dye-ing interior panels

[86 50CPRI]

has anyone got any experience dyeing the interior panels?mine are faded in areas,I was trying to see if this was worth trying to do...
'porno red',only its about 3 shades throughout the car!

[Daymeon]

I do not know anything about dyeing and would like to know myself. When you get your interior looking the way you want it, try tinting the windows to save what you've done. I'm looking into the dyeing thing myself to save money so that I can concentrate in other areas. Window tinting has helped me keep my seats and interior from fading.

[Anonymous]

...

[Daymeon]

Summit Racing sells interior dye that can be applied to anything. Check 'em out!

[86 50CPRI]

Thanks!

[capri650]

If your talkin about the plastic panels you can paint the just clean them really good or the paint will fleck off you can get the paint from either a paint supply store in the correct color if you have the tools to spray paint them or you can might beable to find the color at a autoparts store in spray can form .You really don't want to dye the cloth as sometimes it makes the material stiff (not soft) .A company named Marhyde makes interior paint and it's ready to spray as long as you have a spray gun and compressor.

[79rs50]

the best thing to do is go to a bodyshop supply shop
and look for a product called SEM vinyl paint. you need to use a plastic prep to clean the Armor all off, then use sand free- another SEM product
it opens the pores in the plastic so paint will stick! SEM has many cool
colors - I changed my blue monotone interior into a light grey/dark grey
combo that looks modern ( i will have pictures soon)

[negusm]

www.metromustang.com has exact interior matches for most Mustang/Capri colors. They can even have a custom color put into their spray cans.

I bought a 5 pack (4 color 1 adhesion promoter) from them...just haven't gotten to the point to use it seriously. Here's a good link to a guy who did it:

http://www.toolcube.com/interest/auto/mustang.html

I also picked up some wonder putty and some stuff to make a mold of the pattern like he did. I'm going to sand out the gouges and scratches and then try to redo the pattern:

http://www.michtoy.com/MTSCnewSite/supplies_folder/Putties-Fillers/putties.html

It'll probably be a big mess. I have a few interior pieces I'm going to try it on first. If they get screwed up, I don't care.

You'll first want to use VinylPrep which cleans, then denatured alcohol if you really want to make sure its clean then the adhesion promoter which will "soften" the plastic. Don't use too much of it. I sprayed on a liberal amount (bulldog brand adhesion promoter) on a small scrap part and then applied the paint. The paint stuck but the piece remained tacky. I put on a second coat of paint and it seemed to cover the tackiness.

FUN FUN!

-Mike

[Gord]

A guy my brother works with changed his interior to match his midnight metallic red (2 colours in the base coat looks awesome) paint job. He ordered 2 rolls of upholstry cloth and paid a guy to re-upholster his interior. The plastic pieces he removed and and painted himself using a plastic paint kit from a local company up here in Canada. The kit though was from Windsor Ont. He also had some problems with impurities because of the work area. So if you do the panels, make sure your work area is super clean and that your prep is good. The best paint jobs have almost the same amount of time spent on the prep and the paint job.

[84 Interceptor]

If it's factory colors you're looking for, try Texas Mustang.
They have an extensive line of interior dye colors. 8)

[todds84rag]

I,m in the process of "painting" mine right now with spray cans, vinyl and cloth , from Canadian tire. Before I started this I talked to several people who have had good success with this before. I,m a little skeptical about the cloth paint but I,d like newer seats anyway so this is an experiment.
I,ll let you know about the final results,
Todd

[cruisincapri80]

well i just got done with mine like yesterday and it turned out pretty good i used the sem interior and vinyl paint and it really worked out well the only thing i didnt like was the carpet ended up like kind of stiff but o well i guess ill just order up the new stuff it looks like new though i showed to to some freinds and they asked me where i found all the new interior parts at my only advice is to use mineral spirits or degreaser or whatever to wipe every thin down then go down to the local body supply shop and pay the extra to get teh SEM its well worth it i have a freind who used the plasti-coat stuff and tehn another guy i know used the rustoleum stuff and then i tryed out some other stuff that i got from wal-mart and the SEM by far turned out the best

[Daddy, oh...]

I'm with the folks here who recommend the SEM products. I've used them in the past, and they work great. Even on carpet. I once restored a mold stained, gross carpet to like new condition on a rebuilder I did once. The trick to keeping it soft and fuzzy is to spray it on and use a stiff bristle brush to work the dye in and seperate the fibers. That's it!

[herbdog038]

i used vht dye and it looks great.....summitt sells it.

[TurboCobra]

How can I get coverage on white quarter panels? Won't everything just "bleed" through? :?:

[negusm]

How can I get coverage on white quarter panels? Won't everything just "bleed" through? :?:

If you hit the white interior plastic quarter panels (I never knew they made white) with the adhesion promotor and then the lacquer paint...it will cover the white just fine. You may need an extra coating or two.

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

Is there anything I can do about them being crumbly, other than clean and hope for the best. I don't know if I want to epoxy the white panels.

[negusm]

Is there anything I can do about them being crumbly, other than clean and hope for the best. I don't know if I want to epoxy the white panels.

Crumbly from sun damage? I had the same problem with my one interior panel. I don't know much that can be done. Here is what I did:

I took it out in the HOT sun and cleaned it with Simple Green and a plastic brush. What fell off, fell off and what stayed, stayed. I sprayed LIBERAL amounts of adhesion promotor over the panel....it dries very quickly when its an 85+ degree day and the sun is out. I put on many coats, then I used quite a bit of the lacquer paint over top of it. I'm hoping it gave it a layer of protection. I'm sure if it gets whacked hard in a "crumbly" spot, it probably going to make a substantial gouge.

2 days after I had painted it up, I went back through looking for rough spots. (you need to wait 2 days to 1 week for the paint to cure and be sandable). I wet sanded with 400 grit sand paper the rough spots and scuff marks. The paint tended to keep any "crumbling" down to a bare minium. Then when things were smooth, I used more adhesion promotor and more lacquer paint.

The panels look really nice right now. They are not perfect. The one I had left on a garbage heap for 6 years (outside) thinking I wouldn't need it until I found out the speaker cutouts were unique to my car. :fried: I have lost alot of texture on that panel but even without that, the new finish with the lacquer paint made them really look nice.

Any gouges that sanding would not obviously remove were filled in first with "wonder putty" by the alchemy works.

I'm not sure what you mean by "epoxy" the panels?

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

Mine has the speaker holes too or I could have replaced them many times over.

[negusm]

Mine has the speaker holes too or I could have replaced them many times over.

How are your speaker holes special? Aren't they the standard Ford rear speaker holes? What's the story?

On my car, I have 5" round holes for speakers put in by asc. The stock Ford rear speaker holes would be far too large. And since Ford went to standard rear speakers in 84-86 (and changed the way panels mounted), the chances of finding correctly mounting rear panels with no speaker cutouts (even the wrong color) is probably impossible.

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

Is this some aftermarket JUNK? This holds a 5 or 6 inch speaker and the white is flaking off.


http://www.foureyedpride.com/phpBB2/album_pic.php?pic_id=5610


If it is I could have changed my panels years ago, now all my spare parts are gone. Have you seen a door panel with speaker holes under the armrest like this?

http://www.foureyedpride.com/phpBB2/album_pic.php?pic_id=5613

[negusm]

Yeah, I'm going to say that "rear" speaker is definitely aftermarket. But if it is not, there is no reason I can think of that you couldn't cut that hole in a replacement panel and remount the frame. But I really think its an aftermarket item. The rear speakers would be down in the hatch like other years...not way up high.

The door panel doesn't look familiar either.....

HOWEVER....

http://www.ascmclarencoupe.com/Literature/DealerOnly/ProductFactBooks/79_Mercury_ProductFactsBook_18.jpg

I pulled out the 1979 product facto book on Capri radio options and there are a BUNCH of options that year. My guess is you may have the premium sound system (came with door speakers, do you have a Ford amp under your dash pad?). Pull the door panel and look for Ford speakers behind there...if they are ford or if it looks to be all factory speaker mounts and holes in the door panel, you probably have the premium sound system.

If the door panels are busted, I would consider hunting for replacements and just redrilling the speaker holes. Or if your panels are decent, can be cleaned up. You can redy the plastic/vinyl areas. They will look very nice if you do it right.

I see no reason why you couldn't have replaced those panels years ago.

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

I had that door panel off 4 years ago, my son broke out the glass with a rock. I believe it looked like a Ford speaker...my door decal had nothing in the radio spot.

[negusm]

Whoops! I fixed the link above.

The door speakers are not mentioned in the 1980 book....so it looks like a 1979 option only.

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

That may be the car that had an 8-track player when I got it. That one or my 78 Mustang II T-Top. I am going to clean it out this weekend and look everything over with a notebook and camera (and simple green...YUK!!)

There is nothing wrong with the door panels some cleaning and a little carpet won't fix.

[negusm]

Does the car have speaker cutouts in the hatch area, or just up high where those speaker frames are?

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

Had to go look...there is a cutout on each side at the rear near the hatch, but they don't look right.

[TurboCobra]

There was a McLaren Capri that used to sit near the tollbooths at Charlotte-Douglas a lot a few years ago.

[negusm]

Had to go look...there is a cutout on each side at the rear near the hatch, but they don't look right.

How do they not look right? They should be an "elongated octagon".

My guess is this:

1. Your Cobra has the premium sound system.
2. I bet if you pull the dash pad you will find an amplifier in the center of the dash and NO front speakers.
3. There are factory Ford speakers in the doors.
4. The rear speakers high up on the interior quarter panel are just aftermarket junk.
5. If you pull that panel, you will probably find aftermarket speaker wire going to those upper speakers and factory wiring going back to the hatch. If there is NO factory wiring running back to the hatch, the guy who put in the aftermarket ones, pulled it from the rear hatch and cut it to make the aftermarket stuff work.

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

Had to run back outside...there are NO speakers under the dash pad, I did not see an amp, I will look for wires this weekend when I take the interior out (I hope I find a buildsheet) Got to clean the cobwebs out first. The speaker holes are like a 6X9 with notches on the ends. But it looks broken.

I need to find this material...

http://www.foureyedpride.com/phpBB2/album_pic.php?pic_id=5614

[negusm]

Had to run back outside...there are NO speakers under the dash pad, I did not see an amp, I will look for wires this weekend when I take the interior out (I hope I find a buildsheet) Got to clean the cobwebs out first. The speaker holes are like a 6X9 with notches on the ends. But it looks broken.

I need to find this material...

http://www.foureyedpride.com/phpBB2/album_pic.php?pic_id=5614

I need a picture of your rear hatch speaker openings. Doesn't sound familiar...more than likely somebody tossed the larger 6x9 speakers in the rear hatch in place of the stock Ford units. Its also quite possible they junked the amp under the dash.

I looked on ebay and in some pics I have but don't see any other 1979s with door speakers like what you show.

-Mike

[TurboCobra]

I'll get some more pictures, thanks for the help. I won't get into the back until tomorrow morning, I don't know where the keys to the hatch are- - -it came off a Capri I donated.

[79rs50]

:oops:

[negusm]

:oops:

And you are embarassed, why?

The advice you gave in the last post was pretty good. SEM makes good stuff from what I have hear. I just have not used the stuff yet.

Basically the technique is the same, clean, use adhesion promotor and paint.

[cmccarthy]

I used Metro paint on every square inch of plasic in my interior, and I'm extremely happy with the results. Pics of the finished product are in my gallery.

[85 Notchback]

I took all my interior dying pictures off here, but I just used vynil dye, and its all still good.

Turbo Cobra, PM me if you want pictures, I had a whole thread on dying interiors awhile back.

[TurboCobra]

I am going to take out my interior this weekend and see if it can be cleaned at all. I'll take pictures of the process in case the dyeing or painting covers the white and looks good. Wish me luck.