The interior clusters cleaned up remarkably well. Everything was disassembled, cleaned, and painted if needed. The back of all of the clusters were painted with light blue, a new AC control face plate was in order, and a new cigarette lighter was added. I doubt I will ever use the lighter part, but I needed the plug for accessories such as cell phone charger. A silver paint pen restored the silver trim on all of the pieces and heavy car polish removed all of the scratches from the lens. The seat belts are fully operational again and fortunately cleaned up very nice. The seat rails operate now. Before, I wouldn't have been able to move the passenger's seat forward if needed. The door panels will be cut to allow for the hardware to be attached. Also shown are the arm rests and emergency brake cover which are new. The trim pieces have been repaired when necessary, cleaned, primed, and re-dyed and they turned out Great! And of course the floor mats. The carped set matches the floor mats very closely.
Here are some pics from the body shop. This isn't your dad's "Corvette Red" from 1979, but rather the 2002 Chevy Corvette "Torch Red". The Local collision shop in Flower Mound is the shop doing the work. In the future I will not go with a collision shop, but a Corvette specialty shop. I would have had my car 6 months sooner and the quality would be the same or better.
Finally my patience has paid off and the body is complete and looking great!! Here are some of the shots before the engine compartment, tire well, and interior have been detailed.
I have gotten the body back from the body shop and worked on it over a week over the Christmas break. The body was taped off and the engine compartment, tire wells, and interior were detailed. Then the heater / AC box and plumbing was added. I did this before the body was installed because I remember what a nightmare it was taking out with the engine in the way. The emergency brake and shifter were installed as well as the master cylinder. The steering column was put in place and the radiator and condenser were installed. All the wiring harnesses were added and connected as much as possible without the console. The interior duct work was cleaned and installed as well as the windshield wipers. The vacuum system for the headlights has been put on and for all practical purposes, the engine compartment is complete, less the headlight assembly. (Those are at the body shop getting shot)
I have started putting the Interior together. The wiring harnesses were not a problem at all, but putting the 24 year old dash in without it falling apart took about half of the day. I found only three problems after the vacuum and wiring was hooked up: Front parking lights and headlights would not come on, vacuum leak, and windshield wiper motor would not turn off. The front light problem was a poor ground, the vacuum leak turned out to be a bad hot water control valve on the heater box, and the wiper motor needed a new gear. All in all no serious problems and all fixed! It will pass a safety inspection now if it had too. Putting the doors on was a huge chore which also incorporated the help of my wife. Did I mention it was difficult??? They are on now and not a scratch to show for the effort! The new (non original) stereo and speakers are in and working perfectly, so does the power antenna I might add. The head light actuators are in and all is working properly. The carpet is going in and next the console will get buttoned up.----Getting close!!
Well, the center console is complete and all my electrics are working great! The only thing I haven't tested yet is the horn because the steering column is not assembled. The seats are in, the back inside reveal is in, the seatbelts are all hooked up, and the glove box is in. The latch is a little loose, but nothing a lock smith can't handle I'm told. The hood went on after we got the hinges mounted correctly and the first time it was almost perfect! It's really looking like a car now. The windshield moldings and weather stripping are on and the car is water tight now. The hood, doors, and t-tops are very tight now because the weather stripping has not "seated" yet, should only take a week or so.
The headlights were easier than I thought they would be. There are a tremendous amount of pieces, but you put them both together at the same time and it's not so bad. Once they were together and in the car I adjusted the headlamp direction by shining the lights on the garage wall. The front bumper cover went on with some help from a friend.... I hope I never have to do that again -- Not really a brain teaser, but meticulous beyond my patience.
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