I want to redo the whole colour scheme of the interior starting with the dash.

A) how do i take the dash out?
B)is it easier to paint or to re-upholster? and will painting it turn out decent?

going with a cobalt blue if that helps. lol

Ive done the centre consol, also wanting to know how to take out the dashboard strip in a TR.
I used white vinyl paint and sandblasted the plastic before i did, accidentally used satin paint and it gets dirty very easily.

Easy but you'll need a few tools.
Flathead screwdriver, 10mm socket, 12mm socket, philips head screwdriver, few extensions, and a 1/4" ratchet set with philips head attachment or just a screwdriver thats an L shape.

Remove centre console (4 self tapers)
Remove radio console (4 screws)
Remove heater surround (4 screws)
remove drivers kick panel cover (5 screws)
Remove glovebox (2 screws)
Remove glovebox surround (2 x 10mm bolts, 4 screws)
you will find 2 x 10mm nuts behind the glovebox surround, and the drivers kick panel area, remove
remove speaker grilles with flathead screwdriver.
With angled "L" screwdriver, or 1/4" ratchet and philips head attachment (or 8mm bit) remove the worlds worst dash speakers. I usually throw these out or use them as dangerous frisbee's
There will be a 10mm bolt behind each of these, remove it.
Remove dash cluster surround (2 screws)
Should be able to see the 2 x 10mm bolts. Remove

Now at this point, either take the steering wheel off, or drop the steering colom (4 12mm bolts)
You then have a few options;
1) in the engine bay, unscrew the speedo cable from the gearbox, very easy, should be able to get it undone by hand.
Or
2) take the cluster out (4 screws) and pop it out from the dash.

What else....

oh there is a 10mm bolts either side of the centre console....just below the radio, take off those plastic side kick panel covers, and probably use a ratchet with an extension to undo these.

by now, you just wiggle the dash every now and then, and you'll know if you missed something, then BANG it'll pop out.
You'll also have a few plugs to undo on the RHS of the dash, and in the middle of the dash, undo these, but if you don't, you'll soon figure that out.

Anything else just ask.Bit of a read I know but should cover everything I THINK!!!

Does the plastic need degreasing and priming? What type of paint works best? How long before it looks shoddy?

When i redo mine im going to put the extra effort in and go flat gloss or carbon fiber. I put matt white paint over the textured black plastic, and after about a year it cleans up ok, but i dont think i'll ever get the dirtyness out of the white paint...

Don't paint it. Dye it.

done this in my tr a couple weeks back, tufftr's instuctions as back then are spot on, i used SEM black vinyl dye and it looks wicked, just got to figure out how the glovebox bar goes back in.....

so i pulled all the doors out and centre console.. went and spoke to my car shop and was telling them what i was doing they said just tape the **** out of everything and paint the dash while its still in there... lol... so i have to wait until pay day to buy morte paint.. doors are looking mint as ****.. will upload photos at some point!

so i pulled all the doors out and centre console.. went and spoke to my car shop and was telling them what i was doing they said just tape the **** out of everything and paint the dash while its still in there... lol... so i have to wait until pay day to buy morte paint.. doors are looking mint as ****.. will upload photos at some point!

That's the lazy **** way of doing things. Don't do them half-assed. Do it properly.

i agree with tuff man rip it out and do it, its not hard and the result is waaaaaay better. if you feel the need to do it inside the car though mask the inside the doors, windscreen, EVERYTHING if you do rip it out make sure you give it a decent 24-48hour drying time ( bit less if you can get a mild heat lamp like i did )