FULL Dash Removal '97 Help!?!

[tylerd5]

Hey guys,
My name is Tyler and i am fairly new to the forum and had a couple questions. I picked up a '97 4Runner from a close friend really cheap and have had it looked over mechanically and fixed everything there and is in good running condition. My issue is that the center dash cover over the radio/heater/clock is fine, but the plastic mounts on the actual dash it goes into are ALL broken. So my question is, has anyone else run into this problem? How'd you fix it? Can I remove that entire dash piece and replace it? Let me clarify some, the radio mounts are fine as are the heater/ac unit mounts it is just all the plastic mounts that hold the dash cover in. This is going to be a hunting vehicle first and a project vehicle second, but this is something that needs to be fixed by or before deer season. ANy help or info would be much appreciated!! Thanks!

 

[tylerd5]

Bump.

 

[NachoPitt]

Do you have any pics of the broken pieces so we can get an idea of what you need to replace?

 

[UnderFire]

Take some pictures and I can help, I've had the entire interior out of mine.

 

[tylerd5]

NachoPitt and UnderFire
I am away from the 4runner right now so I can't get pictures of it specifically but I did find another picture that illustrates what I am talking about and what is broken.

All the plastic mounts circled in red are broken along with the matching ones that you can not see in this photo. Let me know what other questions you all have. Thanks

 

[tylerd5]

Bump.

 

[NachoPitt]

Sorry for the late reply - your pic didn't show the first time I looked at the thread. Those tabs don't typically break unless you force them. I was able to break one this past weekend in a junkyard with a large crowbar. Any idea how they were broken?

Based on what you are looking at doing, I think you probably have two options-

1. find the replacement piece with a complete set of tabs (that aren't broken like yours). Cut the tabs off the good piece, cut off your broken tab and epoxy the good ones on.

2. Replace the dash. This will be harder but is the right way to fix it. The good news is that since most people don't break those tabs, it should be easy to find a good piece intact and ready to go.

Good luck!

 

[tylerd5]

NachoPitt,

Yea sorry I ran into a few technical difficulties posting the picture so I thought I should bump it back up. As far as how they got broken, I asked the friend I bought it from and she said shortly after she got it in '99/2000 time frame it was broken into and some thieves tried to steal the radio with no success. Other than managing to break most of those clips. And over the years they have all started to break due to too much weight on too few. I think I am going to do a full dash replacement, they don't seem to difficult to find, just got to find a good price. May also do the center console swap while I'm at it.

 

[UnderFire]

Looks like you've got your answer, but I'll just add, replacing the dash is not hard at all, but you will need someone to help you get the old one out and put the new one in place, I tried doing it myself and it was just about impossible.

 

[tylerd5]

Thanks guys! I appreciate all your help and your advice. I'll get my build thread started soon for you all to see!