My hatred for the Elgin dash has nothing to do with style and everything to do with practicality -- if I wear my distance glasses while driving, I cannot read the dash numbers, but I can easily see where needles point.
I can usually get by without reading the speedo, since surrounding traffic provides plenty of clues, and sound provides a good enough clue for shifting, but if the dash is unreadable, I'd rather have no dash.
I will absolutely look into replacing the damned thing, even if I have to rely on a tablet with an ODB II connector. It is just wasted scrap metal for my purposes.