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Fox-Body Coupe Restoration - Upholstery UpheavalMM&FF Performs A Comprehensive Interior Restoration On A Fox-Body Coupe. From the November, 2009 issue of Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords By Steve Baur
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The Fox-body Mustang that many of us know and love is now 30 years old. It's hard to absorb that since most of the late-model, fuel-injected versions that we own and modify are a bit newer, but the chassis design is old. The rest of the car, at best, is 16 years old. Most cars this age have well over 100,000 miles and have seen numerous owners over the years. It's not hard to find a decent Fox-body ('79-'93), but finding one where the interior colors are not three different shades of the same color and the ashtray door isn't broke is a horse of another color. In this issue, and the next two, we're going to perform a comprehensive interior restoration on our resident '90 coupe, and show you every little detail that's involved in bringing your Pony back from the edge of being another cash-for-clunkers victim. This is what the car looked... This is what the car looked like when we bought it. Over time, we replaced the rug with a somewhat clean 140,000-mile carpet, and added some newer front seats, but for the most part, it was still trashed. Our project Recession Special Mustang has been a hit with readers for its low-buck theme, and despite keeping the costs low on its recent paint job, the car looks great and up to date. The interior, however is another story. When we purchased the car a few years ago, the interior was literally in pieces that were piled in the car in no apparent order. We couldn't find 6 square inches of clean carpet, and it really showed that it's previous 12 owners just didn't care for it very well. We made some minor improvements to the interior so it wasn't completely hideous and disgusting when we started driving it, and this is about as low buck as you can go with renovating your interior. You can scour the local ads or swap meets for better looking parts, but you'll never get that fresh, clean and new feeling back in your Mustang unless you buy new components. It's not an inexpensive endeavor, but the good news is that you can buy pieces here and there, and some time down the road, you'll have that nice, new interior that your Mustang deserves. With that, we turned to Latemodel Restoration Supply in Hewitt, Texas, to help us restore our project's interior, and bring it up to a contemporary level of comfort and sophistication. Latemodel Restoration is the premier source for late-model Mustang restoration components, and the company has just about everything you might need. If you don't see what you are looking for in LRS's huge catalog or on its vast website, the company is most likely in the process of obtaining reproduction parts so be sure to call and talk to the staff.  Before you begin, take extreme...  Before you begin, take extreme caution when removing anything that is plastic, bolted to plastic, or otherwise. Over time, Fox-body interiors have proven to become very brittle, so take your time. We started our renovation by removing the seats. There are two bolts at the front and two at the back.  Truthfully, we enlisted the...  Truthfully, we enlisted the help of good friend George Xenos to keep us motivated during this tech install, but he ended up handling the bulk of the heavy work. (Thanks, George.) Cars with upgraded tweed or leather seats have the power lumbar option, and you'll need to disconnect the harness underneath before you pull the seat out.  The seat belts are next; they...  The seat belts are next; they require a Torx bit and at least a 3/8-inch ratchet to turn them.  The Visors are held in by...  The Visors are held in by two screws. If you have the power vanity option, then you must disconnect the wire to it.  Our '90 model is equipped...  Our '90 model is equipped with this map light, or eyeball as some people call it. Most of them are broken and ours does not work, but we're hopeful we can get it operational again.  The upper interior moldings...  The upper interior moldings are next. The side, front, and rear ones are held in place by metal clips, while the A-pillar moldings have just two screws apiece. If the metal moldings won't pull down and off, then use a screwdriver from underneath to push the center of the clip in to free it. Our car had a hodgepodge of seating, so we called upon one of Latemodel's suppliers, Corbeau, to provide us with proper seating for our coupe. The suede leather GTSII bucket seats that Corbeau sent are spectacularly comfortable, and the company now offers matching rear seat upholstery to recover your back seats as well. Part of our interior restoration includes the use of modern sound-deadening materials like the Suppressor and Super Sonic Mat from Thermo-Tec. When we dismantled the interior, most of the factory sound-deadening material basically turned to dust. Latemodel offers replacements for most of these, but we ordered up the Thermo-Tec products because we liked the sound-deadening and heat-reflection properties of the material. In this installment, we've gutted the inside of the car, and installed the sound deadening material. Over the next two issues, we'll be showing you the right way to change the color of your interior, and reinstall the new components from Latemodel Restoration Supply and Corbeau. Stay tuned for this monstrous upholstery upheaval.  The column cover is next,...  The column cover is next, and it's held in place by two very long screws.  You'll also need to remove...  You'll also need to remove the gray kick panel beneath the column and the black metal panel beneath that. Both are held in place by several bolts.  To remove the center console,...  To remove the center console, start with the screws behind the glovebox door and disconnect the trunk popper while you're in there. There will be a matching fastener on the opposite side, now exposed by the removal of the kick panel.  These lower screws are next,...  These lower screws are next, followed by screws beneath the console's top plate and beneath the armrest or delete panel.  Disconnect any wiring harnesses...  Disconnect any wiring harnesses and then remove the console.  Latemodel Restoration offers...  Latemodel Restoration offers a steering-wheel-recover service, and we plan to have that performed on ours. To remove the wheel, first remove the airbag by unbolting it from the back.  Remove the center nut on the...  Remove the center nut on the wheel.  If you don't have a steering-wheel-puller...  If you don't have a steering-wheel-puller tool, leave the nut on a few threads and then wiggle the wheel back and forth while pulling it backwards. It'll work itself off and the nut will keep you from flying into the back seat.  The door panels are next....  The door panels are next. Start by removing the mirror triangle panel at the top; then the two screws and two bolts that hold each armrest. Unplug any window or door-lock switches and remove the screw at the bottom of the speaker grille. If you're re-using your door panels, pur-chase a plastic-fastener removal tool, as it will prevent you from damaging the panel's cardboard.  The rear seat is next. Push...  The rear seat is next. Push the bottom seat backwards toward the trunk and then lift up and out. To remove the top part, unbolt it at the bottom (shown) and then carefully lift it up and out.  There will be several screws...  There will be several screws holding in each side plastic panel. Remove them, the panel, and the insulation as necessary.  We'll be replacing the package...  We'll be replacing the package tray with a piece from Latemodel's catalog. Pop open the caps on each side of the rear brake light; then remove the retaining screws and disconnect the light, followed by the package tray.  Our package tray, in addition...  Our package tray, in addition to being stained by who knows what, was worn thin and generally beat up. We'll be replacing it with a new black one.  The headliner is next. Be...  The headliner is next. Be careful, as the insulation will likely crumble on the way down. You don't want to inhale it either.  Our project came with these...  Our project came with these aluminum pedal covers, which we were too lazy to take off before now. We'll be replacing them with brand-new pedal covers from LRS.  To remove the carpet, start...  To remove the carpet, start by unbolting this lower bracket; also remove the doorsill scuff plates.  Little did we know the carpet...  Little did we know the carpet was a bit moldy, which we smelled while pulling it out. This rug has seen it's best day come and go, and it's time for it to head to the round file.  Now its time to start on the...  Now its time to start on the dashboard. We'll be repainting the dash and replacing the heater core, so it'll need to come out. Start by removing and disconnecting the heating and ventilation controls. Just keep track of where everything goes. Take pictures, mark wires with masking tape, or take notes to do this.  Drop the steering column by...  Drop the steering column by removing the four bolts and unplugging the various wiring harnesses connected to it. You don't have to pull the column out, but it does need to come loose from the dashboard assembly.  Next, remove the trim panel...  Next, remove the trim panel along the top, and then remove the screws at the top.  There are bolts at the bottom...  There are bolts at the bottom of the dash on each side that need to come out as well.  The dash should then come...  The dash should then come free of the firewall. Rotate it forward to expose the back of the dash.  Start unbolting the HVAC ducting...  Start unbolting the HVAC ducting and the square vent in the center.  Unplug and unbolt the wiring...  Unplug and unbolt the wiring harness along the back of the dash; then carefully remove the plastic portion of the front of the dash.  Remove the harness from the...  Remove the harness from the frame and it will come out also. Ours looks a little rusty so we may hit it with some paint.  With everything out of the...  With everything out of the car, you can pick up the spare change and vacuum up the mess. If your vacuum has the brush attachment, use it as it'll knock a lot of stuff loose.  Since we're installing some...  Since we're installing some stick-on sound deadener, we wiped the inside of the car and the doors down with some degreaser.  This used to be two empty...  This used to be two empty garage bays. Although it may look daunting, fear not, as putting it back together is the fun part.  Once you've ordered your replacement...  Once you've ordered your replacement parts, double check the parts to the packing list to make sure you have everything. We've got a box full of goodies from LRS, most of which you'll see in our next installment.  We're using Thermo-Tec's Suppressor...  We're using Thermo-Tec's Suppressor acoustical and heat control mat on the floorboards and roof for its sound-deadening and heat-reflection properties. The doors and trunk will get the Super Sonic Mat as it's a bit less expensive and there is no radiant heat in those areas. Working with smaller pieces is much easier. Take some measurements, trim it to fit, peel off the backing, and lay it down starting with one edge or corner. Buy the roller as well. It's worth its weight in gold.  After finishing the floorboard...  After finishing the floorboard insulation, we bolted up this new lower shifter boot from LRS (PN LRS-7277G). It features a thicker rubber gasket than stock, and it's perfect for torn or deteriorated ones.  The roof panel was pretty...  The roof panel was pretty easy and made a huge difference in sound deadening.  Here's a little teaser of...  Here's a little teaser of what's to come. The Corbeau GTSII seats are available through Latemodel Restoration Supply in several color and fabric combinations. We ordered Corbeau's Mustang-specific seat brackets as well.  The floor and the roof are...  The floor and the roof are complete-now onto the doors and trunk.
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