Description
Next steps
These parts can be bought ready to use. There are several providers that offer these parts in very good quality, consult the last pages of the Riview magazine and check the various parts suppliers! The finished parts can be installed as-is or, if you prefer, you can spray them in the color of your choice to fit to your interior trim.
As for me, I decided to rebuild the parts and cover them with the same carpet material as the floor and door panels. From my point of view, this looks nobler and I also think it makes the interior a bit more luxurious.
For the replica of the front kick panels, I used the previously removed original parts to use them as a 1:1 template (they were made of cheap cardboard and were with the time quite wavy) Fig. 01. I laid the cardboard box on a 1.4mm thick birch wood panel and drew it with a pencil. The holes for the attachment of the grill, I have marked accordingly. Then cut out the parts with a small jigsaw. Quickly I realized that the opening for the ventilation (where the grill is attached to it), in the original is a little smaller and the inner edge was visible through the grill. This bothered me, and I decided to extend the opening by +/- 1cm, and made sure that the mounting holes of the grill are not cut out Fig. 02. Then sand all edges a little to make them round.
After that it was time to stick the carpet material on the mold. Cut the carpet roughly in the shape of the part with scissors and stick it on the wood with a fast-drying contact spray. For better results, apply both a coat of spray (carpet and wood), then allow to dry slightly and then press firmly together. I let it dry with weights for a few minutes. Then you can cut away the carpet overhangs easy with a scalpel or carpet cutter Fig. 03. Now your Side Kick Panels should look like on Fig. 05.
Now you could install the front kick panels after screwing the grill back on. However, I decided to go a bit further and decided to put on a hem like I did before with the door panels. (See Riview Sep./Oct. 2017).
Here is a short description for those who do not or no longer have this issue:
Cut a strip of the same vinyl that you still have left over from your work on the door panels. The strip should be as long in length as the perimeter of the edge of the kick panels and be about 3cm wide. The next step is to attach the strip to the outer edge of the carpet. To help get the outer edge even, lay the vinyl on its face and draw a straight line at 1 cm. After lining up the edge of the vinyl with the lower edge of the carpet staple along the line through the carpet (Fig 06). The corners may require a bit of pulling while stapling. After the outer face of the carpet is complete turn the panel over and sand the staples (Fig 07). Now staple the back edge of the strip, a firm tug may be required. For narrow curves the strip might be cut a bit to make it easier (Fig 08). Now your kick panel should look like on Fig. 09.
After you have reassembled the grill, you can put it back in the car. When installing, make sure that the flaps to regulate the air flow continue to move well!
In the next issue, I will write my last article on the interior of the car and will cover the topic of restoring the rear shelf. After that, I will not publish any more articles for a while. Later, as soon as my car is ready, it will be featured in an edition of the Riview.
