Which Door Panel

[TheBender]

Next up for me are the door panels on my 78. The panels with the trim are $400. Without trim more than half as much. I don't really care much for the chrome trim, has anyone done the panels without the trim and left it that way? My other debate, do I have an upholstery shop make me a leather panel as I went with leather seats and leather boot cover.

[18Fiatsandcounting]

Bender, I'll be interested in what others have to say, as nearly ever spider that I have owned has had issues with the chrome "kick panels" on the door cards. I don't know what it is about that particular part, but either the chrome coating flakes off or turns greenish, the mounting studs break, etc. I've tried fixing and repainting them, but with so-so results. You can buy new ones, but a part of me just rebels at paying more for a chrome plated piece of plastic than I paid (in some cases) for the entire car in the first place...

So, by virtual of all my issues with these kick panels, my door cards generally don't have them in place and, while it looks OK, I still prefer them to be there if they are in good shape. In theory, I guess they mitigate against scuff marks on the door panel as you swing your legs in and out of the car.

As for your question about leather for the door panels, that would look really nice, but it comes down to how much money you want to put into the car.

-Bryan

[DieselSpider]

I went to the local Joannes Fabric store with a coupon and got UV and Mildew Resistant Marine Vinyl and then to Home Depot for a sheet of Luan Underlayment. It cost me about $15 per door panel including the contact cement to recover them. The upper chrome strip and lower chrome strip along with the kick plates do help keep the vinyl attached properly so I put them all back.

[PaulC]

Did ours a little differently with actual door card material and marine vinyl. Used sew foam on the back and stitched in the original pattern. Came out pretty good.

[DieselSpider]

I re-used the original Dacron Flocking instead of Foam Rubber and hand stitched them matching the original pattern of the fake saddle stitching.

I am tempted to cover the Chrome Plastic Kick Plates with some Gray/Silver Wall Carpeting when the finish on them deteriorates.

[TheBender]

Good points all around. I agree, I don't want to spend the money on the cheaply made "chrome" pieces as they don't really look that good even when new. I really like the stitching ideas and how that looks. I was also thinking about using carpet where the chrome plate is, similar to the newer models.

I was thinking of not matching the original pattern with the stitching. Instead doing some vertical stitching to match the seats. I'll attach my horrible hand sketch and then a picture of a Miata I found (change the quilt pattern to a simple vertical stitch). And a pic of my seats.


More ideas and pictures are appreciated. Thanks again.

[spitfirepete]

This has me thinking.....perhaps to my shop to fashion nice wood panels

[TheBender]

This has me thinking.....perhaps to my shop to fashion nice wood panels

Wood panels would look amazing I think. I did find a local upholstery guy that will custom make mine in leather for the same price as the AR ones.

[architect]

I purchased the blanks from AR. They fit nice, easy to install.. expect for the screw holes. When you poke thru the vinyls (back side has pre-drilled holes) make sure you put some type of grommet.. if not, your screw will catch the cotton and it goes down hill from there.

I kept them blank for about 6 months, then noticed all the foot prints on the door (where the chrome kick plates are) and honestly thought they were boring. I ended up buying all the trim and arm rear separately and installed it all together. It looks much better!

[architect]

[pwilliam]

My experience with door cards from Vicks. I assume that AR and Vicks are sourcing the same product but I cannot confirm.

1.) Foam padding - above the top chrome strip, at top of door is not provided - this means there is a gap where the door panel meats the quarter lites/ vent windows. It seems the vinyl is only rubber cemented on so if you wanted to peel it back and tuck some foam in there you could.

2.) Color - original black door cards had a type of gloss finish to them and are truly black. The vendor provided door cards have a matte finish and as a result they don't have that deep black luster. The color and finish is going to be a little off from your arm rests, I can guarantee. If you aren't wound as tight as I am when it comes to design, colors and aesthetics its probably not going to bother you.

3.) Kick plate is held on by a type of friction fit retainer, one of mine continued to pop off but they seem sturdy enough. Your best bet is to apply an epoxy over these friction fit retainers to permanently secure the kick plate. This is very straight forward and worth doing.

4.) This is a personal rant. Because these cars have always been so cheap to purchase, it seems many people don't want to invest in the sometimes expensive products the vendors provide which match originals. Therefor a lot of people DIY things like door cards, dash boards, carpet, etc. Additionally some people just don't have money to blow on reproduction parts but still want to feel proud of their car and their work. I totally get it and I mean no disrespect. However, I've never seen anyone's interior re-design make me feel their efforts surpassed those of the professionals who originally designed this car's interior or that they did a better job than the company that manufactured the original component. On my current car, the PO had the door cards recovered TWICE and it looked like....well, you know. All that being said, I am clearly a purist and always value cars when they look original. Customizing these elements of the car detracts from the success, thoughtfulness, simplicity and beauty of the original design. These cars, from the factory were so simple and elegant. Soooo...I bit the bullet, climbed on my high horse, and bought the damned expensive door cards. And what did I learn???? The stamped motif that is intended to be parallel with the arm rest doesn't align to the armrest!!!!!!!!!!! So, either my screw holes were way off or the stamped motif is absolutely crooked. Luckily, the armrests are flexible so I screwed in the outer two locations and forced the center section of the armrest down until alignment was achieved. I then drilled a new hole for the center screw so proper alignment could be achieved, as intended with the original design from the factory.

If you are curious to know what I'm referring to when describing misalignment of motif and armrest, watch this old IAP video and scroll ahead to 9:52 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL-x7D4dH0M That is exactly what the installation will look like unless you drill a new hole. I thought this was perhaps an anomaly with my car but I think this video is a good indication that its is not the case. I also did a bit of research to confirm the arm rests and motif are to be parallel - its such a well considered design I knew that it had to be the case. Pictures suggest this is correct. So, I'm sharing this info so other folks going the purist or original route know what they are in for. Despite the price its not a 1 for 1 match to the original as I had hoped but I do feel its about as close as one can get. Despite my initial disappointment I'd consider these door cars to be a fair value.

Architect - I'm curious to know if your experience was similar.