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Thread: An introduction and a completed project

  1. #1
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    An introduction and a completed project

    Hi guys,

    I just wanted to introduce myself. I've been active on the "other" forum for the last 8 years and thought it was time I posted here as well, especially since I've been lurking the past couple years. I got the current MkIII Roadster that I have 2 years ago, it was built in 2010. It was certainly time for a refresh as the paint and interior were not the best, so I decided to tackle that project over the winter.

    In typical fashion what I thought was going to be a 2 month project actually took me 7! I never liked the interior or paint color on my Roadster. So over Christmas break I stripped the car down in my garage and brought it over to my brothers shop for paint. After over a year of deliberating between Viking Blue and Lexus Indigo Blue...I just kept coming back to Viking Blue over and over.

    After the paint was finished I decided I'm going to tear this entire interior out and replace it real quick. "Real Quick"...the words that haunt me :lol::lol:!!!

    It's such a small interior, but when you're trying to get everything just right...man, does it take time! I covered the dash, transmission tunnel, seats, door panels and rear bulkhead in leather. The main issue on the long time frame was the leather. One mistake and a $500 hide is ruined! I attempted to do the rear in one piece, but there are just to many curves for that to happen. Two pieces and a nice breaking point did the trick. However, there were nights where I spent a good 2-2 1/2 hours down in the garage looking at the rear wall trying to figure out everything...next thing you know it's after midnight and I got 5 minutes worth of work done! Then there was the issue with the seats and transmission tunnel...do I just cover them, do I make a pattern, do I change from black? Decisions, decisions.

    I finished last Tuesday night and snapped some pictures the following day. Here's how everything turned out...

    Cobra2 by John Smith, on Flickr

    Cobra by John Smith, on Flickr

    Cobra3 by John Smith, on Flickr

    Cobra4 by John Smith, on Flickr

    Here was the interior beforehand...

    Old Cobra by John Smith, on Flickr

    So that's the story and current project. I hope to be of some help to some and continue learning from others on this forum as well.

    Cheers!

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  3. #2
    Boydster's Avatar
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    Very nice... good lookin machine!
    ---Boyd---
    MkIV #9042 build thread
    www.boss427.us
    427W, TKO600, Moser 3.55 rear.
    Delivered Feb 2017, Graduated Nov 4, 2019

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  5. #3
    Senior Member wareaglescott's Avatar
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    Lovethat interior!! Beautifully executed.
    MK4 #8900 - complete kit - Coyote, TKO600, IRS - Delivered 6/28/16 First Start 10/6/16 Go cart - 10/16/16 Build completed - 4/26/17 - 302 days to build my 302 CI Coyote Cobra - Registered and street legal 5/17/17
    Build Thread http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showt...e-build-thread
    PHIL 4:13 INSTAGRAM - @scottsrides

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  7. #4
    25th Anniversary #9772 toadster's Avatar
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    the interior is awesome - love the color combo as well!

  8. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by wareaglescott View Post
    Lovethat interior!! Beautifully executed.
    Thanks Scott! Good to see you over here.

  9. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by toadster View Post
    the interior is awesome - love the color combo as well!
    Thanks toadster! Things don't always pan out how I imagine them in my head...this one did!

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  11. #7
    Senior Member Yama-Bro's Avatar
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    looks great. Love the blue!
    Started dreaming of a Cobra around 1987
    Purchased Complete Kit 6/9/2017, Delivered 9/4/2017, Rolling Chassis 3/30/2018, Engine Dyno'ed 3/4/2022, Engine installed 8/27/2022
    Click here for my build thread
    Serial #9158
    Design Engineer at BluePrint Engines

  12. #8
    Senior Member Avalanche325's Avatar
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    Looks great! I always think Viking Blue is such a great classic color.

  13. #9
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    Great looking car, and a very nice improvement! I too like the Viking Blue, and your brother did a nice job laying it down for you.

    That leather looks fantastic! I have always loved that color, kind of like your first baseball glove; it just looks right. Now, if you can keep that leather smell, then... winning!

    Congratulations on a great looking car; the delays were totally worth it!

    Regards,

    Steve

  14. #10
    Senior Member NC Cobra's Avatar
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    Question on your seats. Did you recover the original frames or find a source for them new in leather? Eventually looking to upgrade mine and have had a tough time finding a source or pricing. BTW I think you really nailed the color combination. Looks stunning!

  15. #11
    Senior Member cgundermann's Avatar
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    Great job on the interior!

    Chris
    Generation 3 Type 65 Daytona Coupe Complete Kit #151885 received May 6, 2022. Gen 3 Coyote, IRS, Tremec TKX, American Powertrain hydraulic throwout bearing & Wilwood brakes.

    MK4 Basic Kit #7404, 347 EFI - Pro M Racing ECM, 30# injectors, 70 mm throttle body, 80 mm MAF, Edelbrock Performer aluminum heads & RPM II intake, all new G-Force T5, 3:55 gears, Pro 5.0 shifter, 3-link, carbon fiber dash/custom Speedhut gauges and paint by Da Bat.

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  17. #12
    On a roll Al_C's Avatar
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    Looks really good! Is that an Illinois plate on your car? Where are you located?
    Mk IV Roadster - #8650 - delivered 7-17-2015 - first start 7-28-2018 - first go-kart 10-13-2018 - licensed and on the road 9-9-19: body/paint completed 3-17-2020.
    Complete kit / 2015 Coyote / TKO600 / IRS / Wilwood brakes / Mid-Shift mod / Power Steering / Heater and Seat Heaters / RT turn signal / Breeze radiator shroud and mount

  18. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Avalanche325 View Post
    Looks great! I always think Viking Blue is such a great classic color.
    I appreciate that! I kept going back and forth, I just couldn't shake the color from my head.

  19. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by WIS89 View Post
    Great looking car, and a very nice improvement! I too like the Viking Blue, and your brother did a nice job laying it down for you.

    That leather looks fantastic! I have always loved that color, kind of like your first baseball glove; it just looks right. Now, if you can keep that leather smell, then... winning!

    Congratulations on a great looking car; the delays were totally worth it!

    Regards,

    Steve
    Thanks so much, I appreciate that!

  20. #15
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    Yes it is! I'm down in Peoria.

  21. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by NC Cobra View Post
    Question on your seats. Did you recover the original frames or find a source for them new in leather? Eventually looking to upgrade mine and have had a tough time finding a source or pricing. BTW I think you really nailed the color combination. Looks stunning!
    The seats are on the original FF frames. They were the upgraded leather seats, unfortunately, the covers got tossed before I had an opportunity to ask the shop to keep them...I just wasn't thinking when I dropped them off, somebody on one of the forums would have liked to have them I'm sure.

    I went to a local automotive upholstery shop I've been using for probably the last 15 years. One man shop, but does pretty good work relatively quick. Here's a breakdown of materials on the interior...

    2 hides for the seats and transmission tunnel $998
    1 hide for the door panels and dash $450
    1 hide for the rear bulkhead $250 (leatherhidestore.com)
    Miami corp "Bentley" carpet $250

    I paid $1,500 for the stitching on the trans tunnel piece and seats, which included installing the custom covers of course.

    TOTAL: $3,448

    With that being said I could have saved probably $600 on hides if I had bought everything at "theleatherhidestore.com". The problem is I didn't want to play the waiting game with send me this sample and this sample and this sample until I liked the color OR just choosing what I thought looked good off of a picture on my computer screen. We have a local leather store and I could just walk in and select the color I want. The rear bulkhead was just black so that was pretty simple so I bought that online. I will say this however, the leather hide I got online was very nice! I wouldn't hesitate to shop there again or recommend it to anybody.

    You could go vinyl on the other hand, but the feel and smell just aren't there. When I went for a drive Saturday morning, I could immediately smell the richness of the leather when I sat inside...like a baseball glove. I'm sure the smell will go away, but you could smell the leather in the car from 10 ft. away easy.

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