Some updates to mention before and during the interior restore. New heater core installed,
new hoses as well. Replaced the turn signal switch, electronic ignition module and starter switch and the
rear axel seals and brakes were replaced. Now for the interior...
March/April 2008 - Headliner Splits and Drops
I was installing the new door and hatch gaskets... looked up and saw the headliner.
I was planning on restoring the interior at some later time but since I needed a new windshield gasket
and the headliner dropped.. I guess now would be a perfect time.
I started by stripping the interior. I planned on repainting the dash and doors.
Here I have assembled the parts to reinstall. The 80 Pinto I scrapped donated
some of the interior parts for the restore. The original rear panels in this car were brittle
and crumbling so I used the ones from the 1980. The under dash defrost vent also came from the 1980
and the 1973 donated the coin tray and door panels that were not used during its restore.
Here I have everything painted and assembled, ready to be reinstalled.
Time to get the car ready for reassembly. Started with repainting the dash,
Rustoleum Cobalt Blue Metallic. Sanded, primed and painted.
New headliner installed, I did it myself.
A few wrinkles but not to bad for my first time.
Here's the speakers I installed to fill the holes in the panels from the 1980.
Since the interior is blue I decided to use speakers that light up blue with the flick of a switch
mounted under the dash.
The blue dice came with the car so....
Blue dice door locks were needed...
...and a blue dice shifter as well. It's not as big as it looks
in the picture and not really unconfortable to use. In this picture you also see
the new AM/FM, CD, MP3, WMA stereo I installed. All the lights for it are blue
and I can plug in USB flash drives as well as SD memory cards for music. You also
see the runabout emblem I installed in the coin tray for a nice finished touch.
Then came the window treatments for the rear..
..and a closeup.
now for the front windshield..
Now for some shots of the finished interior.
Carpet had been replaced by the previous owner, I left as is.
The seats are original, I need to do a little cleanup but they will have to be
redone at some later point. Still OK for now but starting to split at the seams.
The door panels came from my 1973, used to be beige but some blue
wedgewood vinyl paint was a perfect match for the seats.
Doors look much better with the cobalt blue vs.
the baby blue the previous owner painted them. Also the New Door, Windshield
and Rear Hatch Gaskets are a welcome addition, recently tested during an all day
rain and no leaks yet :o)
Steering wheel is from the 1976 Mustang II I sent to the junkyard last summer, inserts painted blue to match.
And a couple shots of the exterior..
.. notice the blue pinstriping down the sides has been removed, it was starting to peal off so I helped it along.
And Yes... I made a video...
Just before winter set in and having driven it all summer as a daily driver...
I had time for one last mini project before I put it away for it's long winter nap. New brakes and
lines for the front, radiator referbished and painted, cleaned up under the engine, tighten down a
few things and... tear into that engine compartment! to clean it up. A leaky valve cover gasket
needed replacing and once I got started tearing it apart... I couldn't stop. Not as detailed as
I would have liked however time was limited and it is a daily driver after all :-)
