I'm so good at updates. :facepalm:
And PenDOT rejected FUCH EPS as a custom plate.
Anyways, over the last few months I have:
Finished up my door panel project:
-New RS America panels
-New window switch frames
-"Custom"(EMS strapping for $0.50) RS door pulls as the provided ones were junk
-Door stay reinforcements(required a bit of trimming to fit)
-Rebuild/re-greased window regulators/tracks
-New external hardware
-New plastic pivot clips inside
Rebuilt and regreased window regulator. This is no flimsy E46 unit: :rofl2:
My RS strap(left) vs the ones that came with the kit(right). My version is softer, has a finer weave, and is a darker less pink red:
New panel complete:
Replaced tail light lenses/gaskets:
I gave the URO Gen 2 lenses a chance and actually was very impressed with the product I got. Time will tell how they hold up, but as it currently stands they felt nice, fit well, hugely increased the light output over my faded stock units, and looked excellent.
My 30 y/o original gaskets looked horrid though, and my housing bolts were fused to the square back nuts. Pulling my tail lights down the road will likely require me drilling out the stock hardware.
This was once a gasket, it has become a toothed fan belt:
Installed a front ram air scoop:
This one is fairly self explanatory. It's a front air scoop that rams air directly into the front oil cooler for a more efficient cooling system. Obviously it only works at speed, but from what I saw before I parked it for the winter, it was doing quite a good job. Also looks pretty subtle/badass.
New rear speaker covers:
Odd bit of maintenance as I have deleted the stereo/speakers otherwise, but this is an area I'm not going to get to in depth for a bit. Made by a PelicanParts member, they are a reinforced direct fit for the flimsy stock units that crack after years of stretching panel and sun.
Replaced the whale tail:
The car came with a '75 Turbo tail, which is a ridiculously rare version as they only made it for part of one year. As such, it is worth quite a bit of money(which I used to fund its replacement and the next project). I will probably regret selling it eventually, but as it currently stands, it's not the correct wing for the time period.
Removed for shipping(bear of an item to pack):
Replacement mounted(I had a lot of people tell me to do a red hood/roof/deck lid paint scheme when I had it temporarily like this):
All painted and aligned with my new tail light lenses(I'm terrible at panel alignment):
Installed Recaros:
Since my passenger's seat was pretty shot, I decided to overhaul the seats in an effort to gain passenger comfort, additional functionality, weight savings, and a bump in headroom. After months of research, I decided to order a custom set of Recaros through their S08 program, as the cost wasn't much more($150+ per seat) than getting something that wasn't quite what I wanted.
I opted for:
Speed S Model
Black vinyl everywhere(zero maintenance)
Small black Recaro logo instead of the huge white one that is stock
It took ~3 months, but then this arrived:
Sadly, this is when I discovered that the 935 seatbelt bracket that wanted to use did not clear the mounting points on the seat:
After a lot of research, I settled on getting the Planted seat brackets for my car, as they seemed to be the sturdiest units available. I'm perfectly happy to gain a few ounces here to have a safer setup.
Step 1 was to pull the stock seats out, which was pretty easy as this is effectively a car from the '60s in many regards. Only had a power seat cable on each side and a seat belt sensor on the driver's side to unplug:
For those who haven't installed aftermarket seats in a car, everything is universal fit, which basically means it doesn't fit anything without adjustments. The drill press, cut off saw, and grinder were my best friends during this.
Mounting holes being drilled in the sliders:
Mounting holes drilled in the planted brackets:
Seat/bracket/slider combo all fitted together:
First seat in:
All finished!
I'll try to get some daylight photos of them up at some point later on. I really love how the custom order came out, and how they work with the car.