My guess it would be thermo properties that would make a stress crack like that... Its just an idea of real cold in the winter and then heat real quick from your defroster. i don`t know but that happened to mine after a year. Lucky i bought another cavy and it didn`t have that stress crack in it.
Cone
2000 ecotec cavalier
I own two cavies and both have this piece cracked. My 99 is only cracked in one place, but my 98 is cracked in two places.
Proud member of Gateway J-Body Owners
wow. from all the rattles, squeeks and knocks from my sunfire, i cant believe this isnt a sunfire problem.
-Www.IznTrbl.Com-
My 99 dash piece along the front window crack not once, not twice, but three times already. Right now it is in 3 big pieces and i am not replacing it again. I also heard if the bolts are over tightened it will crack faster aka my second dash problem.
-Cone is mostly right.-
PRND321 Till I DIE
Old Motor: 160whp & 152ft/lbs, 1/4 Mile 15.4 @88.2
M45 + LD9 + 4T40-E, GO GO GO
have the same problem in my 98 Z
wow! i live in vegas and it gets well over 110 here every year and mine hasnt done that *knocks on wood*.
Mine '01 has a nice one like pictured, and 2 smaller hairline cracks, not to mention quite a few out of sight. My '96's was fine though.
i have 102k miles on my 96 Z and it hasnt cracked or anything...it looks brand new
I was trading in my 99 when I pulled off the dashmat, and I discovered 2 hidden cracks. I have seeen this before in other cars as well.
i dont remeber who asked if it would be covered under their extended warrenty that anwser is YES! I work at a chevy dealer and if the extended was a bumper to bumper they will. they will also replace bubbling moddings from the sun and also any other problem that were caused naturally and we not accelerated by the owner. EX.(dented fenders and scratched)
Its not my cavaliers fault, its a taco burner!
Answers for everyone here:
It's not caused by weather.
Here, allow me to repeat that:
It's not caused by weather.
If it were caused by weather, one of four things would happen:
a) only those in extreme hot would crack (Texas, Arizona, etc)
b) only those in extreme cold would crack (Michigan, Minnesota, etc)
c) only those in extreme hot or cold would crack (ie, a place like Iowa or West Virginia would have no cracked dashes)
d) no dash would crack (uh.. right.)
Since that's not the case and the cracks are universal, there must be another problem.
You can rule out vibrations from audio because I don't have a system and mine is cracked.
That brings us to the most likely possibility. Body flex and overtightened screws. A lot of people think that if you have a strut tower bar, it'll crack. Wrong - no STB here. It might be sway bar related though. I doubt it - body roll is linear, as opposed to body flex.
If your dash isn't cracked yet, take off the top part and loosen the two bolts next to the defroster vents. If you want, you can install rubber washers and retighten them to avoid any subsequent rattling or squeaking you get from loosening them. Those that have loosened their bolts, or installed rubber washers have subsequently had no problems with their dash cracking.
In response to the above, just because they're supposed to cover it under extended warranty, doesn't mean they will. I took mine in before I had done my interior and they basically told me to screw off.
-
Interior FAQ -
J-Body of Michigan -
my '96 Z24 has no cracks, no squeeks, no rattles, etc. in the dash...
hmmmmm... 3 people w/ '96 Z24's and no cracks... maybe '96's were the best Z24's ever.... j/k but it does make u think, doesnt it? it does me....
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:: dEstIneD 2 dIe ::
Last year mine did the same thing right down the middle in my 99 cav. I left town for four months and my car was sitting out the whole time(give or take few times my sis drove it) I think it was from the sitting out in the direct sun because it was fine the whole time before i left but time its sitting idle it cracks...just my experience...
yeah mine did that too but its not cracked all the way thru like yours is. mine cracked only about 3/4 of the way.
i'm baaaaack!!
Mine doesn't have that yet. Knock on wood.
I really think it is from a mix of weather and the bolt in the middle of the dash being too tight. Just the heat difference from night to day allows the plastice to tighten up. Over time this will takes it toll. Of course areas with more of cold and hit will have it happen quicker, but this can happen anywhere in the US.
FU Tuning
mine hasnt happend yet.....i have a rear sway bar, and i do some heavy cornering from time to time
i have cold winters, and hot summers, however i do use a sun shade thing in my window alot in the summer, so it keeps the sun off the dash
i took the dash apart about a year ago, i just put the scews back like normal, it got rid of most of my squeaks and hasnt cracked anything yet so i guess im lucky
Ok, so it happens to a lot of cars
Question.. for those who have cracked dashes... is your dash in properly? Or is it off to the passenger side?? There was a TSB a long time ago about the passenger door panel rubbing the dash... due to improper alignment of the dash support (the metal under the dash) not being aligned to the body metal properly. It was off to the right about half an inch..
If so.. slamming the passenger door hard enough would snap that biotch pretty quick...!
...j
<a href="http://www.lenkorules.com/"><img src="http://s93165229.onlinehome.us/images/zm/sig/LRDCsig3.jpg"></a>
DUDE THAT'S SO FUNNY THAT SO MANY CAVY'S ARE EXPERIANCING THE SAME THING ! DON'T WORRY MINE DID IT 2. RIGHT AFTER I HAD MY STOCK STEREO TAKEN OUT!!! NOT 2 DAYS LATER!!! I TAKE PRIDE IN MY RIDE SO IT WASN'T THE SUN OR WEATHER THAT CRACKED MINE . I THINK PART OF MINE WAS 2 FAST OVER R.R. XING'S!!!!
Mine hasnt cracked yet.
How does the defroster cover come off so the screws you speak of can be lossened?
My guess would be body flex, and if its screwed on tight and tries flexing, it cracks.
Heres an idea...
We ruled out weather.
We determined 96 z's are the best (or something like that).
So hows this? I have a front strut bar (reduces flex) and mine hasnt cracked...
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My '97 Z24 cracked about halfway along the passengers side. I figure I'll just get a dremel to cut out a bigger square and have a fiberglass shop make a custom gauge cluster to fit in there.
As sandstorm asked a few post before me.......how do you get the defoster cover off b/c I took out the long screw but it didnt come out...are there clicks that need to be push to remove it? Also I heard there is a screw you remove in your glove box that helps also.
I searched and all I found were ppl talking about the defroster but never said how to take it off and no say about the screw in the glove box.
Thanxs for any help you guys/gals can give me.
Later
Redrider02
