I tried to do the same thing with my car. I took it to the dealer to have them take everything apart but they couldn't do the PCM. Also they couldn't remove the air vents cover

 

I would of paid good money for that too.

Ken, I think I've seen you driving around Irvine...beautiful car!

 

NO NO NO it is possible to remove the face,you will need help of another person ...

 

Eric can help us more about that but I have been told that the bottoms and the screen get covered and then paint the rest so why would they cover them if the face can be taken apart????? you could be right as I'm not sure

 

No, the buttons do not get covered nor the screen. All the buttons have to be removed before paint to do the job.

 

I wish I had more patience and someone to take pics/video and i would have been happy to do it for nothing.

Bruce

 

Had the vent slats painted gloss black from the factory.

 

No, it all has to be disassembled. If you send the whole unit to get painted, you will get the whole unit back unpainted.

 

I took my car to the dealer to have the PCM face, air vents and the gauges circle dissassmbled but they said it not possible .

When Fred did his RS, the bottom was covered and it was kind of hard job but If it's easy to take the face out I think everyone can paint his. just take it off and send it to any body shop no need to cover anything.

 

Problem is that the face plate for the PCM is not available as a seperate part and they have no tech document to disassemble it, so they are not going to assume the risk to have to replace the whole unit at $3000 if they break something. This is probobly the case with the air vents and the gauge circles.

I'm sure you could tape stuff off to get the job done but to do it right the only way is to have a completely blank face plate.

I actually thought about offering to diassemble and reassemble the PCM and all the control buttons for people to have them painted. But because of the high risk involved and the delicate nature of the job, I figured it would have to be $400 or $500 for the job, plus your paint. In addition, i would have to make everybody sign a waiver that it may void your PCM warranty and leave me held harmless.

 

b911s: I am pretty patient and capable in doing mechanical and electrical work, most recently with my installation of a PSE system including control switch in console. Would you say the the disassembly of the PCM unit takes anything more than care and patience? Any special knowledge, experience, or tools required? What is your estimate of the time to disassemble ready to send face for painting?

 

wow so you did yours by yourself ? and what's the deal if I want to do it through bumper plugs

 

i think with the proper torx tools, the PCM can be easily taken a part. then, just send the face to BumperPlugs or any other paint shop

 

It is not terribly difficult to do the job and as mentioned above you just need the right tools. A T6 Torx and maybe a T7/8, I really cant remember off the top of my head, a couple of very small flat head screwdrivers and an exacto knife. Disassembly time once everything is removed I would estimate at around 2 hours, considering the examination of how the buttons come out. I dont know what Eric at Bumperplugs offers at this point but when i had mine done everything had to be removed. Just make sure to keep the tabs from the back of the buttons matched up for reassembly. If your someone that tinkers with this kind of stuff then it shouldnt be to much of a stretch but if you never have I might pass and look for someone to do it.

Hope this helps,

Bruce

 

After you do one you can do 1000, like anything else.
Yes it is hard to remove the buttons, I used a dentist tool and that really helped but with a xacto and mini flat screwdrivers the job can be done like mentioned above.
For the primer my painter is using a Standox spray can ready to use because it is very thin and this will help the buttons to freely move,tomorrow I will go to see the painted parts....scary momentttt