There is no additional factory tint that is applied to the Z windows :twocents:

It's just the characteristics of the glass they use. The glass is already not 100% clear.

70% is great. 50% is a little too much but awesome when people come up on you with their bright lights on. Never had an issue with it on the car. 70% is hardly noticeable unless you know what you are looking for.
You rode in my car, you didn't even notice it. I have been known to bend a tint law every now and then. LMAO!!!! All of my cars have 70% front window tint. I will never have another one that is not tinted.

It was grey enough outside that I did notice the reduced visibility. No wonder your car was so slow!! :stirthepot: :rofl2: jk man I know 50% is not bad

As a passenger, I prefer tinted windows all around: 5% please. But as a driver I do not like any of the windows to be tinted because it reduces visibility. Just a personal preference. Living in Texas, believe me I understand their desirability for most people.

I've gotten a rental car before with the front windshield tinted pretty good. They didn't believe me until we looked at another car.

Since you have such a hard time driving, I can see why.

IKR... now imagine how much damage there would be if I had tinted windows :eek: :bowrofl:

it is quite obvious that the problem with the dash has nothing to do with the owners. It occurred in all different climates and with/without any protectant.

It is likely that there is some variance in the manufacturing process and/or materials used.

:iagree:

The most common factor I can find is people that daily drive the car and then stop driving it for a while and leave it in the garage. I did this with mine and the dash turned to shìt in less than 3 months.

that's possible, but I think your dash has probably reached that time limit. Mine was fine til about the 4th to 5th year. I'm in South California where the weather is mild and dry.

My car is garage and the dash looks normal after cleaning. However, it would get oily in about a minute once it is under the sun regardless of the temp. My guess is that the dash material reacts to the sunlight/UV and turns oily almost immediately.

You may be right in that it's just a matter of time. My car spent over 6 years and 100K miles in the hot Texas sun (garaged at night) and the dash still looked extremely clean. Three months after I parked it in the garage, it cracked at virtually every joint and the finish went to crap. Without even touching it.

Sorry that your dash cracked. It's just terrible that it went from good to oily and cracked in 3 months.

I read that you only cleaned with water without any protectant.... So the protectant being the culprit is out.

Not sure how much the dash and labor would cost. Perhaps the cheapest solution is to get a dash cover.

It's expensive. It's not difficult to DIY. Just tedious. I'm OCD enough to tackle it. Would never give Nissan another dime for a dash though. Thought about a CF dash from Cpt Obvious. But there are other things I'd rather spend my money on.

I had been trying to avoid coming that last conclusion. But once again, I think you may be right.

I'm on the same boat. As much as I like my Z, I am not going to spend thousands for a new dash that will likely go bad.

Using the money for the next toy is much more appealing.

I just read this whole thread. I was ready to buy the stickydashfix.com product and then I got to this post. :crying:

I called the dealer (they said they've never heard of this issue), then I called Nissan (told me there was nothing they could do, I asked if my complaint could be recorded, she asked for my name and then hung up on me).

My Z only has 35,000 miles on it and is in perfect condition. I noticed the shiny dash a couple days ago when I took it for a spin. There's so much glare on the windshield it's hard to see. I'm not a fan of the dash mat look. So I guess I'm just screwed.

Same boat here, same boat. That glare is no joke, literally dangerous actually. Hot sun can get the dash so shiny that the image on the windshield really distorts your forward vision.

If driving under afternoon sun, even if it's just 80F outside, gotta run the A/C to keep the glare at an "acceptable" level.

Good tip, I'll try this. I'm assuming run the a/c through the defroster vents?

Yes, or half and half on super hot days when I need some cool air blowing at me.

Okay, ya'll, this is really the weirdest thing. I know it's been discussed to death in this thread but I've never seen anything like this. I pull my Z out of the garage this morning into the hot 90 degree sun and take a look at the dash. It's miraculously cured! Not glossy, not sticky, not reflecting into my line of sight. I back out and go on my way. On the road 5 minutes later it's starting to shine a little. My passenger touches it and yep, getting sticky. We go down the road and I'm concentrating to look through the reflection on the glass because now it's gotten severe. We crank the a/c. A few minutes later, it's cured again. Back to oem matte look. Not sticky. I don't even know about this issue. It's straight-up weird.

Ya, it's because this is the cause of the issue:

"Apparently there’s a chemical inside the dashboard that oozes up to the top in high heat/humidity, giving it a sticky surface"

Looks like this was a common problem in all Nissan's from 2007 to 2015:

https://www.gregcolemanlaw.com/blog/...ettlement.html

I hope this has been fixed in newer Nissan Zs especially since Nissan settled a lawsuit in 2017. There is a good chance it has, because the dashboard has been replaced with a newer part number TWICE:

Original Dash: 68200-1EA0A (from 2009)
Later Dash: 68200-1EA1A
Latest Dash: 68200-1EA5A (present in 2020 Zs for sure and probably 2019s)

so both the shine and stickiness were gone? I found this hard to believe. :eek:

The AC temporary fixes it. It cools the dash, returning it to normal. If you turn off the AC, thr sun heats it and it gets sticky again.

Sent from my SM-G781U using Tapatalk

I think it depends on how far the deterioration has progressed.

In my case, fully infected: The hotter it gets, the wetter and stickier it becomes. The shiny goes away when cooled enough, but it never reverts back to the smooth-to-the-touch finish. Inside the garage , even in winter, the dash has a lighter gray color to it, easily mistaken as a layer of dust, until one tries to wipe it. Hot days with AC running, some parts of the dash may still be shinier than other parts, but should be much more tolerable, not as shiny, less reflection on the windshield. That’s my experience anyway.

Mine deteriorated while parked in the shade in the garage. Heat seems to help in my case. I started parking it in the driveway last August and the dash is basically back to normal. Such garbage...

That's kinda the case with my G37 too lol. It's in the driveway but under the carport, but still indirect sunlight vs completely sheltered in a garage. It's so weird.

So is there actually a FIX for this? I mean... is there an aftermarket dash you can buy to replace your dashboard for like a grand or 1500 or something? Or we're just stuck with it?

No known fix.

Buy a new dash with the later part no. if you really can't stand it.

Buy a used dash and take a chance...I did, turned out that dash was "infected" as well.

The only aftermarket dash I've seen was a CF dash, like 4 or 5 grand or something...safety is a concern tho...OEM dash has like a soft rubber layer for occupants' safety in a crash situation. Plus, I am unsure how the passenger side front airbag would deploy in this CF dash.

Plasti dip or wrap it....but when the dash gets heated and starts "melting", I suspect the glue won't stick, or may result in bubbles.

Then there's the carpet thing, if you're ok with it.

See my previous post. Buy the latest dash that came in the 2019 & 2020 models.

Thanks, I found it for $1300 at a Nissan parts place. I had searched RockAuto and couldn't find those parts numbers.

so the stickiness went away magically after you parked it outside under the sun?

How many days did it take?

Like 2 hot days. Now let's be clear... It didn't magically go away. But it's not gray ash looking or near as sticky as it was while sitting in the garage. Still a little sticky. Sometimes the sheen increases but never enough to bother me while driving. Haven't been able to pinpoint the variables that affect the sheen factor tho.

it made sense that the grayish look disappeared due to the oily surface.... I assume that you are keeping the car outside now and please keep us informed with the dash condition. Hopefully it will continue to get better. ;)

Definitely not getting better. It's been over a year now in the driveway. Park it in a garage for a few days and it turns gray and sticky again. Back in the sun and it's not gray and a little less sticky. Regardless, it's a pos dash.

The cracking seems to be getting worse.

Following this thread. So strange, I've never had this issue and my car goes from garage to outside pretty often. I do use an off shelf protectant product. Nothing fancy, just Meguiars. Is this is an early year model issue? or is it across the board for all years?

Sorry some of you are dealing with this.

I covered up with a dash mat that shows as micro suede. Not worth the time, effort, nor cost of any type of replacement in a 11 year old car, IMO.

Has anyone tried this yet? Thinking of getting to prevent the inevitable.

https://stickydashfix.com/collections/nissan

Member viragoboy did the regiment, final verdict is no-go. Below is his final reply, page 10 I think. Search his post history to see his detail write-up.

Thanks, from what I read it looks like he was using a different product off of Amazon. Not the same stuff. Maybe I'm mistaken but it looks like he was using something else. The product in reference comes from Australia.

It's only $50, I might go ahead and be the guinea pig for us, unless someone chimes in and says; "I used that exact product and it does not work."

Most of the cracks in my dash are on or near the edges of the dash (along the door and instrument panel curves). This summer a new crack has started appearing right in the middle of the dash. It runs from the windshield straight back to the glove box. It has not opened up into a full crack yet but it looks like an ugly seam.

I'll soon be reupholstering my M3 seats so I am going to have them look at the Z dash also and see what they have to say about the matter.

Good luck and please keep us posted about this. My dash hasn't cracked yet, but its seriously faded and gets really sticky and shiny in the sun, so I'm going to have to deal with it sooner then later.

Perhaps getting a nice dash cover is the short term solution to protect it from the heat the may result in cracks....

Any recommendation for the dash cover?

There Is Really Only One - Good Choice - Cover Craft Dash Cover
The Suede Mat (Black) Matches The Door Suede Exactly
I Got Samples But Not Ordered The Custom Fit Cover Yet
First Signs Of Trouble And I Will Get This One :rofl2:

https://www.covercraft.com/us/en/sho...z/dash-covers/

If YOU Or ANYONE Gets One Of These - Please Post Hard To Find Pics