Before Selling Your Old Car, Consider Replacing Your Body Dash Pad

When you think of car parts that undergo a lot of wear and tear, which ones come to mind first? Many people will name the tires, brakes, and perhaps the transmission. These are all mechanical parts, but there's a part in the interior of the car that gets a lot of wear, too: the body dash pad.

The body dash pad is the piece of hard plastic that covers the dash, harboring all of the buttons and dials in this area. You use this car component every day when you adjust the temperature, turn on the hazards, or adjust the radio. As such, it can become quite worn and damaged over time. Therefore, replacing the body dash pad before you sell the car is a really good idea.

Why should you replace the body dash pad?

The body dash pad is the first thing someone sees when they step into the car, and they will interact with it a lot when they drive. If you have someone test drive your car, they will certainly see this component—and you want it to make a good first impression. You might not notice how stained and beat up the body dash pad is because you see it every day. But a newcomer will definitely make note of the scratches, missing finish, and worn spots, especially since they are giving the car a critical once-over because they're interested in buying it. 

Replacing the body dash pad may mean the difference between selling the car and not selling it. A new pad will also allow you to charge more for the car. Even with no other mechanical changes to the car, a buyer will pay more for a car with an interior that looks nice—and a new body dash pad certainly looks nice!

Where can you get a new body dash pad?

Replacing the body dash pad is not difficult, but it does require some specialized tools to remove the existing body dash pad. For this reason, it's usually best to let professionals handle this task. It should only take them an hour or less to pop the dash pad off and put a new one in place. To save money, you can buy a body dash pad for your particular make and model of car online. You will also need to make sure you find one from the right year. For example, you would buy a 1971-74 E body dash pad if you have a car from one of those years. Once you have purchased a pad, bring it with you to the auto shop to have it installed.