TireSmoke.org

With a new year comes a new thread, and even more so as I finally started a long-needed project on my car -- the carpeting and interior. All the work I've ever done to this car involved mechanical changes. Never any cosmetic upgrades. While I still have some unresolved engine issues, the thing starts/runs/drives for the moment. Let's get something else completed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAGysJe_js0

The seats weren't awful except for a burn mark made by my troublelight a few years back. The arm rests and door panels have clearly seen better days. The carpeting was terrible. It was also sort of a pain to get the old carpeting out as it was glued to the padding which is also glued to the floor. I had to literally tear the whole thing out. But as a whole, the interior was easier to remove than I thought. One seat-mount bolt did snap off, so I'll have to drill that out.

The bigger issue is the floorboards. While they are probably worse than I thought, I think they are very fixable using the available patches. It's certainly not bad enough to need an entire new floorpan, though. Everything from the back-seat area rearward, including the trunk and wheel wells looks mint. The question is -- will this be the project where I learn to do some metal work? Cutting out the old floor pieces, trimming the patch if needed, and welding in the patch. I have a Miller-matic 115v MIG welder on long-term loan. If the welds aren't so hot, at least they are somewhere they won't be seen. Fear of the unknown, I guess.

In the meantime, I have a lot of sanding to do to remove all that old padding. I wonder if I should install a bunch of Dynamat at re-assembly?

-Dave

Looks like water is getting in somewhere and caused the floor rust. Would be good to run a garden hose in the cowl, both sides and middle, first and check for drips inside. Then run the hose all along the windshield gasket and again look for drips inside. If water is getting in you'll surely want to fix the leak(s) before you fix the floors.

Floors are a good place to start and develop some sheet metal welding technique. If you haven't welded sheet metal before, practice, practice, practice on some scrap before you try the floors. I spent a week and a tank of MIG gas on scrap. Most people probably wouldn't need that much.

When I did the Maverick I also had no sheet welding experience and a long-term borrowed MIG welder. (Thanks WXO!)

Auto dimming helmet is a huge advantage over the face plate that comes with some welders because you see the work right before the arc and immediately when the arc strikes.

Stitch welds, not beads, for the novice.

So I think I'm overdue for an update here.

I talked to a few people about the floor replacement in my car. I decided I wasn't comfortable doing it since there was quite a bit that needed to be replaced. My friend Rich worked for some time up at Chester Auto Body, as did his father. He lives around the corner from my parent's house. After talking with him, he suggested I get the four different floor pan pieces instead of the two halves that I had considered.

As timing would have it, Tony was in Atlanta visiting a friend and he stopped at Auto Metal Direct (AMD) and picked up the 4 pieces, saving me a nice buck on shipping. They are really nice quality. You can see the front floor pieces, the drivers side is already welded, and the passenger side is still being fit. The rear floors look better than they are.

This is a long overdue project for this car and I'm happy to be finally getting it done. Once the floor is complete, I can at least bolt my old seat back in while I decide how I want to re-do the interior. I think I would like to do bucket seats with some sort of floor shifter, but probably not factory stuff.

-Dave

Ever consider putting a six point cage in that car? Would be good for a track day, racing seat belts, and safety. Plus they make you look pretty serious too. Now would be the time.

-BP

OK! Serious progress and I thought nothing was happening.
Also, I like that roll bar idea.

Nah, no cage for this thing. You're right, now would be the time to do it. But, it'll never be more than just a fast street car. I'll never get past 11.50s until I either use a power-adder or go big block, neither of which is in the near future. Either one of them would require me to upgrade the trans I just put in. The engine I have is probably borderline for it.

If the floor gets done soon enough, I'll throw my bench back in so I can drive it the rest of the season while I figure out what seats to get. I am interested in converting it to bucket seats with some sort of floor shifter. 4th-gen F-body seats? Aftermarket seats from Summit?

-Dave

What about Cobalt SS seats? I bet you could find a pair somewhere in black and blue...

http://cleveland.craigslist.org/ptd/4530119566.html

-BP

Corbeau racing seats and full cage. Just sayin.

Actually, Dave, couldn't you use those wheels to mount some Blizzaks on?

Blue_69_malibu wrote:Actually, Dave, couldn't you use those wheels to mount some Blizzaks on?

Maybe, but probably not. They gotta be 18s or they won't clear my brakes. I took the alternate route and bought a 4WD truck instead.

Cobalt SS seats might not be bad. I wonder how well those blue ones would match my interior.

-Dave

The floors are done! I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.














-Dave

Anytime you can't see the road through rust holes is a good time. I'm excited for you brother.

Mint!

GM

ttamrettus wrote:Anytime you can't see the road through rust holes is a good time. I'm excited for you brother.

Hey Matt: Those are actually the floor boards that I picked up from AMD down by you back in April. Still wish we could have hooked up for lunch......b/c Dave was buying.