Besides having a few small cracks in my blue dash that I would like to keep from growing, I find the glare off of these dashes to be pretty annoying during sunny mid day driving. Does anyone have experience with good mats that have a tight fit and are under $40.00? I'm leaning towards velour. Thanks

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'81 300SD

i'd be interested in this as well, although for a w123. i've seen really poor quality loose ones, and really nice tight fitting ones, but from a distance the fabric looks the same.

From what I've heard, try Coverking rather than Dashmat. Their velour dashboard covers are ~$40 and they have other materials as well.

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Sam

84 300SD 350K+ miles ( Blue Belle )

i wonder what would be better-- black to match the color of the rest of the dash, or to match the color to the seats and the rest of the interior

i've got a "Dash Designs" carpet looking dash mat on mine; looks ok. i think it was only $20

It probably depends on how closely the new fabric matches the older fabric in your car. I noticed that Coverking will send you fabric swatches and this would probably be the route to take if you are trying to match.

You may like the darker colors as they seem to not reflect off the inside of the windshield, which bothers some people when they drive. The black will also be the easiest to match of course.

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Sam

84 300SD 350K+ miles ( Blue Belle )

I went with Coverking and received the mat today. I'm happy with the fit and color, but they did not cut an area for the temp sniffer. Is that gauge so sensitive that it really matters whether or not it's covered? Thanks

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'81 300SD

Hmmm, I would imagine it needs to be open as there isn't much "airflow" through it. I believe it is mostly static air temp. My temp sensor is overhead, I guess MB moved it sometime during those years.

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Sam

84 300SD 350K+ miles ( Blue Belle )

Only very early W126s have the cabin temp sniffer on the dashboard... IMHO a better place for it since the sun warms it and makes the climate control adjust accordingly.

-J

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1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

The reason they moved it from the dashboard to the overhead light area was so that you could have the sunroof open on a sunny but cold day. The HVAC would adjust interior temperature to the desired setting measured at the entry point of the cold air.

After learning this I've used the sunroof on a couple of chilly days and kept the HVAC on automatic at 75 and it did a fine job of keeping me comfortable.

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1984 300 SD 384,000 Miles

That's true!

-J

Okay, so do you think I should send this cover back in return for one that has a hole for the sniffer? One thing also to keep in mind is that I rarely use the automatic setting for temperature. I use it when I first turn on the AC for the moderate fan speed it gives me until the cabin cools down, then I set the fan on low.

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'81 300SD

Even with the van on low the system is still going to use the sniffer to regulate the temperature.

Could you cut a small hole for the sniffer?

-J

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1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.