Recently got Beat! Need some cosmetic parts

[Ben]

Hello all! I got bought a Beat and need some small parts to smarten it up.

First of all many many thanks to ozsamurai for the radio buttons... came today and I have just fitted them. All in all I needed four of the set... but ended up changing all of them as they were a slightly more grey than the others. So I have two Beat radio buttons if anyone needs them... the (5-6) button and the bottom left button which says 'BS'. The replacement 'bs' button says 'scan rpt', anyone know what the difference is (apart from the writing :) )?

However, I am also missing some of the other radio bits and bobs... namely the up and down buttons on the left , the eject button and the tape flap (see pic). Anyone know where I can get replacements? I've checked the yahoo auctions but nada :(

The beaten up condition of my stereo appears to be a result of some genius trying to steal it at some point. There are scratches all around the unit. The scratches on the grey plastic I can probably sort with a product called displex. Its for mobile screens but works by slightly melting the scratches ridges, smoothing them out and filling in the trench. I've tried a bit today and it seems to be working.... may require repeated applications :

http://l8shop.net/Products/Displex_Display_Polish__Scratch_Remover.aspx

However the scratches above the radio, on the air conditioning plate seem to be on paint. So basically I need a replacement a/c plate. Looking at the yahoo auctions there is a replacement central column :

http://page12.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/p20679424

but i think the plate I need is a separate part... it seems to be a grey painted plate. Any help?

The last couple of bits i'd like is the chrome exhaust tip... the narrow, brown, pitted thing drooping out of the back of my beat makes me feel a little depressed looking at it. And a MPH speedo plate. The one i have has stickers put in the relevant places but it just looks bad. The original plate is black. ozsamurai suggests i get in touch with Paul.

Sorry for the huge first post! Any help will be greatly appreciated. If anyone wants the radio buttons just get in contact.

Ben.

P.S. The Beat I have is the silver fella.. the type Z I think.

[adrianp]

Hi,

Firstly, welcome to the mad house... ;)

The radio button difference (bs & scan rpt) is because there was 2 different stereos available for the beat (40w & 120w) but now there is only 1 set of buttons available... (120w)

I'm trying to fix another stereo at the moment, if it doesn't work then I'll probably be able to let you have the tape bits you need.

As for the surround, the one in japan looks like it will do what you need, especially if you are replacing it because of the damage just above the stereo (ringed in the picture below)

As for the mph speedo, I don't think Paul has had them made up yet (still in plannng stage) but it's worth asking him anyway.

And yep, if the dial faces are black then yes you have a version Z.

The exhaust tip can be bought on the Jap auctions, but typicaly, there are none on there at the moment (there was 1 on Sat...)

Hope this helps, any other questions then just ask away.

Ady.

[chs74]

Hi,

i have a box wich convert km/h into mph.
I live in germany ond put it out of my beat.
Are you interested.
I have an installation guide am a sticker wich covers the km/h sign on the plate.

Greetings
Christian

[Wh1teLeopard]

I bet those scratches were caused by the previous owner trying to remove the stereo without realising there are 2 screws all the way down the back behind it...

I also have the same thing where I think someone tried to find out why the CD changer (which they later removed) wouldn't work...

Did the stuff you first tried remove minor scratches? Might be of use to myself if it did.

Oh and welcome :D

[graham45]

I had the same problem with mine.

I used my hot air gun to gently melt the plastic and dabbed it with sponges and clothes to get a similar pattern.

Its not perfect but a hell of an improvement.

[Ben]

Wow thanks for the quick replies everyone!

ady - Thanks for the info. Please let me know if you aren't able to resurrect your stereo... although I hope you can :) Looking closer at the central column it does appear as though its one unit! I don't understand why the bottom section finsih is the raw plastic and the upper part is painted to the same colour!?! I translated the yahoo part link with babelfish and in the unintelligible translation was the word 'scratched'. No use swapping my scratched one for a slightly less scratched at quite a bit of expense. I'm wondering if it would be possible to strip the remaining paint off the plate and get it resprayed, although I would have the first clue about how to go about this :)

chs74 - Does the item you have convert the speedo so that the kmph on the plate become mph. That sounds perfect. Is it tricky to install?

Wh1teLeopard - I wouldn't have thought the a Beat owner would abuse the console to that extent. It really looks as though someone was hacking away at it in a hurry. I didn't have time to test the Displex properly tonight but I'll have a go tomorrow and let you know how it worked. The test I did yesterday seemed to soften the edges of the scrach up and make the middle of it much less white... I reckon a number of applications will smooth them out nicely.

graham45 - Me + Beat + Heatgun = Fire engine + Casualty

Ben.

[chs74]

Hi again,

right. After installation the speedo show and count mph. In about 15 min. it is installed. Very easy.

Christian

[Wh1teLeopard]

Originally posted by Ben
graham45 - Me + Beat + Heatgun = Fire engine + Casualty

Ben.

HA HA HA! That's the funniest thing I've read all week! Well done that man! :D

Please keep us updated on your success with the central column. I'm trying to restore mine to it's former glory and would love to remove those scratches on mine.

Good luck :)

[graham45]

I had the entire interior stripped out.

Maybe best not to try it in-situ.

My upper panel was also damaged but the heat gun did the trick.

Slowly does it.

[Ben]

Update - The displex works great on the very shallow scratches, evens the edges out and makes the inside more grey, less noticable. On the bigger scratches, not much so you'd notice. Will consider the heatgun method, after stripping the interior out of course :)

Although I very nearly did manage to 'burn my beat down' (sounds like a michael jackson album). The radio cut off then the car stopped. 'Odd' I thought. Turned ignition... nothing. Turned again and it started... pulled off and suddenly the car filled with smoke! Pulled over smartly and jumped out. Opened the boot... the only thing more terrifying than having your car filled with smoke is opening your boot and seeing cheerful flames.

The bottom of the battery was on fire! how? The metal clamp holding the battery had come loose and fallen against the terminal. The battery has shorted straight onto bodywork, ran back upto the battery through the earth wire, frying the insulation on the way. The heat generated by the clamp-bodywork connection had set fire to the insulation under the battery and set the battery on fire.

Luckily I managed to blow out the fire before any major damage. Once the clamp had been knocked off the terminal, the engine started fine. Somehow the battery had survived! Short-circuit must have broken pretty quickly.. thank god. So everything worked out ok apart from a little melting on the battery and some fried wiring insulation.

Moral of the story... if your battery is clamped to the body make sure its secure.

Ben

[Wh1teLeopard]

:eek: Sounds like you were lucky.... i'm sure your beat does appreciate all the work you are doing... either that or it's trying to kill you :confused: It might be an idea to replace the battery anyway as a damaged one can't be good.