Post by gdpeters on Feb 12, 2007 19:33:45 GMT -8
In my wife's 1981 Deluxe Corolla Sedan, there are a couple of small interior problems I would like to fix before she sells it. I want to try to keep it in its original condition.
The driver's seat fabric has a little wear (a couple of small holes) on the side from normal use over the years. The estimator at Auto Trim Specialists shop in Denver, Colorado, said he could not match the original interior seat cloth exactly. He could repair a section of the seat, but then it wouldn't exactly match itself or the other seats. Or he could recover all of the seats for $800 with new material. Is it better to keep the original fabric even if it is a little tattered, or is it better to put all new fabric in? The fabric is only a little worn on the driver's seat and is in good condition on all other seats.
Chrome plastic foil has peeled away from the thin plastic strip running horizontally slightly above the door hande and arm rest on both the passenger side and the driver's side. How should I best repair this? Is there a chrome vinyl paint that I could use? Should I pull it all off and paint with chrome-like nail polish? The estimator said he could not fix it for me.
It has are three very small cracks in the dashboard's vinyl (from sun damage?). I've tried to protect it from this kind of problem over the years. I saw a vinly repair kit at Walmart, but I thought I would do more harm than good with it. How do you find the right color match? How do you practice? Is this something that I can repair myself with a little practice, or should I leave it to professionals who do this kind of thing daily? The estimator wanted $125 to repair the small cracks.
There is a small crack in the plastic, about 3 inches above the cigarette lighter. I don't know how it got there. The estimator can not fix it. He says it would have to be removed, melted back together, then reinstalled. He can't do that work. Can it be repaired in place?
The back dash board (I think it is particle board) behind the rear seat has faded over the years and the paint has cracked. There are four holes where blue snap/buttons used to be. The estimator wants to charge $125 to fix it by glueing on a thin carpet-like material there. In order to keep it more original, I feel I should remove the board (I have to first remove the rear seat), sand off the dried paint, repaint it with a similar blue, and try and find the snaps/buttons someplace. What would be the best kind of paint for this job and where would I get it? Where would I find the blue plastic snap/buttons? I think the carpet covering would look very nice ... too nice and no longer original.
What about leaving these small problems to the next owner to deal with them as they see fit? How do most collectors feel about these kind of small cosmetic problems?
The driver's seat fabric has a little wear (a couple of small holes) on the side from normal use over the years. The estimator at Auto Trim Specialists shop in Denver, Colorado, said he could not match the original interior seat cloth exactly. He could repair a section of the seat, but then it wouldn't exactly match itself or the other seats. Or he could recover all of the seats for $800 with new material. Is it better to keep the original fabric even if it is a little tattered, or is it better to put all new fabric in? The fabric is only a little worn on the driver's seat and is in good condition on all other seats.
Chrome plastic foil has peeled away from the thin plastic strip running horizontally slightly above the door hande and arm rest on both the passenger side and the driver's side. How should I best repair this? Is there a chrome vinyl paint that I could use? Should I pull it all off and paint with chrome-like nail polish? The estimator said he could not fix it for me.
It has are three very small cracks in the dashboard's vinyl (from sun damage?). I've tried to protect it from this kind of problem over the years. I saw a vinly repair kit at Walmart, but I thought I would do more harm than good with it. How do you find the right color match? How do you practice? Is this something that I can repair myself with a little practice, or should I leave it to professionals who do this kind of thing daily? The estimator wanted $125 to repair the small cracks.
There is a small crack in the plastic, about 3 inches above the cigarette lighter. I don't know how it got there. The estimator can not fix it. He says it would have to be removed, melted back together, then reinstalled. He can't do that work. Can it be repaired in place?
The back dash board (I think it is particle board) behind the rear seat has faded over the years and the paint has cracked. There are four holes where blue snap/buttons used to be. The estimator wants to charge $125 to fix it by glueing on a thin carpet-like material there. In order to keep it more original, I feel I should remove the board (I have to first remove the rear seat), sand off the dried paint, repaint it with a similar blue, and try and find the snaps/buttons someplace. What would be the best kind of paint for this job and where would I get it? Where would I find the blue plastic snap/buttons? I think the carpet covering would look very nice ... too nice and no longer original.
What about leaving these small problems to the next owner to deal with them as they see fit? How do most collectors feel about these kind of small cosmetic problems?