Ducman82

i need to find some insulation like that factory stuff to do some repairs. did you clean and reuse the factory insulation on the heat shields too?

BigAl1

Yep. The firewall insulation I only cleaned in-place, then repaired a couple small tears with aluminum tape.

BigAl1

And the progress continues.... With a lot of cleaning done in the last couple weeks, things are starting to come back together for the interior. I washed all the seatbelts as they had mildew in some places, and every other surface was removed and cleaned, including all the hardware. Feels good to get all the old smoke and grime out, leaving it fresh for our enjoyment! With the new 1/2" foam insulation installed, the center console and rear seats fit nice, just waiting for the carpet to do the final install. I'm thinking a dark silver or navy blue color carpet to break up all the black color in the interior.
The defrost vent plenums had their top gaskets all twisted because the dash was installed badly at some point, so had to cut out the bad sections and replace with a soft foam. I'll be careful when putting the dash in this time! Speaking of the dash... been working on it slowly after getting a dash recover kit from Rob Budd. Following his advice and written instructions with the kit, it is going well. Just completed the first stage of bondo filling and sanding, hopefully 1 more to go, then start laying on the foam underlayment.

Jadz928

Looking Really good! That carpet is going to really tie the room together...

LEADASS

I'm wondering if you had to do any reinforcement to the back side of the dash? I didn't know if it would tend to crack on the old failure point. Looks great, very inspiring keep up the good work. Brian

Podguy

I will continue to shrink and crack. It is not the backing but the material itself that shrinks. I found with the pods the best way to fight off the sun was to put on a fiber glas mask - weave - with some plastic primer to bond it to the surface of the pod.

Although this maybe over kill since the leather will stretch and shrink on its own. Eventually new cracks will develop as well as the material peeling off the structure.

BigAl1

Brian,
The dash cracks are in the vinyl and foam on top of the steel frame, so it was recommended to grind out the cracks to give more surface area for a 5-minute epoxy to grab. I filled the cracks this way, then sanded flush, and used bondo filler to smooth the flaws.

Ducman82

every one of your posts needs new pictures added........

BigAl1

More dash work... Finished filling some gaps with bondo, then final sanding with many checks for the defrost vent fitup. A final wipedown with solvent, then I started laying on the foam included with the kit. I made sure to read the instructions completely first - I had never tried anything like this before, and didn't want to screw it up! But, with care, and following Mr. Budd's instruction and tips, it came out nice. Not totally done yet with the vinyl install, but the main gluing is complete, just have to do the fine trimming around all the edges and glue them behind. Last will be to cut the vent holes and fit these parts.

BigAl1

Dash is DONE! With new flex air ducts installed from the HVAC box, the dash was ready to install. Once in place for test fitting, I found there is a small gap across the front edge vs the front window so when looking down through the glass I could see green paint revealed - not good. So, used some leftover black vinyl cut into strips and glued to the surface to hide the green. Now it looks great! Still have to get the A-pillar covers installed, and need to pull down the front of the headliner to get them in. I didn't have to do that when disassembling, but I think the added thickness on top of the dash is preventing me from installing easily. I don't want to force them in and risk tearing or scratching the new dash cover, so will take the long route. Next up for the interior is the guage pod upgrades to LED, and redesign the center console to flush concept.

Podguy

Sometimes when things are tight I use a thin metal shield. For example, the exterior trim around the top of the window slides up out of the clips. I use a thin putty knife and maybe a rubber glove to pad it or some masking tape to protect the paint. Then I can use a plastic tool to pry on the trim and remove it without damaging the paint.

You can do the same thing with installing the A pillars. A little vinyl cleaner can act as a lubricant. You should be able to just loosen the corner of the headliner and have enough room to fit the A pillars.

The job looks great

BigAl1

Thanks Dan. Got the center console stripped down and started cleaning it, then roughly located it to see what challenges I have to fit a double-DIN Nav stereo chassis in a flush center console design. I prefer the highest position - right below the center vent, but the ~170mm chassis depth will hit the vacume pot for the center vent flap. It looks like if the central warning strip is put above the stereo, the chassis will clear the vacume pot, but need to mock up the stereo to verify this.

FLYVMO

Al,

I had a Kenwood double-DIN Nav/DVD unit in my '86.5, and it fit fine depth wise. I moved the AC button panel down to the bottom, and kept the HVAC controls on top. I don't have any pictures left of the install but the only thing that needed major alteration was the trim pieces to make it look factory. Ended up fabricating a trim piece out of balsa wood, and then fiberglassed it, and covered it in leather.

Your project is coming along great, excellent job!

Cheers,
Carl
90GT project

77tony

Big Al, Like Carl (FLYVMO) said above, just move both the A/C controller and ! panel below the double din. My double din head unit on the GTS would not fit either until I flip-flopped them. Your project is coming along very nice. Just Peachy should be back from paint soon, so I am watching this thread closely because I don't fully remember exactly how it all goes back. I think I will leave the windshield out after paint until at least the inner workings behind the dash are installed. Keep up the good work. T

Podguy

That is a nice look for the stereo. I assume you have a back up cam and a screen to tell you if the electric motor is running and the condition of the battery.

I put my GPS - but it is an old unit in place of the Ashtray. The ashtray is always a good target to eliminate. But you need to keep the acessory plug - probably better on the back of the storage tray.

Good luck.