-- I yanked the old CD player that didn't fit and sounded crappy, and replaced it with a mechless Kenwood with bluetooth. I love how it finds my pandora station on my iphone automatically whenever I get in the car. I put 6.5" JBL co-axles in boxes, and have them sitting behind the seats. I've secured them with some light gauge wire rope so they don't walk off without a fight.
-- I replaced a broken heater fan switch, just in time for chilly October mornings.
-- I cleaned up and reconnected the interior heater lights, polished all connections, pulled and cleaned the fuse box connections.
-- I sanded and repainted ashtrays, and applied stained veneer to the covers.
-- I replaced the broken lighter with a 12 volt charger, repainted the hazard switch, and cleaned up the courtesy light* (toothpaste really does work on that plastic!).
-- I repainted the console speaker cover, and installed grill cloth from a 60's Fender guitar amp. I also added a maple veneer inspired by the maple neck on a vintage strat.
-- And most notable, I had a little fun with some veneer and stains. I looked at vintage surfboards for inspiration, and have put down a couple of test pieces. I like the stripes on the console a lot. I used cherry, alder, and maple veneers, outdoor wood stains, shellac, and a couple coats of marine spar varnish.
The center portion of the dash was really just a color test - I plan to remove that and go with a two-piece dash, with a couple small horizontal stripes. I'll add a pininfarina badge too, if I can find one in decent shape.
I still have plenty on my list, of course, but I have to say... the 'ol girl's not looking too shabby. I'd like to think Mr. Tjaarda would approve.
* turns out that my wiring and the 1978 wiring diagram have very little in common, so my courtesy light's not working. I'll have to yank the dash and chase that down another day. . .
