlike the sturdy GM ones. Not only that, but it did not come in a GM box, but rather one of their own wrapped in plastic, paper, and leftover bubble wrap. On top of that, nowhere in the auction does is say it is produced by Dashed Direct.

Back to my conversation with them...

I proceeded to tell them this and that this pad was really not what they advertised in my opinion. When I asked how I would go about getting my money back, the guy jumped down my throat and told me they do not offer refunds and I am stuck with it. I then said I have an E-mail stating I was told I could return it...he then called me a "liar"!! After a few minutes of going back and forth, I realized I was going to get nowhere and hung up on the guy. I came home, and checked my E-mail, and it turns out I deleted that one particular E-mail...so I basically have no proof...but I know I heard back from them on this!

So now that I am stuck with this, and I don't feel like trying to re sell it to another person (I am too honest I guess), I decided to mess with it a little...and was slightly surprised.

I removed the clips from my old dashpad and installed them on this new one, I then pushed and pulled a little on the pad to get it semi straight, which I was successful at. I then installed it in Yeller, and it actually looks and fits pretty well. After looking at it for a while, I can see this pad may actually be a tad better than the original GM pads (due to its flexibility and thickness)...but just by looking at it and feeling it you would never believe it.

Bottome line I guess, DON'T DO BUSINESS WITH THEPARTSPLACEINC, and these Dashes Direct pads aren't too bad...not GM quality, but not GM price either. I guess just because it isn't identical to a GM pad, doesn't mean it won't look as good or last as long.

BTW, if you want to see the pad I purchased, here is a link for the same dashpad I purchased.

End of rant.

[swervin ervin]

By all means, leave them a negative feedback. Man, wouldn't you just love to be standing toe to toe with a jerk like that?

With the junk they seem to sell, it makes you wonder how they have such a good rating. When I buy something off ebay, I check all the negative feedbacks. This to me tells the true story. If you'll read just the 5 they got in the last month, every one of them sounds like what you just went through. The biggest give away to me is everyone of them said "no refund".

I hate it for you. But if you think it's not as bad looking as it first sounded, maybe all is not lost. It still doesn't make up for the deal though.

[Captkaos]

Hmmmm, how about sending me some pics. I might take a look at them again...

[bigblock73]

Chris, I will get you some pics tomorrow...when it is light out.

Mike, I thought about leaving a negative for them, but then more than likely I will get one back too. I already have two, both were retalitory negatives after I left them a negative for not completing the transaction.

I might contact the ones who left negatives, maybe all of us can report them to Ebay and get some payback for their crappy service.

[mister honey]

Hey Jeff!

I purchased a Dashes Direct pad from The Parts Place Inc for my '76. It came in a GM Restoration Parts box, well packed, no damage. I am satisfied with the fit & appearance.

I watched their ebay sales for a while, and as I recall, their dashpads were going in the $225~$250 range. I e-mailed The parts Place Inc and inquired about buying a dashpad directly. A lady responded that it was OK. I called, and probably connected with your guy. He told me they did not handle truck dashpads. Another e-mail, another confirmation on a direct sale. I call, same guy, new story! They only sell the truck dashpads through ebay. Another e-mail; the lady apologizes and says to ask for "Dave." Phone call number three, I talk to Dave, who has no idea what's going on. I tell him about all the calls & e-mails. "Who are you e-mailing?" "Some lady!" "Hold on a second!"

Dave comes back, says he met "the lady" in the hallway as she was coming to tell him to expect my call. He apologizes for all the confusion and asks what the opening bid has been on ebay. I tell him $199, he writes it up, and the dashpad arrives a few days later.

Persistence pays off, I guess!

Mike

[bigblock73]

Chris, here are the pics of the dashpad installed. It does fit pretty well, but it took a little bit of work. If you look at the last picture, you can see two tiny bumps. Well, these areas are raised because the clips I had to transfer from my OEM pad are actually pushing up/raising the rubber like material underneath. I am going to remove the pad and all the clips, I will then remove a little bit of the rubber material where the lip of the clip sits, and this should eliminate the little bumps...make sense?

[Captkaos]

Yep, I understand. So, does the pad not come with clips? Should I reconsider adding them as a vendor? If it doesn't come with clips, that would stink if you didn't have a dash.

[76sierraclassic]

The one I received from JC Whitney didn't have any clips with it. I had to re-use my old ones, and I had the same problems with the "bumps". Actually I couldn't even get my clips in because the rubber was in the way. I used an xacto knife and cut some of the rubber away to allow the clips to be installed. Then I had to do quite a bit of "trimming" to get the pad into the truck. I had to cut out for the studs that the dash bezel screws go into around the instrument cluster and had to trim the end of the pad on the passenger side to get it to go by the front pillar. All of the folks I showed it to thought it looked ok, but I wasn't satisfied.

Another thing to keep in mind if you are planning on ordering one of these is that they do NOT recommend dying or painting them. They are not vinyl...they are urethane (rubber). Mine was not exactly the shade of blue that I wanted, so I called Dashes Direct and they recommended that I not even try to dye or paint it.

The only other thing I noticed was that the texturing of the surface was not quite as deep as it is on an original vinyl dash pad. This, of course, would probably never be noticed unless you had it beside an original one.

I know this is not the parts board, but if anyone wants to try one of these out in blue, I've got one I'll ship you for $100 plus the ride. It was in my truck for about a month. Whitney's has it listed for $239, and then of course we all know you can get the 15% off about any time which puts it right at $200 plus shipping.

As far as listing them as a vendor, the dashes are probably ok for a lot of people, and they do sell other interior parts as well.

Also, I just looked on their web site (which still has 404 problems right now) and noticed that they are planning on carrying OEM vinyl style dash pads for 81-87 models. It doesn't say when, but it does have them listed as "New Products Coming Soon".

Mike

[bigblock73]

Chris, I would not carry them as a vendor. There is waay too much to do to these to get them to fit and look right like Mike already stated. I am going to keep this pad for now, and keep it black...it will match the column and bezel. Once i get the truck running and driving, I can always look for a GM pad (one I can dye) and replace this one.

[Captkaos]

Thanks for the feedback Jeff. I appreciate it.