65 Valiant Refresh
I've been doing a LOT of cleanup... I am installing new seatbelts, and pulled the rear seat out for access. Since it was out, I figured I'd go ahead and pull the front seat out, too, so I could pull the carpet out and get it good and clean, and take care of any rust in the floor.
I got a kind of nasty surprise- The floors appeared to be VERY solid from the outside, but the front passenger side wasn't so great. It had been rusting from the inside out... I removed all the rust and scale with a wire wheel- There are a few holes to fill. I'll have to do a little welding after all!-
A little more than I thought I'd encounter, but not bad. It'll be an easy fix. I'm tempted to use the POR-15 floor repair kit for this job.
I also got some of the interior trim polished up-
It shines up very well!
I have been working on the door panels, too. They are intact, but the bottoms of them have some water damage in the hardboard backing. I replaced it with a material called Sintra, Which is a closed cell rigid PVC foam. It's about the same thickness as the old hardboard, but is waterproof, a bit lighter, and SUPER easy to work with.
I also cut some new interior trim panels from it- These are the ones that go behind the rear seat near the floor-
I've since painted them red. It's MUCH Better than the originals, far tougher and waterproof!
We've been having a lot of fun with this car already.... My "Assistant" loves to help-
-Andrew
I've been doing a LOT of cleanup... I am installing new seatbelts, and pulled the rear seat out for access. Since it was out, I figured I'd go ahead and pull the front seat out, too, so I could pull the carpet out and get it good and clean, and take care of any rust in the floor.
I got a kind of nasty surprise- The floors appeared to be VERY solid from the outside, but the front passenger side wasn't so great. It had been rusting from the inside out... I removed all the rust and scale with a wire wheel- There are a few holes to fill. I'll have to do a little welding after all!-
A little more than I thought I'd encounter, but not bad. It'll be an easy fix. I'm tempted to use the POR-15 floor repair kit for this job.
I also got some of the interior trim polished up-
It shines up very well!
I have been working on the door panels, too. They are intact, but the bottoms of them have some water damage in the hardboard backing. I replaced it with a material called Sintra, Which is a closed cell rigid PVC foam. It's about the same thickness as the old hardboard, but is waterproof, a bit lighter, and SUPER easy to work with.
I also cut some new interior trim panels from it- These are the ones that go behind the rear seat near the floor-
I've since painted them red. It's MUCH Better than the originals, far tougher and waterproof!
We've been having a lot of fun with this car already.... My "Assistant" loves to help-
-Andrew
