Custom door panels for my wagon
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Custom door panels for my wagon
My interior started life as full "cream beige" ...it was a lot of beige, too much beige, so I have slowly changed parts out for oem black ones.
Most recently I acquired some panels from an M5 that was spec'd with the Dirac audio system which meant it has the cool silver speaker grills. My goal was to transfer my beige inserts into the black doors, the car could have been configured like this from the factory but it would of had black levers and airbag plugs which busy things up a bit IMO. To remedy this I kept my beige pieces intact to visually smooth things out.
Previously my decorative trim was sprayed with a metallic silver Plasti-Dip, the dip looked fine and was a nice option when considering factors like price and ease-of-application but I decided to replace it with some brushed aluminum 3M vinyl.
Here are some pics of the process,
Evan
Used doors arrived, I tried to get the full set but unfortunately the seller couldn't find the driver panel so I took the 3 and sourced an additional panel elsewhere.
Black vs Beige
I was hoping the inserts could be removed with unscrewing some hardware or simply popping them out, NOPE! The leather inserts were held in place with some plastic rivets and they needed to be ground down with a dremel.
Dremel doing work
Insert removed. The front doors had 25 rivets on each insert and the rears had 22!
I assembled some mounting hardware consisting of some screws and sealing washers, they worked very well. It was important that they insert was secure as both the airbag and speakers mount directly to the insert.
While the insert was out I cleaned the everything with some leather cleaner, a horse tail brush, and some towels.
Plasti Dip off
Vinyl on
Getting better at this
My favorite part of these custom panels, the Dirac speaker grills! I really like the contrast and the aluminum color matches other interior bits.
High performance grills! lol
BSW Stage 1 peaking through
Before
After
Rear assembled
Rear installed
My wagon originally had the sun shades.
Sun shade deleted! I never used these stupid things and viewed them just as another part that could (and did) break.
The black doors and carpet really make a big impact.
Surface details: vinyl, foam, and leather
Most recently I acquired some panels from an M5 that was spec'd with the Dirac audio system which meant it has the cool silver speaker grills. My goal was to transfer my beige inserts into the black doors, the car could have been configured like this from the factory but it would of had black levers and airbag plugs which busy things up a bit IMO. To remedy this I kept my beige pieces intact to visually smooth things out.
Previously my decorative trim was sprayed with a metallic silver Plasti-Dip, the dip looked fine and was a nice option when considering factors like price and ease-of-application but I decided to replace it with some brushed aluminum 3M vinyl.
Here are some pics of the process,
Evan
Used doors arrived, I tried to get the full set but unfortunately the seller couldn't find the driver panel so I took the 3 and sourced an additional panel elsewhere.
Black vs Beige
I was hoping the inserts could be removed with unscrewing some hardware or simply popping them out, NOPE! The leather inserts were held in place with some plastic rivets and they needed to be ground down with a dremel.
Dremel doing work
Insert removed. The front doors had 25 rivets on each insert and the rears had 22!
I assembled some mounting hardware consisting of some screws and sealing washers, they worked very well. It was important that they insert was secure as both the airbag and speakers mount directly to the insert.
While the insert was out I cleaned the everything with some leather cleaner, a horse tail brush, and some towels.
Plasti Dip off
Vinyl on
Getting better at this
My favorite part of these custom panels, the Dirac speaker grills! I really like the contrast and the aluminum color matches other interior bits.
High performance grills! lol
BSW Stage 1 peaking through
Before
After
Rear assembled
Rear installed
My wagon originally had the sun shades.
Sun shade deleted! I never used these stupid things and viewed them just as another part that could (and did) break.
The black doors and carpet really make a big impact.
Surface details: vinyl, foam, and leather
#7
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#8
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Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Los Angeles, CA
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My Ride: 2008 AW N52 with sports package & premium package; natural brown interior
MODs:
Orion V2s
3000K H8 Yellow Fogs
Matte Black Kidney Grills
20" Miro 111
Hankook V12 Tires
H&R Sport Springs
Special coding via Simon (dbl flash hazards, digital velocity, etc.)
LED Side Markers from Trinity Autosports
LED License Plate Lights from Trinity Autosports
Carbon Delete
BMC Air Filter
RPI Scoop
RPI GT Exhaust
Future MODs:
Mtech Kit
KW Variant 2 Coilovers
CIC Retrofit
Upgrade Audio System
Awesome project. Love those grill covers.
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#10
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Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 924
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My Ride: 2008 AW N52 with sports package & premium package; natural brown interior
MODs:
Orion V2s
3000K H8 Yellow Fogs
Matte Black Kidney Grills
20" Miro 111
Hankook V12 Tires
H&R Sport Springs
Special coding via Simon (dbl flash hazards, digital velocity, etc.)
LED Side Markers from Trinity Autosports
LED License Plate Lights from Trinity Autosports
Carbon Delete
BMC Air Filter
RPI Scoop
RPI GT Exhaust
Future MODs:
Mtech Kit
KW Variant 2 Coilovers
CIC Retrofit
Upgrade Audio System
Were the grills easy to install? Do the old ones just pop off and the new ones easily inserted?