Piano Black Centre Console - Picture Story
Discussion
The centre console has irritated since the Aston Buyers Guide pointed out it is low rent ( it is!).
So I bought a second hand once off ebay for £80 with the aim of painting it Piano Black.
The issue is - as many know - that the heater controls are backlit. Other than conjuring up some astonishing solution I simply created a masking ring out of vinyl to preserve the old finish around the heater controls.
When painted the trip panel is painted black then the tape removed and the whole thing lacquered so there is no ridge etc.
Getting the unit painted cost £30.
I then set about fitting it. The removal of the panels is best described in this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCwOayN32-0
I could not remove the panel holding the boot release etc. so I have to remove a few more screws at the back of the transmission tunnel to loosen the trim. In the end it was fouling on two washers on two screw heads which were stopping it coming out.
This removed you undo the screws at the bottom of the panel, pop off the ski - which I just lifted an inch at the front which was enough to get a screwdriver in and undo the top of the panel I was seeking to change.
You should protect the leather on either side of the centre consol as the lower panel has some sharp edges.
Removing all of the plugs is not difficult but the wires do not pull out far, so it took about 5 mins wobbling fingers around to remove all of the wiring harnesses. There is no real doubt where they go back to, so nothing needs to be labelled.
Once the unit is off the car it needs to be stripped down and then rebuilt onto the donor. This took 50 minutes ( the time the clock was stopped for!). There are about 20 small screws that hold it all together. These have a strange hex type head but I just used a small flat screwdriver.
Finished and ready to fit
There is noting difficult about stripping it down and moving it to the new panel BUT (A) there is a metal plate that holds it all together, you must but this on before you put in any screws (guess how I found this out) and there are a few screws in recesses that took a few goes with fine pliers.
Back to the car. Again nothing difficult but it takes another 5 minutes to put on the electric harness as it is fiddly.
Before putting it all back together again I tested it and all OK, but the CD player had some initial errors ( cant read disk etc) which cleared after about 1 minute. I assume this was some sort of initialisation phase as the controllers were disconnected as they form part of the panel.
I am very pleased with it, as is SWMBO which is of course more important than my views!
The heater illumination is a compromise and some may not like it, however there is grey there anyway so it does not look out of place .... and it is SO much nicer in black then 1980s radio cassette player grey.
Another thought is simply to paint the lot. All of the dial positions ( temp, air direction and fan ) are all reported on the infotainment display. Personal choice!
I have also removed and stripped down the centre console and I will get this painted tomorrow.
[url]
|http://thumbsnap.com/64gIF1N8[/url
Impressive set of hand made bits!
I will probably install an iphone charging cradle whilst I have it in bits.
So I bought a second hand once off ebay for £80 with the aim of painting it Piano Black.
The issue is - as many know - that the heater controls are backlit. Other than conjuring up some astonishing solution I simply created a masking ring out of vinyl to preserve the old finish around the heater controls.
When painted the trip panel is painted black then the tape removed and the whole thing lacquered so there is no ridge etc.
Getting the unit painted cost £30.
I then set about fitting it. The removal of the panels is best described in this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCwOayN32-0
I could not remove the panel holding the boot release etc. so I have to remove a few more screws at the back of the transmission tunnel to loosen the trim. In the end it was fouling on two washers on two screw heads which were stopping it coming out.
This removed you undo the screws at the bottom of the panel, pop off the ski - which I just lifted an inch at the front which was enough to get a screwdriver in and undo the top of the panel I was seeking to change.
You should protect the leather on either side of the centre consol as the lower panel has some sharp edges.
Removing all of the plugs is not difficult but the wires do not pull out far, so it took about 5 mins wobbling fingers around to remove all of the wiring harnesses. There is no real doubt where they go back to, so nothing needs to be labelled.
Once the unit is off the car it needs to be stripped down and then rebuilt onto the donor. This took 50 minutes ( the time the clock was stopped for!). There are about 20 small screws that hold it all together. These have a strange hex type head but I just used a small flat screwdriver.
Finished and ready to fit
There is noting difficult about stripping it down and moving it to the new panel BUT (A) there is a metal plate that holds it all together, you must but this on before you put in any screws (guess how I found this out) and there are a few screws in recesses that took a few goes with fine pliers.
Back to the car. Again nothing difficult but it takes another 5 minutes to put on the electric harness as it is fiddly.
Before putting it all back together again I tested it and all OK, but the CD player had some initial errors ( cant read disk etc) which cleared after about 1 minute. I assume this was some sort of initialisation phase as the controllers were disconnected as they form part of the panel.
I am very pleased with it, as is SWMBO which is of course more important than my views!
The heater illumination is a compromise and some may not like it, however there is grey there anyway so it does not look out of place .... and it is SO much nicer in black then 1980s radio cassette player grey.
Another thought is simply to paint the lot. All of the dial positions ( temp, air direction and fan ) are all reported on the infotainment display. Personal choice!
I have also removed and stripped down the centre console and I will get this painted tomorrow.
[url]
|http://thumbsnap.com/64gIF1N8[/urlImpressive set of hand made bits!
I will probably install an iphone charging cradle whilst I have it in bits.
Thanks for taking the time to do the excellent write up, the pictures make it so much easier.
I'm thinking of doing similar on my V12V, can I ask what you did with the trinket / ash tray lid, is this easily dismantled for painting.
Also what is the paint colour / finish like compared to the OE top part, do you know if the painter just used black tinter or is it a specific mixed colour.
Personally for me, it's a pity we didn't have a bit more of this good stuff and a bit less nonsence on here.
I'm thinking of doing similar on my V12V, can I ask what you did with the trinket / ash tray lid, is this easily dismantled for painting.
Also what is the paint colour / finish like compared to the OE top part, do you know if the painter just used black tinter or is it a specific mixed colour.
Personally for me, it's a pity we didn't have a bit more of this good stuff and a bit less nonsence on here.
Excellent report! Thanks for sharing. It's looking really nice, fantastic paint finish. I look forward to seeing the finished centre section in place too.
To finish this off though, I'd recommend a set of Tony's famous knobs for the radio and Satnav!
To finish this off though, I'd recommend a set of Tony's famous knobs for the radio and Satnav!
Edited by Ice27 on Sunday 14th April 18:09
Well if Tony sends a set over for photographic purposes maybe they will get lost in the post on the way back!
Re paint colour. The guy just took a look at it and said I will pit on the blackest black I have. It is a total match.
The ashtray etc is just held together with philips head screws and comes to bits in a minute or so.
The trinket box ( bit without the lid) is also a hand assembled unit with phillips screws. The joys of being hand built.
Re paint colour. The guy just took a look at it and said I will pit on the blackest black I have. It is a total match.
The ashtray etc is just held together with philips head screws and comes to bits in a minute or so.
The trinket box ( bit without the lid) is also a hand assembled unit with phillips screws. The joys of being hand built.
@ YETI - the body shop that did it is in Hammersmith under the railway arches ( and 50 feet from my office) if you live locally but anyone could do it. £30 per panel, but if they were all being done at once probably £50 the lot as he must spend more time cleaning the gun than painting it. To see what it looks like in green order some roughly matching body wrap vinyl off ebay
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CARCAR-STYLE-LTD-ALL-COL...
Spend 10 minutes just roughly slapping it on, and if you like it take it to bits and do it properly.
I bought vinyl wrap to do this first off, but the finish is probably OK on carbon, matt etc. but pretty orange peel like on high gloss which was no good to me.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CARCAR-STYLE-LTD-ALL-COL...
Spend 10 minutes just roughly slapping it on, and if you like it take it to bits and do it properly.
I bought vinyl wrap to do this first off, but the finish is probably OK on carbon, matt etc. but pretty orange peel like on high gloss which was no good to me.
jeremydb9 said:
No true nerve would be doing it on the original one in your car as opposed to buying a spare on eBay first!
Looks like that might be the way I will have to do it. If it works out then I'll be able to laser etch the heater control night illumination for an OEM look for a lucky few.Without a spare, it might take some time. No room for mistakes testing the CNC program on the laser!!
If someone has a spare, it would be nice to hear from them.
Edited by divetheworld on Thursday 18th April 07:44
The finished result once the centre panel came back from the spray shop, so another £30.
Total "investment" has been £80 in parts from Ebay and £60 in paint. I still have the old one which lets me put the car back to original should anyone prefer when it comes to sell it.
Next glass buttons and a reversing camera ....
Total "investment" has been £80 in parts from Ebay and £60 in paint. I still have the old one which lets me put the car back to original should anyone prefer when it comes to sell it.
Next glass buttons and a reversing camera ....
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