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Hi all,

I just picked up a 2000 Deville with flawless paint and 23K miles. The only "bug" is that the skin on the far edge of the dash on the passenger side is lifting.

The car was garaged and it does not apear this is warpage from the sun. It looks like the glue let go. The base under the dash skin appears to be in one piece.

The question is how to remove the dash to get a better look at whether it can be fixed or the entire dash needs replacing. Any info appreciated. I'll be ordering a Helms next week.

:)

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Wow! A 2000 with only 23k...that's Great! I know nothing about your dash, but just wanted to congratulate you on a great find! If you don't mind me asking, what did it run you? The reason I ask is I may be in the market soon for a newer Deville as well. I hope you get your your dash fixed without going through too much trouble. Couldn't you possibly glue it w/o removing it?

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Each AC vent has a screw behind it and under the defroster vents are more screws.

After you get those out take off the A pillar covers and lift out the dash pad.

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The previous owner of my 2000 Deville replaced the upper dash just before he sold the car (same problem). I used Shoe Goo to repair the edges of the upholstery on the rear quarter panels of my '94 Eldorado which were separating from the plastic backing at the rear and rear quarter windows. If your upper dash is made the same way - a vinyl skin applied over a thin molded foam layer to a semi-hard plastic backing - I would recommend Shoe Goo. My repair was still good nearly two years later when I sold the car. Shoe Goo is available at shoe repair stores.

If you take your dash apart, please do me a favor. My instrument cluster has a build up of dirt on the face of the actual cluster read-outs. This is behind the clear plastic lens that is at the surface you can touch with your fingers. I would like to know if the lens is a separate piece that can be removed so the read-outs can be cleaned or if it's all one sealed unit that you can't get into to clean. While you're taking your dash apart, if you can see how the cluster goes together, please let me know.

Thanks in advance,

photo-36.jpg

Happiness is owning a Cadillac with no codes.

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My 98 had the passenger corner lifting up so some crazy glue did the trick, over a year later still holding and would never know it lifted. I used some tape to hold it in place and some pressure while the glue set.

The Green's Machines

1998 Deville - high mileage, keeps on going, custom cat-back exhaust

2003 Seville - stock low mileage goodness!

2004 Grand Prix GTP CompG - Smaller supercharger pulley, Ported Exhaust Manifolds, Dyno tune, etc

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The most difficult part in removing the top of the dash is the first step........removing all 4 dash vents. These must be removed to access four screws (one behind each vent) that secures the rear of the dash. There are three more larger screws that secure the front of the dash by the windshield. These three are accessible once you pop the plastic defroster cover off. Getting back to removing the vents, there are two small tabs in each vent, one on top, and one on the bottom. All four vents are different, which makes it even more interesting. These tabs must be pried up with a small blade to release the vent body from its housing. The fun part is visualizing the tabs (since they are difficult to see with the vent louvers in the way), and prying down on the top one and up on the bottom at the same time while pulling the vent body out with a third set of hands. A very knowledgeable person on another Cadillac message board suggested using a butter knife, and sliding it between the vent housing and the fake wood trim, and depressing the tabs from the top and bottom. This worked well for me, but still requires a level of dexterity, combined with a little bit of luck, since you can't see what the end of the butter knife is contacting. You are basically doing it by "feel", moving it around until the end of the knife hits the "tab". You then still have to maneuver the knife so that the end of it gets over the tab, so you can then press the tab "down" from the top of the vent, or "up" from the bottom. You need to work both sets of knives so that the top and bottom tab are depressed at the same time, and then pull the vent straight out. Since the vent assembly sits in a secondary "sleeve", make sure you don't feed the butter knife under or over that sleeve, it must be inserted between the two walls. Once the vents are out, you will have access to the screw in each vent, but they sit pretty far back, so be careful that they do not fall into the ductwork.

I am in the process of re-gluing the dash pad on my 2001 DTS, and it is a piece of cake once you get the dash pad out. If it is just the corner piece that needs gluing, you'll have that wrapped up quickly. Just make sure you use the proper adhesive. A GM service bulletin addressing the problem of curling up dashes on 2000 and newer DeVilles says to use 3M Quick Fix Adhesive part #08155. This is a crazy glue type of material, about $20.00 for a one ounce bottle. As in everything else, preparation is the key, so make sure you remove any old adhesive first, using 3M Part #08987 General Adhesive Cleaner (or equivalent.) I'm sure there are other adhesives that might work, but I tried a 3M spray-on adhesive last weekend, and it didn't hold that well. Since you really don't want to be repeating this process any time soon, you probably won't want to experiment with unproven adhesives for this particular application.

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Hi Terry,

Thanks for the info. I tried the methods mention in earlier posts, but no luck - and I was concerned about damage. Weather was too hot and my patience was thin, so I put it off for a cooler day.

Your comments make sense. I did not find screws holding the vents in place and it appeared things were snapped together.

I'll try again and will post an update.

I hope this one will be quick and simple. Otherwise, it's going to be a new cover to the tune of about $500. :o

Poobah - I'll let you know about the instrument panel. Hopefully it won't take too long to get a reply to you.

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jhall, just as a point of clarification based on your last post, there are no screws holding the vent in place. Two plastic tabs lock the vent in the dash. Once the vent is removed, the screw (7mm, I think) that holds the dash pad in place is visible through a rectangular shaped hole at the top of each opening.

Terry

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  • 2 years later...
The most difficult part in removing the top of the dash is the first step........removing all 4 dash vents. These must be removed to access four screws (one behind each vent) that secures the rear of the dash. There are three more larger screws that secure the front of the dash by the windshield. These three are accessible once you pop the plastic defroster cover off. Getting back to removing the vents, there are two small tabs in each vent, one on top, and one on the bottom. All four vents are different, which makes it even more interesting. These tabs must be pried up with a small blade to release the vent body from its housing. The fun part is visualizing the tabs (since they are difficult to see with the vent louvers in the way), and prying down on the top one and up on the bottom at the same time while pulling the vent body out with a third set of hands. A very knowledgeable person on another Cadillac message board suggested using a butter knife, and sliding it between the vent housing and the fake wood trim, and depressing the tabs from the top and bottom. This worked well for me, but still requires a level of dexterity, combined with a little bit of luck, since you can't see what the end of the butter knife is contacting. You are basically doing it by "feel", moving it around until the end of the knife hits the "tab". You then still have to maneuver the knife so that the end of it gets over the tab, so you can then press the tab "down" from the top of the vent, or "up" from the bottom. You need to work both sets of knives so that the top and bottom tab are depressed at the same time, and then pull the vent straight out. Since the vent assembly sits in a secondary "sleeve", make sure you don't feed the butter knife under or over that sleeve, it must be inserted between the two walls. Once the vents are out, you will have access to the screw in each vent, but they sit pretty far back, so be careful that they do not fall into the ductwork.

I am in the process of re-gluing the dash pad on my 2001 DTS, and it is a piece of cake once you get the dash pad out. If it is just the corner piece that needs gluing, you'll have that wrapped up quickly. Just make sure you use the proper adhesive. A GM service bulletin addressing the problem of curling up dashes on 2000 and newer DeVilles says to use 3M Quick Fix Adhesive part #08155. This is a crazy glue type of material, about $20.00 for a one ounce bottle. As in everything else, preparation is the key, so make sure you remove any old adhesive first, using 3M Part #08987 General Adhesive Cleaner (or equivalent.) I'm sure there are other adhesives that might work, but I tried a 3M spray-on adhesive last weekend, and it didn't hold that well. Since you really don't want to be repeating this process any time soon, you probably won't want to experiment with unproven adhesives for this particular application.

I'm trying to get the dash pad off a 2004 DTS. I have the vents out and have removed the screws. The problem is I can't seem to get the defroster grill free. So far, the only clip I have loose is behind the speaker. The dash is holding strong. Any suggestions to remove the defroster grill?

Thanks

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  • 1 month later...

Hello, I am sorry to hear so many people have encountered a problem with the dashboard "Peelback"..."Lifting"...scenario that has plagued the Cadillac lineup for a while now...I have uploaded a step by step video on youtube on how to remove and repair the dashpad. I found that a car that costs near the tune of 60,000 brand new should have a nice looking dash pad...lets face it you stare at that the most while in the vehicle...I did mine in about three hours that was uninstalling and reinstalling and labor...any questions please feel free to message me on the forum...good luck

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhhGxhI9_Kw

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Nice job on the video and :welcomesmiley:

Due to youtube's compression some of the text is hard to read, even at fullscreen. Do you have the image sequence or original files you used to make the movie? I can help you put them into a different format so that they would be clearer.

Bruce

2023 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing

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Nice job on the video and :welcomesmiley:

Due to youtube's compression some of the text is hard to read, even at fullscreen. Do you have the image sequence or original files you used to make the movie? I can help you put them into a different format so that they would be clearer.

Yes I have the original powerpoint presentation file...i had to use some program to compress and convert it over to a video file to upload on youtube...let me know how and where to send the powerpoint file and i will shoot it over to you. Thanks

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Here is my thread on the repair, and catmendo's

http://caddyinfo.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=14134

This is catmendo's thread it states SIR but he gets into the pad repair and he did a nice job

http://caddyinfo.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=17792

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  • 2 years later...

The most difficult part in removing the top of the dash is the first step........removing all 4 dash vents. These must be removed to access four screws (one behind each vent) that secures the rear of the dash. There are three more larger screws that secure the front of the dash by the windshield. These three are accessible once you pop the plastic defroster cover off. Getting back to removing the vents, there are two small tabs in each vent, one on top, and one on the bottom. All four vents are different, which makes it even more interesting. These tabs must be pried up with a small blade to release the vent body from its housing. The fun part is visualizing the tabs (since they are difficult to see with the vent louvers in the way), and prying down on the top one and up on the bottom at the same time while pulling the vent body out with a third set of hands. A very knowledgeable person on another Cadillac message board suggested using a butter knife, and sliding it between the vent housing and the fake wood trim, and depressing the tabs from the top and bottom. This worked well for me, but still requires a level of dexterity, combined with a little bit of luck, since you can't see what the end of the butter knife is contacting. You are basically doing it by "feel", moving it around until the end of the knife hits the "tab". You then still have to maneuver the knife so that the end of it gets over the tab, so you can then press the tab "down" from the top of the vent, or "up" from the bottom. You need to work both sets of knives so that the top and bottom tab are depressed at the same time, and then pull the vent straight out. Since the vent assembly sits in a secondary "sleeve", make sure you don't feed the butter knife under or over that sleeve, it must be inserted between the two walls. Once the vents are out, you will have access to the screw in each vent, but they sit pretty far back, so be careful that they do not fall into the ductwork.

I am in the process of re-gluing the dash pad on my 2001 DTS, and it is a piece of cake once you get the dash pad out. If it is just the corner piece that needs gluing, you'll have that wrapped up quickly. Just make sure you use the proper adhesive. A GM service bulletin addressing the problem of curling up dashes on 2000 and newer DeVilles says to use 3M Quick Fix Adhesive part #08155. This is a crazy glue type of material, about $20.00 for a one ounce bottle. As in everything else, preparation is the key, so make sure you remove any old adhesive first, using 3M Part #08987 General Adhesive Cleaner (or equivalent.) I'm sure there are other adhesives that might work, but I tried a 3M spray-on adhesive last weekend, and it didn't hold that well. Since you really don't want to be repeating this process any time soon, you probably won't want to experiment with unproven adhesives for this particular application.

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terrylange - I follow your instructions for removing the dash. Everything was as you instructed except after removing all screws (4 - total located behind each return register and three larger screws located under the defroster grille) I am not able to remove the dash pad because it acts like something is holding it down on each end near the windshield. Any suggestion for obtaining release on the pad ends?

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  • 4 years later...

Can any of you gentleman tell me is it necessary to remove the whole dash to replace the heater core. If so doors that include the steering wheel too. Thanks fellas ! New at this.oops I have a 2003 deville.

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On the 2003 Deville....Yes. You have to remove the IP to replace the heater core...and you also need to remove the steering column or steering wheel to remove the IP.

The previous post was talking about removing the top dash pad on a older style Deville.

I added a couple of pics..

post-2-0-12887100-1421496178_thumb.jpg

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