Hi all,
Awhile back I promised in another thread to give my review and pictures of the Carolina SuperDash dash pad for the 1970 'Cuda. Carolina SuperDash if I'm correct is an online only supplier of E body dashpads and relatively new to the resto game. As of this time, as far as I know, they sell via Ebay only and they have no website or brick/mortar store to visit.They are based out of Payne,Ohio. These are steel frame pads based on original cores.

I paid I believe $575 for a black 3 speaker, NON A/C dashpad, and shipping to Indiana was $70. They do charge a core charge of $195 and refund that upon receipt of a useable core. They have colors available for an additional charge of $65

I take it these are made to order as it took about two and half weeks to receive the dashpad.
It was packaged safe/secure and Carol at Carolina SuperDash emailed me with the tracking number and stayed in contact with me thru the buying process.

The subject car is the 70 Cuda in my sig pic. This is the 6th '70 E body I've owned and the 4th pad I've had to change out. I've previously used Just dashes, an Ultimate Rides pad, an OEM pad, and now this one.

Since the dash frame was not being painted or powdercoated and was in good shape, I decided to just remove the pad only. Total R/R was about 2.5 hrs. About 30 mins was spent trimming the new pad (more on that in a bit)and R/R of the VIN tag.

This was the starting point:


The pad looks good right outta the box, and I thought the grain looked nice and crisp and the character line around the pad was very sharp and well defined. I thought the old pad looked more "black", and more glossy, but it is 40 yrs old and has been subjected to yrs of repeated cleaning, wiping and countless different types of chemicals (armor all, etc)
(old pad on the left, new on the right)


Notice how sharp and defined the character line is around the pad. It was nice and deep and crisp on the new pad. On my old pad, the line was shallow and losing its definition. (old pad on top, new on bottom) ** The new pad at this point hasnt been cleaned and is dirty from handling at the factory and my dirty hands from taking the old pad out)


These next two pics I'm not sure what is correct. This is my third Cuda and the molded script in the dash has always been black. On the new one its got a chrome like finish. I don't know if they were originally chrome and the finish has just worn off after 40 yrs, or is this a design flaw of the new pad? I'm sure people here on the board who are more knowledgable will chime in.
(old pad showing black script- notice character line, and compare to new one below)


Is this chrome script correct??
(notice sharp line as compared to old pad)Also the area around "Barracuda" isnt as well defined and isnt sculpted out, as on the original pad.


Here is a driver's side view of the pads:
Old pad-


New Pad-


Now for the trimming part. Since this pad is recovered like an OEM pad, everything gets covered. EVERYTHING. Outside of the outboard speaker holes, which did require additional trimming, the VIN rivit holes, light bar mounts were all covered. A small razor blade, gasket scraper, and a small awl did the trick.
Here's the old pad light bar monting area-
You will need to reuse your old retaining clips.


Here's the new pad's light bar mounting area. The foam was under the steel frame and needed to be scraped out, but not all of it.Just around where the moutning tabs were.You cant really tell from this pic, but under that flat piece is ALOT of foam. Also the top needed to be cut/scraped. Compare to above pic to get an idea.


Heres a better shot of how much foam was under there.


Here's after the trimming- kinda hard to see


Heres the finished product.- I actually forgot to take pics of the pad with all the speaker grills in place (my bad) before reinstallation.


Well I think thats it. If I missed something you would like to see, let me know and I'll take a pic or if you have any questions.

I'm by no means an E body expert, just a hobbyist who's been fortunate to have some cool E bodies, and as far as fit, finish, & quality, I'd say this is a really good pad. Better than the UR pad, but I cant compare to the JD pad I had recovered, as that was for a 70 T/A and they obviously are very different. OEM is alwyas best, but I'm always wary of spending big money on an OEM pad due to its age. All my E bodies were driver quality or slightly better. Maybe if it was a trailer queen, not seeing a lot of sun/heat, an NOS or OEM pad would be best. But for the money for the majority of cars out there, I'd say this is a great alternative.

Thanks for that thorough review of your dash pad.
I was holding my breath a bit while reading your review because I ordered one of their pads for my 70 Challenger this morning.

I'm quite relieved.

How does the plastic trim fit on each side of the Inst cluster area ( the 2 L shaped pieces that cover the pads corners)

How does the pad fit in the areas covered by the A-pillar trim.

I have an older year one pad and the L-shaped trim fits it like crap on both sides of the cluster area.

Thanks for the review !! Thought the recessed vin area looks more defined than some others I have seen. Thought the barracuda script looked a little off. I know what you are saying about original pads looking a little darker/glossier. It really seems to show up in pictures w/flash. As questioned, how was the fit at the radio and heater bezels? Going to buy one off your review

looks nice...u can see the definition of the lines under the emblem..seems like a 71-4 dash pad core was used..the chrome part on the emblem is still up for grabs....

70 barracuda & challenger script emblems were originaly chromed plastic. They were held on to the vinyl itself with about 5 plastic pins that had small rectangular metal retainers on the back side of the vinyl. The chrome on the plastic didn't last long. It quickly dulled into a silver color, and eventually went away completely, especially with the use of cleaning chemicals and amonia overspray from cleaning the inside of the windshield.

Very helpfull review, Thanks!

Tav

That's exactly what my pad looked like when I got it back from UR. It looks like the same company to me.

The left side lower trim fit OK but the right side was way off. My origonal trim was twisted where the inside screw holds it tight to the pad. A brand new repro trim piece might have fit that pad perfectly but my origonal one didn't.

The trim fits pretty decent. I will take some more pix and update the post in a day or so. Im working all day/evening today, so possibly friday evening I can get to taking pics of those areas.

Glad you guys enjoyed the post.

Thanks for posting! I just wonder WHY the vendors can't get the pads EXACTLY like OEM, the shape, creases, grain, script, Vin tag and script depression, etc. Sounds like a job for Super MIKE ROSS or Super DAVE WALDEN! They are CAN DO guys and wouldn't bring it to market unless it was correct.