German 911 Gets Scottish Interior

After being so completely thrilled with the way my new Grand Wagoneer headliner came out I knew I wanted to do some interior work on my 82 Targa. Add to that the Targa is black on black on black and you get for a very boring interior. And note, I am a huge fan of funky clothes, interiors, etc. And so is Alois Ruf, so I think I am in good company.

I could not afford to pay for this work, so was limited to redoing the door panels and rear package shelf. A project hastened along when I went ahead and removed the monstrous stereo system whose speakers left Crater Lake-sized holes in my door panels. And left me without a rear shelf.

First thing I did was remove the interior door panels. This takes about five minutes aside. Take a photo of the window switches so you know how the wires go when you put the switches back in. As you can see, the original fiberboard was well stained and warped from moisture exposure over the years. I would use these as a template. 

The material I used for my backer is called Coroplast and can be found in many colors and cheaply at any decent art store. Coroplast is easy to trim with scissors or knife, has a smooth surface that accepts adhesive well, will not be damaged by water, weighs less than a Korean ice skater and is bendable. The final benefit being needed for the rear parcel shelf. To ensure a good facsimile, you can see I clipped the original to the coroplast before cutting. I marked all holes with whiteout to cut out later. 

But back to the doors, you can see the original doors had foam on the back in varying depths, something I recreated with my door panels. I did put a thin headliner foam on the door panels, you could also use felt like I did on the parcel shelf. Both worked easily and provided the soft curves you need. But if I had to do it again, I would use the foam on all the pieces as it is easier to trim and glue on without wrinkles.

I used 3M trim adhesive. You really need to use an automotive adhesive, not Super 77. The stuff sits on the fabric and does not stain it and has a long, 20 minute work time. Something good for rookies. Once I wrapped the fabric around the back, making lots of relief cuts to the fabric did not bunch up on the corners, I also duct taped them for overkill. The glue held really well, but why not go one step further. Staples, the normal way to secure the fabric are hard to find in the shallow depth and do not stick well in the coroplast.

As for the rear deck, since I had none, I first made a template out of cardboard and then transferred that to the coroplast. 

The only trick worth passing on is you cannot have a big enough space to work on for this. A kitchen table is a bit small. Might want to put two tables next to each other. I am luck enough to work in an ad agency that has huge cutting tables. Total project including glue, fabric and coroplast cost me about $50.