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You're better off to remove the old cloth on the headliner for many reasons. First off, it could begin to sag if you saturate it with too much adhesive and some areas the leather might not stick as well. Second, covering the whole headliner over it will make the headliner larger than it previously was so many of the parts might not line up. If you are able to find leather that is foam-backed then that is a great option.
I got a hide for dash that is big enough. I have the template cut out and will be fitting/applying the leather this weekend. Note I was able to apply the template (bed sheet) perfectly without removing the dash or steering column. Infact, it pretty much locks in place by the A pillars, A/C cents etc. in otherwords, you almost don’t even need to glue it. I’m debating about making a cut out for where the passenger airbag deploys and doing a false stitch around it and having material over it that isn’t actually attached.
Ordered some cheap vinyl that looks like the hide for the roof. It’s not foam backed so I think I’m going to just put it over the cloth that’s already there. If it says it sags, it sags and I’ll address later. I may also just apply it straight to the plastic without cushioning. Same for trim pieces.
Car is still gutted, applying the MVL to the floor is more difficult than I thought. Our floor has a ton of contours. I’m hoping to finish the floors this weekend. I’m worried that the carpets aren’t going to go in cleanly if I don’t contour the mvl well since the carpet is molded to all the contours.
fwiw, once you lift the carpet and see how cheaply thrown together our cars are you won’t regret the effort to do what I’m doing. Half the floor is styrofoam and there is ZERO oem sound deadening down there.
Once the floor and dash is done I can finally start putting the car back together. I’m also wrapping the entire center compartment in the same leather as the dash/trim.
While my car is gutted I’ve noticed a really bad hissing/sucking sound coming from what seems like the right qtr panel. The only thing I can think it could be is some sort of exhaust leak. It’s not an unfamiliar sound but it wasn’t as obvious with interior in the car blocking the noise somewhat. It’s pretty loud now.
Hopefully I can make some good progress this weekend.
It sounds like a good project you got going. I actually have been steadily working on the same thing for a little while, although I pulled the dash out too, I can't say I really needed to but once I had everything else out I figured I might as well. You're right about not being much to the floors, however there is some good insulation on the underside of the carpets. I have been using the Noico sound deadener too, I am also layering over it with the Noico insulation in many places I bought a couple boxes of both the 150mil and 315mil. I also grabbed a few rolls of denim insulation to fill some more awkward places and as a final insulative layer. My interior is all in really good shape so I am not going down the leather wrapping route, however have given some thought to custom making new leather inserts in the door and rear quarter panels. I am just trying to figure out a tasteful plan that fits with the entire look and color of the car (red/black/brushed aluminum). I also intend to prewire for changing the stereo when I can afford to ditch the Bose, likely for Focal. Good luck with everything, post up some pictures, love to see your progress.
@KidJai06 Aye, someone else as crazy as me! Sounds like we are on the same page for the most part. Audio is gonna be my little treat to myself after I finish all this work.
If you are going through the trouble to strip the car I HIGHLY recommend you do the full sound deadening job. CLD (Noico/Dynamat etc) isn’t a good sound deadener, it’s just for vibrations/resonance. While our car has huge issues with resonance, you may as well lay the CCF and MLV to get the full effect.
Also, I was using Noico but after spending some time in the DIYcaraudio forum I sided with those guys and I’m pulling the Noico and laying ResoNix. It’s real expensive ($280ish shipped per 40sqft box) but the TLDR on Noico is that it’s hot garbage and doesn’t do anything. Maybe they are exaggerating but I don’t want to risk doing all this work just to end up still having rattles everywhere b/ I was a cheap.
I'm pretty happy with the Bose suprisingly. It's possible that the insulation work I did to the floor is the reason but who knows.
Doors will be next once I replace the driver's door.
The cool thing about these doors is how they Isolate the interior by using that black panel that holds the regulator unlike other vehicles that is all one piece with big holes and only plastic sheeting to cover this.
Nice bit of research, figuring out black versions of those handles.
I was in a similar situation a few years ago, wanting black plastics for the 3rd brake light, because of the rear-window tint. I ended up painting it instead of sourcing a replacement.
Yea handles are from the Nismo Sentra. I think regular Sentra has beige top trim like our car. I’m unaware if there is another black handle that’s like ours.
I also have the 370z map light and I’m getting 370z visors but I’m actually going to wrap the visors so it matches and gets rid of that ugly yellow warning sticker that you can’t remove. I still needed black so the mirror and parts that attach are black.
Only beige bits I don’t have answers for is the hook to hold dry cleaning and the seat belt parts. Seat belt is going to be tricky b/ you can’t even really remove that stuff:/
Yea handles are from the Nismo Sentra. I think regular Sentra has beige top trim like our car. I’m unaware if there is another black handle that’s like ours.
I also have the 370z map light and I’m getting 370z visors but I’m actually going to wrap the visors so it matches and gets rid of that ugly yellow warning sticker that you can’t remove. I still needed black so the mirror and parts that attach are black.
Only beige bits I don’t have answers for is the hook to hold dry cleaning and the seat belt parts. Seat belt is going to be tricky b/ you can’t even really remove that stuff:/
Best bet for belts is to dye them in tinted hot/salty water. The belt will take the black however the buckle might or might not. If it doesnt then you can always paint as it's plastic.
Seat belt is going to be tricky b/ you can’t even really remove that stuff:/
Every time I look into getting new seat belt straps, in some color that isn't dirty beige, I come away confused and deterred. I wish there were something or some insight to a project like that. Something I keep missing.
@KidJai06 Aye, someone else as crazy as me! Sounds like we are on the same page for the most part. Audio is gonna be my little treat to myself after I finish all this work.
If you are going through the trouble to strip the car I HIGHLY recommend you do the full sound deadening job. CLD (Noico/Dynamat etc) isn’t a good sound deadener, it’s just for vibrations/resonance. While our car has huge issues with resonance, you may as well lay the CCF and MLV to get the full effect.
Also, I was using Noico but after spending some time in the DIYcaraudio forum I sided with those guys and I’m pulling the Noico and laying ResoNix. It’s real expensive ($280ish shipped per 40sqft box) but the TLDR on Noico is that it’s hot garbage and doesn’t do anything. Maybe they are exaggerating but I don’t want to risk doing all this work just to end up still having rattles everywhere b/ I was a cheap.
I’ll post some pics soon!
I gave a lot of consideration to what direction I wanted to go and definitely considered CCF and MLV but decided it wasn't worth the cost simply because my G isn't daily driven anymore. I really only drive in the spring/summer/fall and realistically only on nice days and usually with the windows down. I suppose the truth of the matter is that I ripped out the interior because I was bored and needed something to do. I did the trunk with Noico initially just to see how it compared since I never used the brand before and for the cost I am pretty happy with it. I also don't have aspirations for significant stereo upgrades, it will likely be a single 10" along with all the matching components so I am not too concerned. I will also look to preemptively address the areas of the car that are known to rattle despite that not being an issue (yet). If I was going to do anything more significant or it was still daily driven I would definitely invest more into it. In retrospect I wish I had taken some sound level measurements before I started just to see the difference and at what point there one starts to get diminishing returns with respect to material and cost.
Spent all day cutting and laying mlv. It’s slow progress, but progress is progress. Focusing on the center first. Took this photo half way through today. Getting the center sorted out and draping the MLV down both sides is def the way to go. Wasted a lot of time until I realized that. Here is my car if anyone was curious... Never posted a pic of it. Just snapped this today while I was working, wasn’t trying to make it look “cool”. Missed it by a mile!
Yea, I live in a condo in south beach. They have strict rules that you cant work on your car. I stripped the car in my condo b/ I was basically working inside my car not bothering anyone. But for the big parts of the job I’ve been going to my the roof of my office garage in coral gables. It’s totally empty so I don’t have to worry about bothering anyone or having anyone bother me.
03-01-2020, 01:02 PM
