Hey guys, I've been a forum reader for months now since I've gotten my Scion but never really had an itch to post. After I went through this ordeal I decided I'd post up about it just in case anyone else has this issue.

I bought my Scion at a dealership here in Central Florida around August. This is probably one of the hottest months here in Florida as well as very very humid. One day my friend was driving with me and noticed that there was some warping issues on my side trim as well as on my dash!

I quickly searched online for issues regarding possible problems from other Scion owners. However I didn't find very many that weren't connected to some other issue. A bit distressed (only having the car for very long) I decided to e-mail one of the service managers at my dealership. Took the car to the dealership and even he was shocked at the amount of warp that had occurred.

Basically the trim near the window became very wavy looking. On the dash, the area near central control console was also very bumpy. The guys at the dealership said that while the passenger side dash was suppose to be soft due to the airbag deployment mechanism, the central console should feel solid and not bumpy.

The service guy ordered my parts and weeks later I got a call to bring in my car. Basically my whole interior left AND right door panels were replaced. They had to take my entire dash apart to replace the cover. The plus side was that EVERYTHING was covered by warranty including my rent-a-car (an 07 azure blue tC automatic ;))

In the end I still love my scion but that incident did give me a slight uneasiness about the material of the side trims and the dash.

Anyway I figure I'd post up about it just in case anyone sees this in their car and is wondering whether or not it would be covered by warranty (if you are still under it). If you live anywhere in heated/humid regions I HIGHLY suggest having your scion tinted (at least) and cover that dash panel. After all thats happened I've yet to really figure out what really caused it... I'm just hoping it won't happen again.

 

I would chaulk it up to a bad batch of plastic at the dash factory. Glad to hear they handled everything well, and your tC is back to normal.

 

I would agree on the bad plastic from the factory, or even a bad seal material on the dash, may have caused warping of the plastic too when engaged with heat.

 

I have some waves on the dash pad as well in the center (above the AC vents). I wonder if this was caused by the FL head too.

It's not a terrible issue, but something that bugs me sometimes.

Damn you global warming!

 

Just a bad part from the factory.

You know that your going to end up wrapping it in Suede or something else so i wouldn't worry about it

 

I think I have this problem as well

There are "bubbles" above that part on the dash. It's quite strange, really. It's not super visible, but its there if you look at the dash for more than a few seconds in the daylight.

 

Yup. My thoughts exactly.

 

Here is a link to the post I made about my '06 door panels:

https://www.scionlife.com/forums/vie...946&highlight=

Panels were replaced under warranty, haven't had any issues since.

Pics:
Here are the pictures:

Drivers Door not as bad:




Passenger Door:





d.

Paul G.

 

scary thing is, those bumps don't look unfamiliar to me. I think I have some dash problems, and I might remember seeing those on my door panels... I guess I'll go tell the dealer at the next oil change.

I guess if I get a new dash I'll have my new car smell back for a bit

 

Ahhh, the new car smell, its like Christmas morning

 

Wow never have seen that in any of the AZ cars.. and we are a few degrees hotter here... but no humidity...

 

If it isn't too noticeable it isn't a problem. Mine was definitely noticeable.

The area above the dash compartment should be somewhat bumpy but not the top near the center console. That should be flat.

Definitely take it to the dealership asap if you think it might be an issue. If it's under warranty they'll change it out.

The work on my car took more than a day due to the dash having to be pulled out. The rep there gave me some weird ___ story about a car having a brain and it being very important and my car needing an important surgery...

 

hmm i have some of the wavy parts too on the door panels

 

On my car (see pictures above), it just to happen one day. I had cleaned out the car, and the next day after being parked at work I came out and the door panels were all messed up. The amount of wrinkles, or the depth definitely varied based on how hot/sunny it was. Unfortunately in NH you can not tint your driver side or passenger side windows, cause I would do that if I could.

It happened in July up in NH/MA, so my area isn't the hottest area in the country or anything either.

I would be real careful if you use cleaners on the panels. I really don't trust most stuff on the plastic, and if you do, make sure it is completely dry before sunlight. Since I don't like things very shiny, I just wipe the interior down with a t-shirt or use one of those swifer dust rags (but nothing with a cleaning solution).

Paul G.

 

well, legally the tint laws here in california say the 2 front windows can have a max tint of 70% which is like stock or something. but we all get tints anyways and ive been bugged by 2 cops and neither of them had any problem with my tint. So i say do it man! and if they give you any crap, just tell em your scared of skin cancer

 

I'm not worried about police. You will not pass state inspection with tint, and they will make you remove it. Inspection is on the month of your birthday here which is Sept. for me, so it isn't a month you can just roll into a place with windows down and hope they don't check.

I am actually blind in one eye. I have been told an eye doctor can give you a pass to allow it depending on certain conditions. I may ask about it, but not sure my condition will justify a "doctors note".

Paul G.

 

I like to use a clean dry microfiber cloth to clean any interior. If you have to use any liquid only warm water and very light amounts of it.

Problem with most cleaners is they have alcohol or ammonia that may dry out your trim and can cause cracking in the future.

If you want to do heat protection without noticeable tint you could look into Huper Optik DREI. It's a pretty expensive tint (mostly used on Beamers and other Euro Cars) but its well worth the price from what I'm told. Not sure if I'd put this on a scion but it protects from heat without noticing the tint.

I don't have any experience with it so I couldn't tell you but maybe someone on the forums has.

 

oh you guys have state inspections, that sucks.
good luck with the doctors note

 

Glad I don't have that problem. It's -4 in Michigan today. Excuse me while I chip through the 4 inches of salt encrusting my door handle...

 

The dashes are actually much softer than most people think. If you were to tap or press your index finger with a fair amount of pressure you will leave a dimple in the dash. I even saw one dash in a tc on the showroom floor that the passenger side looked like a ruffles potato chip...I kid you not!