Interior Restoration - Ongoing Project & Updates - DUW

[AOD]

This has been a project a couple weeks in the making, but I haven't really had the time to post it all on here yet. I've been taking pictures and such, so I wanted to share with everyone the fun.

I'll stay my interior is not very 'bad' at all - so it actually isn't really a restoration. More or less a sprucing up, but it is involving replacing worn out / dirty things.

The low-down on the car:

Seats - perfect. Two small stains on the rear backrest, should wash out, some small strands of loose fibers in the weave, should cut off. Plan is to cover the front seat with a seat cover from JCWhitney ($129). Rear seat may eventually get a cover, but not right now, unless I can't match the colors well.

Door Panels - Good shape, all there. Some darker stains on the carpet part of the driver door, but I'm hoping I can scrub them out. No loose panels on the door, trim and such looks good still.

Headliner - perfect shape. I replaced the visors with units sent to me by Tallen ($10). They matched good.

Dashboard and Dash Trim - The dash cover was trashed, I threw it away when I bought the car, it was that ugly. I have a nice non-cracked blue dashboard in a box waiting to go on ($75). :) The woodgrain / trim porition of the dash is in good shape as well.

Carpet - Dirty / trashed. Carpet will be replaced with a set of the aftermarket molded carpet ($150). I have color samples from two companies, but I will probably keep it the original color, as it looks really nice in the areas it did not fade / wear / get dirty. I found the original color under the rear seat. Floormats will be color matched to the new carpet ($70)

The other challenge in this will be controlling my ability to strip screws and break things when trying to take them apart. It's pure talent, I swear. ;)

Headliner and new visors installed:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/401151/fullsize/heater-core-swap-6-03-06-002.jpg

Rear seat in great shape:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/401152/fullsize/heater-core-swap-6-03-06-003.jpg

The interior tear down started with a planned heater core swap. Eric S. came up for the 4th of July weekend and gave me a hand. I purchased a CarQuest premium heater core and it came with a restictor already installed.

Dash pulled off the firewall, steering column dropped:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/401154/fullsize/heater-core-swap-6-03-06-004.jpg

Heater core restrictor:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/401156/fullsize/p7030005.jpg

Note, I did not hook the lines up yet, because I don't like the look of them. When it starts to cool off, I'll connect it, but I usually don't drive the car much in the winter to keep it away from road salt and such.

With the dash mounted back up, I can go on and install the non-cracked dash cover I have! Ah...but not yet. I need to wire in a tachometer and an air-fuel meter. I traded a friend of mine a laptop computer for his tach and air-fuel meter. I hate wiring things, so I may recruit some help for that one.

Onto the rest of the interior!

Stereo...yeaaaaah! No plans to reuse the original stereo...yuck! I have a Kenwood CD/MP3 player I purchased from a CVN member for $50 ready to go in. I had to buy a new wire-harness adapater because the car does not have premium sound and uses a square, not rectangular plug.

Speakers...fronts, piece of cake right? 4" adapter from Crutchfield, Ford wiring harness adapater (no splicing...yay) and in it goes. Ah...but the screws are too long, so it won't sit flush. Dremel tool to shorten each screw, took a while, but it worked.

Blaupunkt 4" 2-way speakers ($29) for the front dash.
http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/products/2005/023/h023PCxb402.jpeg

Rear speakers are 6x9" Pioneer 4-way's that I bought from a co-worker for $50. They're new, in the box still.
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406486/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-011.jpg

Now on my '87, I remember getting to the rear speakers was easy. Pull the seat back up a bit and loosen the screws on the rear brake light. The deck came right out...

On my '85...it's all freaking different. It's a cardboard deck cover, not a piece of carpeted cardboard like they use on later model cars (or perhaps because this was a base-model?). There are two pieces of trim on the sides that hold the cover in place, picture two letter C's and the panel sits between the C's. Sure enough, you can't get the darn thing out with the seat in the way or you'll break the trim piece!

Deck cover:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406482/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-007.jpg

Rear lower seat out (for those that haven't done it before (thanks Epi) you push back on the seat (towards the rear of the car) and it releases):
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406478/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-003.jpg

Seat is out. Notice the original carpet color? Looks pretty nice!
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406479/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-004.jpg

To remove the back part of the rear seat, you need a Torx 55 and remove the two bolts that hold the seatbelts at the very side. The seat pulls right out then.
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406480/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-005.jpg

Rear seat out:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406481/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-006.jpg

Now with the rear seat out, i could slide out the rear deck. At the least, it needs repainting, but I may choose to carpet it.
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406483/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-008.jpg

And with the rear deck out, I got the new speakers installed:
http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406484/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-009.jpg

Wife helped me put them in. I forgot how suckass that job is, because you have to hold the speaker up and bolt it from the bottom side. Ford uses a rubber band thing to hold the original speakers in, but it's not big enough for aftermarket stuff. Plan to get some help when you install speakers in the rear...if you don't set them up on your rear deck. I chose to hide mine below...

Soooooo...that's where I'm at today. I'm working on the wiring harness for the CD Player now. Once I'm done soldering that up and get the CD player installed, I'm going to start removing the front seats.

I also went ahead and changed the ignition switch, since I had to drop the column and the one in there was acting up sometimes. It fell apart when I took it out, so it def. was bad.

I'll be ordering carpet sometime this week and updating it as I go along. Stay tuned!

~Adam

[Dave84]

Hey,, Looks good:2up: where did you get the new dash pad? i have been trying to find one for months and they are all cracked in the same 3 places as mine.

[gadget73]

damn, never seen carpet that faded. Does the stereo work properly? I know some of the older ones were common ground speakers, which wasn't compatible with an aftermarket radio. I had to run new wiring, but I also had the older style premium sound that no bypass kits exist for.

[AOD]

I don't have premium sound, so that's a good thing I guess, and the car had a cheesey tape / AM / FM radio in it already, so someone confirmed an aftermarket system should work.

What I did notice is that Ford has a common ground wire system on the harness. There are typically 8 speaker wires on a stereo, 4 +, 4 - for each speaker. The ford wire harness has only 6 terminal connectors though.

I looked at the aftermarket connector that was on the cheesey radio installed in my car and I noticed it bridges all the ground wires together and then splits it into two wires.

I soldered a pair of - speaker wires to each of the two ground cables, so I'm thinking this will work...

~Adam

[Southern_Pride]

Its looking good man. I dont think im gonna restore my interior anymore so much as modify it to fit my needs.

[83countrysquire]

so i was wondering if sedan seats fit in my wagon

[mrltd]

so i was wondering if sedan seats fit in my wagon


Seats are all the same...

[87_crown_vic]

i like the look of the Bronco II rims on the car...wonder what it would look like on mine since my mom has a Bronco II that has a bad tranny.

[AOD]

Bench seats are a little different than the split bench. My '85 has the solid bench up front and it is bolted to the floor in only four spots. The split bench seats found in most box bodies bolts to the floor in four places, eight total.

[grandpaslincoln]

Looks fun mang :cool:

[p71towny]

Looks good. I also had no problem with my stereo install, and I had premium sound. I had to gut the premium sound as much as it pained me cause it sounded damn good. But I wanted to play cds.

[85crownHPP]

good stuff.

i was able to get the rubber straps on my aftermarket 6x9's but it wasnt easy...

[p71towny]

I had metal straps?? :wtf:

[85crownHPP]

around the speaker or the cardboard and foam box around the speaker?

[p71towny]

Around the foam boxes. I saved the foam boxes and straps cause I figured someone else here could use em. I need to put a box together of all my shit and ship it to one of you guys to divy up at scottfest.

[85crownHPP]

here my rubber.. it was a tight stretch

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/222518/thumbnail/dcp_4009s.jpg (http://www.supermotors.net/vehicles/registry/media/222518_1)

[gadget73]

Solid bench? geez, uber strippo model. Time to gut the goodies out a plushie model at the junkyard

[boXman]

I need a couple of those plugs with the wires...where did u get those??

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/406484/fullsize/interior-restoration-7-15-06-009.jpg

[FatNasty]

Do you need to drop the steering column to get the dash out?

[Grand Marquis GT]

I don't have premium sound, so that's a good thing I guess, and the car had a cheesey tape / AM / FM radio in it already, so someone confirmed an aftermarket system should work.

What I did notice is that Ford has a common ground wire system on the harness. There are typically 8 speaker wires on a stereo, 4 +, 4 - for each speaker. The ford wire harness has only 6 terminal connectors though.

I looked at the aftermarket connector that was on the cheesey radio installed in my car and I noticed it bridges all the ground wires together and then splits it into two wires.

I soldered a pair of - speaker wires to each of the two ground cables, so I'm thinking this will work...

~Adam

I would have ran all new wire. I did on my car. That common ground shit is for the birds.

Wanna convert to power windows? I'll trade ya :D

[Paul_]

Jeremy, Crutchfield sells those adapters.

[AOD]

i was able to get the rubber straps on my aftermarket 6x9's but it wasnt easy...

Maaan, I thought about it, and I may have lined it up, but there was no way it was going to go on, especially because the magnet is fairly large in diameter and the basket is pretty tall, almost twice the height of the original speaker.

Also should mention that I cannot get the insulated boxes back up over the speakers without making a new 'coat-hanger' thing to hold it.


Solid bench? geez, uber strippo model. Time to gut the goodies out a plushie model at the junkyard...

Naww...it's great. My first box (in 1997, it was an '87 4-door) was solid bench and I forgot it had the uber huge armrest in the middle. It's like a freaking couch of it's own for your elbow! :D Plus the seats, springs, foam, everything is in really good shape.

Plus not having any of these fancy schmancy electronics means it's lighter right? ;) Actually...less stuff to break in my opinion.

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/183157/fullsize/85-cv-tow-dolly-003.jpg


I need a couple of those plugs with the wires...where did u get those??

As mentioned, Crutchfield sells them for $10, I believe. Sure I could have cut the wire and crimped on a terminal, but I wanted to keep the original wires intact, plus this gives you a little extra room to move things around.


Do you need to drop the steering column to get the dash out?

Yes, both sets of u-clamp bolts need to be loosened to lower the steering column to remove the dash. That's the easy part... If you do go to remove your dash, don't forget there's one bolt that holds the dash to a bracket just above the steering wheel column. You cannot see it until you drop the column.


Wanna convert to power windows? I'll trade ya :D

No. :D

[AOD]

I should clarify above, regarding the dash removal. You do not need to drop your steering column to remove the dash COVER, only to remove the dash assembly from the firewall, to change the heatercore.

[AOD]

Why'd this thread have to get moved here. No one reads here... :(

[boXman]

Yes they do. This isn't CVN.

[85crownHPP]

:2up:

organization is good. It helps people to find info they are looking for once the thread dies out.

[Grand Marquis GT]

Yes they do. This isn't CVN.

What he said. Most people here don't restrict themselves to any particular forum.

Well, save for the people who like to come here just to start shit in teh battlefield...

[Paul_]

Adam, looks good so far. For the rear deck, I'd probably get one out of a newer car, say an 88-91. You would also get some schnazzy speaker grilles which will make installing those Pioneers easier. The 3 and 4 way speakers tend not to fit too easily on cars without the grilles. Most people resort to cutting the deck piece, and leaving the speakers exposed. That looks like ass, and invites trouble. Keep us updated. :cool:

[AOD]

Adam, looks good so far. For the rear deck, I'd probably get one out of a newer car, say an 88-91. You would also get some schnazzy speaker grilles which will make installing those Pioneers easier. The 3 and 4 way speakers tend not to fit too easily on cars without the grilles. Most people resort to cutting the deck piece, and leaving the speakers exposed. That looks like ass, and invites trouble.

Keep in mind '85 and older cars do not have a third brake light on the rear deck, so it will not be a direct fit for deck covers on a newer car.

As for the speaker installed height, if you mount the speaker from the bottom, like Ford did, it does not come up past the opening much. If you mount it on top, there is a good 1" lip that sticks up, which adds 1" to the already taller speaker.

I have no plans to cut the speaker grill covers out, I want them hidden behind it. I do have the Pioneer speaker covers...but they'll stay off.

~Adam

[AOD]

Quick update here...

My time this past week and weekend has been eaten up by the wife's desire to remodel our bathrooms at the house, so I've been removing sinks, cabinents, caulk, etc... :yay:

Big thanks to Ford for using tamper-proof Torx bolts on the ignition switch. I have to go to the parts store and buy a special tool now to replace it. Eric S. sent me his ignition switch and some interior screws from his wrecked silver car. Woot!

He also sent the e-brake pedal rubber pad, since mine broke off during our engine swap / throttle cable work.

Headed out to the parts store now...

~Adam

[AOD]

I bought a set of 'tamper resistant' torx bits today at Advance Auto for $9 and it had the the right size to remove the ignition switch. As I mentioned before, it literally fell apart with the plastic separating from the metal, so I had only the metal bracket to remove.

I installed the OEM Ford ignition switch Eric sent me and it worked great. I tightened up the steering column u-joints, but left the trim pieces off for now. I'm going to clean up the trim pieces and maybe re-paint them.

On to the stereo...

I mentioned before I had the shared ground system, it's actually 5 terminals at the stereo harness. 4+ for each speaker, 1 ground. The speaker portion of the adapter was wired in, but I had to still connect the power, switched power, and ground to the wires left in the car.

I used some of the crimp style connectors for these, because I didn't want to try and solder in the front seat. I crimped the three wires together, everything seemed snug, so I reconnected the battery to the car.

Key on, lights come on, CD player comes to life. Eject the CD the previous owner left in, put mine in, starts playing for 10 seconds and then just powers down.

Huh?

Nothing.

Fuse at the back of the CD player is good. Fuse at the fuse box for 'radio' (15amp) looked good.

Car started and ran fine, no other power issues...so I don't know why it just died like that.

Any thing I'm missing?

~Adam

[Grand Marquis GT]

By chance does it kick the stereo off when the headlights come on?

Run the ground for the stereo directly to the chassis. Don't use the one in the wiring harness.

Trust me, I know this stuff, done it before :crazy:

[AOD]

The unit does not even power on anymore...

I believe my 87 had a ground wire that screwed to the back of my new head unit, but that was premium sound. I can try to make my own ground, but where is the best place to ground? I think there is a ground block under the steering wheel dash side, across from the fuse box.

[Grand Marquis GT]

Either that, or there was a metal plate in there somewhere that had a screw already in it...

At least that was the way my 84 was...

[boXman]

My wagon doesn't even have the ground wire hooked up. It was laying there when I pulled the stock radio out...so I just taped it off and left it lay in there when I put the new radio in. :p

[Southern_Pride]

Wiggle the wires. I bet its just a bad connection.

[AOD]

Believe me, I've wiggled. :)

Tom, your car had premium sound or only 4-speakers? I think the ground wire was for premium only, based on my previous car's setup.

[Grand Marquis GT]

4 speakers...

I hate wiring. Did I ever say that?

[87mefull]

If the headunit doesn't even turn on now, go back and check the fuse box. Wiggling the wires and with it not grounded probably blew the radio fuse, it really doesn't take much since its a 15amp fuse for a non-premium sound setup. I would replace the radio fuse with a 30amp fuse also.

For the ground wires, I spliced both ground wires (headunit harness and the adapter plug) into one large ground wire (12 gauge wire) and then screwed it into a hole on a plate near the headunit.

[interceptor1985]

Me too the wiring is bad in my jeep $950 for the new harness. I can start the jeep then POP im melting. as for your car i'd take the wiring out of a newer model 88-90 and try and use what you can out of that cuz we had no probs putting a cd player in the cop car . do you have another car you can test the unit itself if so I'd do that too.

[gadget73]

The ground wire in my factory wiring harness went bad. The radio just stopped working one day, no ground. I grounded it to the dash and it started working. Do you have +12v to the switched and constant hot still?

Your ignition switch had tamper proof torx? Mine had these bizzare rivet/screw things that didn't have any type of useful head on them. It looked like a rivet, but they weren't. I used a tool I have for removing rounded out bolts, its essentially a socket with like an inverse EZ-Out cut inside it. Hammered it on there, and they came right out. The replacement ones in the box were tamper proof tho.

[AOD]

Do you have +12v to the switched and constant hot still?


Yeah, the yellow and red wires are still there. There is no harness 'plug' for this wire group though, but Crutchfield did give me one. I think the premium sound systems used the same power harness. I just connected the three wires.

~Adam

[Mercmarquis]

I had tried wiring up my speakers and head unit with the factory premium sound harness. It never worked because the speakers need the - to the head unit to work. So I ditched that setup and ran my own heavy gauge wire to the speakers and grounded the head unit to the dash. Havent had a problem yet except I am clipping my head units amp cause the head unit doesnt put out enough juice to all 4 speakers.

[87mefull]

Mercmarquis: Does your headunit have a set of RCA inputs/outputs? If it does you could hook up all four of your speakers to a small amp and hook it up in the trunk. I did this to a friends car with sony x-plod speakers in a 9c1 caprice using a cheap sony 4 channel amp, might have been 600 watts. No clipping, distortion and the sound quality is amazingly clear at high volumes (50) with lots of bass.

It takes the load off the headunit's amp and allows the speakers to run at the wattage they should run at along with extending the life of the speakers and the headunit. Its not hard to install an amp in a panther either, it only took me a few minutes to install all the wiring for my amp including running the power cable through a gromment in the firewall.

[Mercmarquis]

I think it does have the RCA's. Only thing thats keeping me from doing it is I keep buying other parts so now I'm kinda broke.

[AOD]

Well, this fell off the first page so it needs a revival...

I spent an hour today working on the car after I spent two hours on a motorcycle ride after work. :cool: I focused on the car stereo and matching the carpet samples I received to the car's interior.

The CD player, as I mentioned before, was purchased used from someone on here, and said to be working. I hooked it up, got it to run for 10 seconds and it just quit. It has responded since. Today I removed the power connections from the harness, that I spliced together with a crimp style cap (solder free joint). I checked continuity of each of the crimped connectors and they were good. I checked continuity of the fuse at the CD player and the 15amp in the fuse box that said stereo. I cleaned the terminals with a wire brush just to make sure.

I did a key on / key off test of the red wire in the harness. It gets 12 volts when I key on, so power is good. The yellow wire (always on power, registered a low power out put, but it had some juice. The ground was stable and did not float. I added a SECOND ground to the ground block above the throttle pedeal and screwed it into the back of the CD player.

Result: nothing has changed. The unit still does not respond.

Guess I need to find another Kenwood unit that has the same wire harness plug and see if it works. :(

On the interior, the wife helped me match up the 20 or so samples I received from two companies for carpet colors. We found one that matched the interior under the rear seat and the door panel carpet pretty close. I forget the number, but it was a 8XX.

~Adam