Interesting.  When I got my 85 Westy this past June, I noted that the plastic on the inside rear view mirror was deteriorating in similar fashion.  Just crumbling.  Do you park your machine in bright sunlight possibly?  Could head be a contributing factor?

Dave in KC

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Gary Stearns 
  To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM 
  Sent: Friday, December 08, 2000 8:05 AM
  Subject: Instrument panel is disintegrating!

  Help!  The instrument panel in our '88 is slowly fracturing itself into dust.  Last spring, just small cracks around the screws that hold it down.  Then the screw holes completely broke off.  After fabricating clips to replace the broken holes, now the panel is fracturing behind the speedometer.  I have little shards of plastic falling out all the time.  I suspect that simple body flex is the basic culprit, slightly moving the dashboard and inst. panel (I do hear a lot of creaking and groaning up there on uneven roads).  Anyone else experience this?  Should I be worried about the body itself?  I always thought that the basic stucture was real rugged. Now I am wondering.

  Gary

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