Outside -9F, nice and warm in the garage

[FinnSpider]

It's been a long time since my last visit here, lots have happened since.
2008 was my first summer with the Spider. Some problems here and there, mostly with electrics. But I always made it home.

I liked the car, it's fun to drive and gets alot of attention. It could be a bit more interesting from the outside and the interior is a bit boring, too. And I hated the seats, they made my back hurt.




To Do inside:
- new seats, Recaro (passenger side in the photo is already there)
- new dash, something darker
- chrome rings around the gauges
- Audi TT style shifter bezel
- new shifter boot
- an other kind of shifter knob, maybe an ivory ball or something nice
- better stereo
- new, black seat belts

To Do outside:
- a single racing stripe
- vintage style numbers on white round background (doors)
- a racing style lettering to the upper corner of the windshield
- maybe nicer wheels+tyres

Well, that's about it. Shouldn't be too difficult. And I still have about 3 months until the tarmac is dry.

[mbouse]

CHEEZE, we haven't had that temperature for umm.... three or four days.

that passenger seat looks mightily like the triumph spitwad seats i just unloaded, except those seats were much narrower.

i'd suggest that while you are doing all that work to the shifter, that you need your own copy of the Michigan SHORTER SHIFTER

looks like a serious set of goals you have for the rest of the winter. have fun with it.

[Europa]

FinnSpider, is that an RX-7 seat (on your passenger side)?

[mdrburchette]

Make sure you post pics as you progress. What color is the paint and what color stripe are you adding?

[FinnSpider]

Car is copper brown with black top.


I'm thinking about a single white stripe with a thin stripe on one side like here, but double as wide:


The seat is made by Recaro, it's an after market sport seat. I suppose it must be a bit older, most likely from 80's. Fits fine into the Spider, size is right and style is right. Sitting position is lower than original and you feel like you are sitting right on the floor.

[mbouse]

pretty car. i see you have the IAP oil pan guard.

is that top cloth?

[mdrburchette]

I like the paint color of your car. Wonder what a beige or cream color stripe would look like vs a white one? A darker wood for the dash would also be nice. Get yourself a board of black walnut. It's nice and hard and sure has a pretty deep color to it.

[baltobernie]

How will the stripe look on the hood bump? Will the two items compete for your attention? Maybe a side stripe instead?

[Europa]

The seat is made by Recaro, it's an after market sport seat.

FinnSpider, those recaros look very similar to the late 2nd gen RX-7 seats. here's a pic...

[FinnSpider]

I was also thinking about some vintage style ivory/cream colour instead of shiny white. I will have to think about that.

Spent last night 3 hours with masking tape. It's quite a challenge to mask the stripes correctly for painting. Eye and tape measure tool (is this the correct word?) tell a totally different story. And it's almost impossible to get the sides straight because of the bumps, looking from the front of the car along the edge doesn't really tell anything. Well, I quess I will just need another 3 hours today to get it rigth.

[mdrburchette]

I bet it is hard to get the stripes right with those bulges in the way. Think how easy it would be with a flat hood!
Are you planning to extend the stripe over the front and rear cowls? How about the rearend panel?

[KillerB]

I've had excellent results using electrical tape to mask off straight lines. It's edges don't lift like masking tape, causing that jagged edge look.

But I've never used it on a big project, only smaller ABS plastic parts and model ship hulls etc...

[FinnSpider]

One reason for the stripe is rust. You can see it in the winter photo above, the left front corner of the hood needs attention. But I have no interest at this point to paint the whole hood -let alone the whole car- so this will be a perfect way to solve the problem. So the stripe begins from the corner. Here is a beautifully done single stripe on a flat hood. Mine will be like that, but maybe 2" more left.

[Tappy]

that really looks good , you havent got a picture from the front ? i like closer look at these (clear?) headlights

I think your right moving it up 2" to the driverside , just in the middle of the steering wheel will look great !

[Makita]

Hi, FinnSpider!

Greetings from Finland