Updating my interior..

[Lboogs]

great job on updating your interior it looks really good.........................what kind of carpet did you use, the link didn't work. I'm planning to change mine and opted for this. I'm getting the cut pile with mass back.

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,carcode,1387425,parttype,1264

 

[Argie]

Here's the site:http://stores.ebay.com/aardvarkmotors
I got the cut pile with mass back,it's worth it.

 

[bullshark524]

could you post some pics of the antenna? how did you mount it? and personally i think the sharkfin would be nice

 

[Argie]

The antenna is a plastic one,it's fake.
Bought it on ebay for 9 dollars and it brings double sided tape,it's a temporary solution for now.

 

[Argie]

Installed the ignition key illumination(bought from ScratchN'sniff),and painted other minor parts.
the car is now at the shop,finally afford to replace the timing belt and oil pan and radiator/transmission flush.
So i will post more pics soon.
For now i post these ones.

 

[Argie]

Got my car back today and started workin on it again.
I did the change of color on my shift plate long time ago,unfortunatelly i screwed the first plate by trying to get rid of the ugly green tint so i end up buying one from a local junkyard.
This time i got rid of the green but i had to fix some letters and numbers on the shift plate,it look ok but if you really look lively you could see the imperfections.

 

[Argie]

My shift knob i sprayed black with vinyl and fabric paint,unfortunatelly with swet and dirt paint started to come off and looked really bad.
So i got a really good deal on ebay and bougth a shifter form a Protege '02 for $35 which i think it was not a bad deal.
My thinking was,i could use the shift knob (already black) and i could replace my shift plate with the one from the '02 i thought it was amber or orange and with a good LED in red will look true red.
I swapped the shift knob and manage to replace the drive plate,that is a slightly small but works.
Surprisingly,the tint for the letters and numbers are white,the bulb has a Orange "condom" and is smaller then the #194 for the '00 Pro.

 

[Argie]

Today i decided to play with my cluster gauges again.
sp i took the gauges and got rid of the ugly green tint on them,so it will be true red when i put it back on my cluster.
To my surprise,the area that is covered with this "green tint" is far more thick and glossy that the one in later models,it looks almost like an overlay on it.
I used 100% pure acetone and cotton balls to do the job.
You have to be very careful cause is easy to get some spill on the front side of the gauge face,so i endup fixing the other side with some black acrylic paint i have.
I am thinking of putting it back this week and also bought some LED strips from www.oznium.com

 

[bullshark524]

that looks really good. i cant wait to see the finished product

 

[Argie]

Yeah,it's a challenge managing the time between family,work and the car,but to me it's all worth it.
I decided to try to paint some items in red on the front gauge face,for now i painted the Klm and may try to paint some of the indicator marks,so at daytime i can see some with with red.
The paint i am using is the ones they sell on ebay for needles,since they are really thick you should diluted a little with paint thinner.

 

[bullshark524]

how did you get the needles off without breaking them?

 

[Argie]

Itook them off with a fork.
The fuel and temp. needles should not be touched,they are impossible to take it off without break them.
I will have to loose the little screws and try to use a cotton swab with a little bit of acetone and carefully get rid of the ugly green titn.
It's a painstaking process,but if you want your gauges to look brighter and true red or the color of your choice then you have to sacrifice some time on doing this.
Fortunatelly for me,i have 2 spare MSP clusters and another '00 cluster,so if i screwed one up i have my reserves lol!

 

[Argie]

I will post pics of the finished cluster with the new illumination and without the green.
If you just don't want to go trough the process of taking the green tint is not a big deal,the gauges will still show red or whatever color you chose but will not be as bright and true to that color.
I am a little extreme on this little details.(naughty)

 

[bullshark524]

Itook them off with a fork.
The fuel and temp. needles should not be touched,they are impossible to take it off without break them.I will have to loose the little screws and try to use a cotton swab with a little bit of acetone and carefully get rid of the ugly green titn.
It's a painstaking process,but if you want your gauges to look brighter and true red or the color of your choice then you have to sacrifice some time on doing this.
Fortunatelly for me,i have 2 spare MSP clusters and another '00 cluster,so if i screwed one up i have my reserves lol!

thats what i thoought but i thought i would check. i personally just sanded the green off. im goin to go blue on my cluster

 

[Argie]

I put my cluster back together and the rpm gauge is acting weird and the speedo needle don't move.
I am really frustrated with this crap and i think i am done with my quest for the superbright gauges.
I will transfer all the LEDs and add the new LED strip to my spare cluster and leave the way it is.
The other solution will be trying to get ovelays but i saw it on ebay Taiwan :-(

 

[bullshark524]

why not take one of your spare gauges and get the green off of it without taking the needles off because i read that taking them off screws with the calibration. might be worth a shot since you have so many guage clusters

 

[Argie]

I am thinking of that posibility,maybe even get rid of some of the clear plate that is holding the neddles,except for the are that the neddles attach to the gauge.
I think isaw a thread that the guy cut in pieces so he'll be able to get to the ares he want it to sand off.
The thing is that i have only 2 clusters for the 2000 Pro with black face,i already ruined one,i am kinda hesitant to ruined the last one i have.
But still want to try,believe me,it makes a difference when you get rid of that heavy "tint" or whatever the name is.
Is unfortunate that mazda did not make brighter cluster/faces for those years,i saw a 2006 mazda 6 with lights onand they look awesome red and bright as hell,but i am talking about a 2006,ours are really dim.

 

[goldenboy88]

Any update on how everything is turning out? Interested to see how your awesome interior redecorating is coming along, you've inspired me to go beyond what I had initially planned on doing.

 

[Argie]

Actually,i am almost done with the interior,put all the parts back in the car and just waiting to receive an arm rest in black that i bought form scratchN'sniff(great guy to buy from).
mine i painted black with ninyl paint but the material is different,so paint started to come out and looked horrible.
I did other mods thou,like the cigarrete lighter,i bought one from ebay UK with light,and adapted to my car but with my own light arrangement.
Looks fantastic,i just couldn't get one in red,so i had sort of a Mc Gyver moment and bought a staibed glass spray paint in red and painted the lighter surround to red.
I will post pics by the end of the week explaining how exactly i did this.
Thanks for visiting this thread.
When are you going to post yours?

 

[goldenboy88]

Unfortunately I'm head over heals in getting myself out of debt, would've still had my mini truck if I hadn't gotten rear ended, needed too much repaired and got written off so went with the pro. For interior I'll be doing some piece by piece when I have the time and money and when I'm out of debt hopefully early next year, I'll be building a custom sound system, putting enough performance mods that she'll still have good pep with the extra weight I'll be putting in and modding the exterior.