can I get my binnacle recovered? options?

[Col Bennett]

If I had a very nice original DeLorean with a cracked binnacle I'd have no reservations splurging on a NOS binnacle. It's a centerpiece of the DeLorean interior- any time you are in your car it's in your direct line of sight. As Darren Decker would say, it's a cosmetic fetish. The recovered binnacles all have their pluses and minuses. Each vendor gets one part of the original look right while sacrificing another aspect.

For instance, the DMC vendors recovered binnacles utilize beautiful quality leather and gorgeous contrasting stitching, but they cover over the black insert that surrounds the gauge cluster. For me personally, I'd rather hold out and save my pennies to make sure my car looked correct. Everyone has their own priorities with their cars, though. I get the EFI people just as equally as the carb people and the concours folks as well. We all enjoy these cars in our own ways.

Haha. Exactly.

I'm actually the guy that bought the NOS binnacle on eBay. Goodness, I certainly didn't expect to spend so much on it, but I knew I had to go all-in if I was going to win the auction as there were a lot of very keen bidders. I was initially a little worried about the condition of it as the photos on eBay clearly showed a blemish on the front middle and some rippling at the rear edge. I reached out to the seller and he assured me that it was perfect and sent me some additional (albeit lowres) photos. I threw caution to the wind...

And goodness, I'm glad I did. I unboxed it this morning and it's absolutely flawless. No blemishes or ripples. The whole binnacle is in breath-taking condition. Kinda blew me away. NOS binnacles are as rare as rocking horse poo these days so I don't feel too bad about paying so much to get my interior near-perfect.

The existing orignal binnacle in my car looks great, but it's a hair discolored compared to the rest of the gray interior. I'm going to put my current binnacle up for sale in the next week or so on eBay to try and recoup some of the cost. I'm a little obsessive so I'm sure my existing original gray binnacle will be near-perfect for most people.

Thanks!

[Rich_NYS]

Haha. Exactly.

I'm actually the guy that bought the NOS binnacle on eBay. Goodness, I certainly didn't expect to spend so much on it, but I knew I had to go all-in if I was going to win the auction as there were a lot of very keen bidders. I was initially a little worried about the condition of it as the photos on eBay clearly showed a blemish on the front middle and some rippling at the rear edge. I reached out to the seller and he assured me that it was perfect and sent me some additional (albeit lowres) photos. I threw caution to the wind...

And goodness, I'm glad I did. I unboxed it this morning and it's absolutely flawless. No blemishes or ripples. The whole binnacle is in breath-taking condition. Kinda blew me away. NOS binnacles are as rare as rocking horse poo these days so I don't feel too bad about paying so much to get my interior near-perfect.

The existing orignal binnacle in my car looks great, but it's a hair discolored compared to the rest of the gray interior. I'm going to put my current binnacle up for sale in the next week or so on eBay to try and recoup some of the cost. I'm a little obsessive so I'm sure my existing original gray binnacle will be near-perfect for most people.

Thanks!

Congrats on winning the auction.....post some pics so we can enjoy the view!

[Col Bennett]

Congrats on winning the auction.....post some pics so we can enjoy the view!

Totally. 'll post some photos of it this weekend - standalone and hopefully on the car if I find some time.

[David T]

Totally. 'll post some photos of it this weekend - standalone and hopefully on the car if I find some time.

I can understand your desire to have an NOS binnacle but it is still 30 years old and susceptible to sun damage. In fact, because of it's age it won't take a lot of sun to damage it. Over time the plasticizers in the plastic dry up and the plastic gets brittle. At some point it can't pay to buy even a perfect NOS piece when you can have someone like Just Dashes make you a new one for less out of new materiel that will last longer. As for discolored, a little plastic dye and you can have a new looking interior if it isn't cracked. If you park the car in the sun always use a sunshade but even the heat is no good for the plastic or the foam backing in the headliner materiel. Time is going to catch up eventually with even the best NOS stuff.

[Col Bennett]

I can understand your desire to have an NOS binnacle but it is still 30 years old and susceptible to sun damage. In fact, because of it's age it won't take a lot of sun to damage it. Over time the plasticizers in the plastic dry up and the plastic gets brittle. At some point it can't pay to buy even a perfect NOS piece when you can have someone like Just Dashes make you a new one for less out of new materiel that will last longer. As for discolored, a little plastic dye and you can have a new looking interior if it isn't cracked. If you park the car in the sun always use a sunshade but even the heat is no good for the plastic or the foam backing in the headliner materiel. Time is going to catch up eventually with even the best NOS stuff.

Haha. You're far too sensible.

I'm determined to let nothing take the shine off my lovely new binnacle. Plus, I think it's got more chance of cracking with me over-hugging it at the moment than sunlight. My car is mostly original and as Louie mentioned, for me nothing quite beats an original binnacle. Plus, I've got a custom dash cover and window shade to protect it on sunny/hot days. I'm confident it'll be ok. I might hold on to my existing binnacle as a backup just incase though. Fingers crossed.

[MikeWard]

I can understand your desire to have an NOS binnacle but it is still 30 years old and susceptible to sun damage. In fact, because of it's age it won't take a lot of sun to damage it. Over time the plasticizers in the plastic dry up and the plastic gets brittle. At some point it can't pay to buy even a perfect NOS piece when you can have someone like Just Dashes make you a new one for less out of new materiel that will last longer. As for discolored, a little plastic dye and you can have a new looking interior if it isn't cracked. If you park the car in the sun always use a sunshade but even the heat is no good for the plastic or the foam backing in the headliner materiel. Time is going to catch up eventually with even the best NOS stuff.

Haha. You're far too sensible.

I'm determined to let nothing take the shine off my lovely new binnacle. Plus, I think it's got more chance of cracking with me over-hugging it at the moment than sunlight. My car is mostly original and as Louie mentioned, for me nothing quite beats an original binnacle. Plus, I've got a custom dash cover and window shade to protect it on sunny/hot days. I'm confident it'll be ok. I might hold on to my existing binnacle as a backup just incase though. Fingers crossed.

https://www.armorall.eu/en/products/...oss-protectant

[Col Bennett]

https://www.armorall.eu/en/products/...oss-protectant

Thanks Mike, but doesn't that stuff make your dash look like it's been dipped in baby oil?

[MikeWard]

Sorry, should have linked to the matt version: https://www.armorall.eu/en/products/...att-protectant