Post Your Interior Customizations/Re-trims

[tweetdriver63]

There are other threads devoted to re-trims of the seats/door panels, and there's one dedicated to wheels. I thought it might be a good idea to do a similar one for the rest of the interior.

Customizations range from just cleaning things up, to colored accents, to complete custom fascias. Maybe your work will inspire others. Dressing up the inside (without doing a Benk-job) is a lot of fun, and particularly rewarding, since you're going to be sitting in there admiring your work whenever you drive the car. In a sense, the things you do on the outside of the car aren't just for your enjoyment, but on the inside, they are. So, let's see them!?

I'll start it off with mine. I've recently been working on accenting everything on the fascia. I was originally bothered by the fact that nothing matched. There must've been six different shades of gray/black on the fascia. I bought gun metal paint to refinish my wheels recently, and I found it a very close match for the brushed finish on my TomTom and Alpine head unit, so I gave it a try on parts of the fascia. I liked it, so I've been busy doing it all. So far, I've done the face of the instrument cluster, and the trim piece around the front of it. I've done the air vents and A/C controls, the ashtray, and around the digital clock (which I relocated to where the upper row of switches was originally mounted, after relocating the only two functioning switches to the lower spot -- this is different on the Fed Elan than on others). In the pics you'll see that I also did around the FB3 gauges, but that's a temporary insert. I'm going to pull those gauges/knobs and paint the fascia there directly.

OK, here goes:

gun metal cluster.jpg

That picture's color isn't that great. The flash made the parts I painted look brighter than they do in person, and the other parts look lighter. This one of the instrument cluster shows the true appearance better.

gun metal cluster 1.jpg

[Jimmer]

Good plan Tweet,
I've got big plans for mine and will show them off one day. Would be particularly interested to see if anyone has managed to replace the feeble side vents with more robust versions.
Quick question - does your instrument cluster appear wonky behind the facia? Mine does and it looks like the facia is the wrong shape rather than the instrument cluster positioned at an angle.

[tweetdriver63]

Here's my finished product:

[theelanman]

mmmm......a dangly stig.....
something tells me your quite into the stig .....

[tweetdriver63]

mmmm......a dangly stig.....
something tells me your quite into the stig .....

For all you know, I am the Stig.

Actually, it's a key chain. I got it when I got the Stig license plate.

[nitroman]

This is my all-time favorite Elan retrim. Who's car is it?

[Gazza]

Holty i think.

[holty]

Yep thats mine. It was done by Tony Archer in Huddersfield about 4 years ago. £400 for everything apart from the steering wheel. In the end i gave him a extra 20 quid i was that pleased. Somehow i dont think it will be that cheap now but he's a top bloke and i could'nt recommend him enough

[nicowalker1]

wow Holty! thats nice, where is Tony Archers as i live in hudds and need a retrim in the next year i may give tham a call!

'edit'

just did a search it is less than 2 miles from my house... could drop my car off and walk back!!!

[Blue_Bullet]

Can you start a group buy off for the Dingle Dangley Stig !!!

Has he got eagle eyes?

[tweetdriver63]

Can you start a group buy off for the Dingle Dangley Stig !!!

Has he got eagle eyes?

I don't know about that (can't really be sure he has eyes at all behind that mask), but there are plenty of them on ebay.uk just like the one I got.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/THE-STIG-TOP-GEAR-KEYRING-XMAS-STOCKING-FILLER-F1-INDY_W0QQitemZ250541813488QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_3?hash=item3a5574aef0

[speed-demon]

I was thinking of copying Holty's steering wheel but using magnolia leather... Just wondering what people thought of that idea? Vommit inducing or flash?

[Candles]

I could bear getting in the car and the inside looking like my Granny's old Astra (mid-80s), so.....





2yrs on and I still haven't got the door panels back on!

[speed-demon]

So you enjoy getting in and pretending you're driving a train?
Sorry! A bit of a pish-take but that's what your car looks like to me...

I like the Elan dashboard...

[Candles]

So you enjoy getting in and pretending you're driving a train?

I've never seen a train's dashboard so it must be a lucky coincidence!

[speed-demon]

Ha, ha...

Yeah they look just like your car. Even the steering wheel is in the same place!

[lotusgirlmarie]

I still like this one, though it's an old photo and I now have a suede steering wheel centre and an Elise e-brake handle. You get the idea.

[speed-demon]

I think Holty's and SyV's take the biscuit!

[lotusgirlmarie]

More recent photos. I love the Esprit gauge setup.

http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/9139425@N0 ... 9/sizes/m/

http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/9139425@N0 ... 9/sizes/m/

[Gazza]

Ha, ha...

Yeah they look just like your car. Even the steering wheel is in the same place!

I have sat in the front of a train for the last 9 years and never seen a steering wheel in there. Mainly because trains are not steered they just follow a set route, called rails