Here are 2 simple interior mods that will add a subtle quality enhancing appearance to the interior of your C5 vette.

You'll need 3 things from the nearest crafts store.... (I was there for manly man reasons which makes it OK )

1. One small sheet of black felt (approximately same size as 8.5" X 11" sheet of paper).
2. One bottle of Fabric Tac or similar rubber cement.
3. One small sheet of 3/8" thick foam.

#1 FIX, That unsightly gap between the stereo bezel and the dash, as seen from the passenger seat. This gap is exaggerated because you can see the silver metal stereo bracket through the gap and it looks like crap. This is simple to fix though. Remove the stereo bezel, glue a strip of black felt over the metal bracket, then reinstall the bezel and Bam! No more glaring silver gap!! (my camera's flash was way too bright so trust me it looks better in person than in the photos below )







#2 FIX, The huge gaping hole between the kick panel and the bottom of the dash at the front of the door opening. It always bugged me how I could see bare metal and some wires inside that hole so I cut a 2.5" X 2.5" square out of black felt and a corresponding 3/8" thick chunk of foam. I glued them together, and stuffed it into the hole and pull it into position so the felt is facing out and smoothly covers the gap, see pics below.

Before:




After:

 

Good work !

 

Good job!

 

Nice cheap mods, I absolutely hate the space between the bezel and the dash, so 'cheap' looking

 

We need to make a list of all the Ideas our members come up with,hell lets wright a book.

 

Nice fix!

 

Looks Great! good idea. I'll have to get some material.

 

 

This is a common problem but why not just fix it for almost free and be done with it once and for all, not just cover or make it look better?

How you say?

When you pull the bezel out there are two legs or prongs that go under the dash to hold that very area nice and close to the dash. The one on the passenger side is not holding as it should. The way they work is supposed to be like an L shape that holds the bezel in by pulling the lip of the dash from behind. Like taking your finger and pulling something from the back to get closer to it.

The way to fix it is to give the passenger side one more grip to better. Some people wrap some electrical tape on the prong to increase the size a bit and it holds better. What I did was super glue a small piece of plastic about 1/8 X 1/8 X 1/2 inch on that leg to give it another "Step" to grab on when it is placed in.

Place the bezel in by carefully tilting it and put the prongs in first so they can grab the back of the dash for you.

I think this happens so much because the plastic is a little weak and it doesn't tolerate being removed and re-installed well.

So do not tolerate that gap, fix it and have it over with.


(Having problems getting a pic off my Photobucket page today. Can anyone post a pic of the bezel with that prong on the passenger side showing prominently. Might as well do a nice write-up to solve this very common problem for everyone.)

 

haha all this time I thought maybe the previous owner had an aftermarket headunit since the radio bezel had that gap. I didn't know they all have it.

 

fantastic !!! and easy on the budget

 

That's a very good idea too! We should add this as the first attempt to fix the bezel gap. If it doesn't work go with the felt. (It didn't work on mine because the bezel is as tight up against the stereo as it's going to get.)

 

Nice!

 

Nice tips - thanks for sharing.

 

great idea thanks

 

Good thinking....