Howdy,
Having realized that I missed my '79 924, I recently purchased a
mechanically sound '86 944 with all the usual 944's bodily sins:
hood struts shot (replacements on the way),
broken hinge on armrest/cassette console (fixed with brass hinges)
non-functional AC (contemplating a retrofit kit)
cracked dash

I'm a bit stumped on the last.  I don't like the looks of the fabric
dash covers, and I'm not sure about the plastic ones - I've read both
good and bad, and not sure I want to shell out almost $100 on something
questionable (hey, thats _two_ tanks of gas!).

Being a bit of a DIY'er (iow, a cheap bastard), I've thought about
buying a scrap of leather ($20 or less, US) and fabricating a dash
cover from it.  I have a black interior, so color matching won't be
hard.  I haven't seen this in the archives (going back a year), and I
don't have any experience in leatherworking or upholstery.

Does anyone here have any experience with doing something like this?
Any tips - would you recommend this, or not - and why?

Anyone know a good 944 mechanic in central MI?  I'm fond of Schumaker's
in Kalamazoo (positive experiences with my 924), but that's a bit of a
drive.