For my first attempt at fixing the reflection problem with the ZOE’s windscreen I ordered a roll of anti-slip dash liner material from Amazon (see Figure 2).

I then constructed a cardboard template to capture the shape of the dashboard. First I taped together six sheets of white A3 card to make myself effectively one large single sheet of card. Then I followed the method described in a YouTube video (unfortunately no longer available) to cut the template. Essentially it involves cutting the card to approximately the shape and size of the dashboard, then refining it through a series of steps.

The first step is to make ‘fringing’ cuts around the windscreen edge; these allow the template to be pushed into the far curving corners, with the fringes being folded back, and eventually cut away, to get the right shape.

The second step is to capture the location of key features, particularly required cut-outs such as for the windscreen air vents and dashboard loudspeakers. This is done by using a ‘brass rubbing’ approach. In other words, you push down the cardboard template over the required features then rub a pencil (or graphite on your fingers) over them so that their outlines are transferred to the template. The template can then be removed and these areas cut around.

The third and final step is to fit the template as far forward and tightly as possible, and then cut around the front edge (for example above the instrument panel) to make a neat edge. Once done, it’s then a relatively straightforward process to take the intended dash material and cut it to match the template, finishing it off as necessary once in position.

The completed dashboard cover is shown at Figure 1. It fits pretty well, almost entirely covering the dashboard while not obscuring the air vents or speakers. It does a pretty good job of reducing the twin issues of windscreen reflection and ‘hovering’ air vents. It also grips very well, without needing any gluing or fixing.

However, it’s not perfect. Firstly, it has a slight shininess to it, and a visible texture, which means it isn’t entirely effective at eliminating the reflection (in bright sunshine I can see the texture reflecting in the windscreen). Secondly, I cut out the holes for the air vents as two long holes, rather than one for every vent, and it turns out that this means I can still see the small bits of dashboard between the air vents ‘hovering’ in my view.

So, back to the drawing board for me. I’ll cover my next attempt at coming up with a solution in another post.