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INTERIOR

The interior has been restored to something more pleasant and functional than the "Bumblebee" theme it was in at the time of purchase. A combination of palomino and slate vinyl was used to re-upholster the interior surfaces. The center panels of the seats were perforated for comfort and appearance. A new Autosport steering wheel was installed along with floormats that are more in keeping with the new color scheme.

Upholstered panels were made to replace the original yucky carpet panels. The door pulls were restored and new window cranks were installed. The window frames were repainted and new felt channels were installed for the quarter windows.

The seat belts were renewed and re-wound. An "ENGINE START" button was added to the instrument panel for a modern look and to take the electrical load off of the ignition switch.

INTERIOR RESTORATION

The restoration of the interior was a major project requiring resolving a number of challenging issues.

SEAT TRACKS

  • The first issue of the interior was the missing seat tracks.
  • New seat tracks were made by modifying universal tracks.
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  • The seat buckets and support brackets were restored and painted the correct interior color.

    • REAR BULKHEAD

  • While restoring the seats it was important to check the rear bulkhead for corrosion. This can result from leaking rear and side windows.
  • Fortunately this car only had some surface rust.
  • The drivers side rear window was loose and this was re-glued in place.
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  • The surface rust was removed and and the bulkhead painted with Eastwood rust encapsulator and then with corrosion resistant paint.

    • DOOR PANELS

  • The reflectors on the rear of the door pulls were missing. I made new reflectors by modifying some generic ones.
  • Eventually I was able to source an original reflector but it fit so poorly I retained these.
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  • The original mud brown door panels had been dyed black. I had Colorplus make some dye color matched to the palomino vinyl and re-dyed them to match.
  • I made upholstered panels to replace the yucky original carpet panels.
  • The door pulls were restored from "Bumblebee" yellow to the correct original interior color and the padded panels were upholstered in the slate vinyl.

    • CONSOLE PANELS

  • Here are other interior panels after reupholstering.
  • The trim panels on the instrument console were painted in the correct interior color.
  • The handbrake surround panel was missing on the car. In it's place I designed an upholstered boot and had it made.
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  • These are the parts of the dashboard after restoration and painting.
  • The repair and restoration of the dashboard pad is a whole story in itself...

    • DASHBOARD PADS

  • The plastic support panels for the dashboard pads would shatter and break just looking at them! These required a great deal of effort, cleverness and care to at least functionally repair.
  • This shows the metal repair panels I made to restore some of the function of the original panel.
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    FUSEBOX COVER

  • The fusebox cover was another missing part on this car.
  • After looking at some photos of other cars, I made this cover.
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  • This is the cover completed.
  • Plastic quarter turn buttons are used to retain it.

    • INSTRUMENT CLUSTER

  • The top of the plastic instrument cluster hood was warped from heat, or maybe just Italian plastic.
  • I made an internal support to restore the shape.
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    INSTRUMENT PANEL WIRING

  • With the instrument panel out it was time to sort out the wiring, some of which had been given the spaghetti treatment..
  • So I sorted and labeled all of the connectors. All of the grounds were cleaned. Issues with ignition switch wiring were sorted.
  • I installed a master relay to reduce the load on the ignition switch.
  • Additionally, the vacuum lines for the HVAC system were sorted.
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  • The "ENGINE START" button circuit was installed at this time too. This operates the starter solenoid via a relay in engine compartment to further reduce the load on the ignition switch.

  • For some enthusiasts, the most important thing is to install a big-a$$ sound system at whatever the cost or damage. This car came "equipped" with some of these kind of components - those were the first things to go.
  • Here is the result of installing the important sound system - a rats nest of disconnected wires taped aside. Gee, I wonder why some of the things don't work on the dashboard?
  • Another consequence of this "work" was the destruction of the fiber optic panel light system. R.I.P.

    • Contact Ron Jones at 949-637-6067 or rjones@rongineer.com