A Florida man claims his car's dashboard is melting and it's a huge safety issue.
When the automaker said it was not a defect, he called WFTV. Todd Ulrich found millions of cars could have the problem and one company promised repairs, but lots of drivers are still waiting.
Zach Reddy’s fingers stick to the dashboard, leaving visible prints behind. He said the dash in his 2008 Nissan Altima started melting a year ago.
“When we're going in the sun's direction, I can't see the road in front of me,” Reddy said. “It can get real bad in a matter of seconds.”
Reddy says after repeated complaints, Nissan agreed to replace it only if he paid half, which cost about $1,000.
“You can't be admitting to something and only paying half,” Reddy said.
There are many others complaints, including a class action lawsuit against Nissan.
Stephen Hohenstein said his dashboard melted inside his 2007 Toyota Camry.
“The dash began to dissolve in front of my eyes," Hohenstein said.
Just last year, Toyota agreed to replace more than 4 million melting dashboards in older Toyotas, including Hohenstein’s. But he claims the automaker is not scheduling repairs and he worries the longer it takes the less likely it will get fixed.
“It's been a year and I got no response back from Toyota,” Hohenstein said.
Repair expert Jay Zembower has heard from many Toyota and Nissan owners with melted dashboards the automakers have not replaced. He recommends a temporary basic safety fix.
“The cheap way is to take an old towel and lay it across the dash to kill the glare going into the windshield,” Zembower said.
Nissan said there's no recall, no safety issue, and Reddy’s car was out of warranty. It offered to pay half to replace it as a good will gesture.
“It's a safety issue before it's a cosmetic issue,” Reddy said.
Toyota’s extended warranty covers certain Camrys, Avalons, 4Runners and Siennas. It said replacement parts have been delayed but it will honor warranties.
Toyota models covered:
4Runner 2003-2005
Avalon 2005-2010
Camry/Camry Hybrid 2007-2011
Sienna 2004-2010
Solara 2004-2008
Some Lexus models may also qualify for dashboard replacement:
ES 350 2007-2008
GX 470 2003-2008
IS 250/350 2006-2008
LS 460 2007
RX 330 2004-2006
RX 350 2007-2009
RX 400h 2005-2008
Contact your dealer for more information.
