I hate plastic. (New Pictures! 01/08 - Page 12)

[xtremerevolution]

Let Me Know Shipping On What We Discussed.

 

Will do either today or tomorrow.

[xtremerevolution]

Alright, so I've got some progress done!

 

I managed to cover the entire rear of the car with 3/4" thick carpet padding, for sound dampening/insulation. Under that is also a bit of eDead sound dampening, just in case. I used that sparingly since that shit gets heavy real fast.

 

I also bought all the carpeting for the rear. I bought a 6x12 foot sheet in a gray color from home depot. I'm hoping that will be enough. I'm a bit worried that it will look bad because of the way the carpet itself looks, but I suppose we'll have to wait and find out. I was considering going with black, but that would be too much of a difference between the rest of the car. This gray was the only color I could find in outdoor carpeting (which has the flexibility I need to cover the inside of a car) at any Home Depot or Lowes in my area at a decent price. The entire sheet was $30 or so. If I do it all right, it shouldn't look too bad, and it will more closely match the original car's interior color than the black would have.

 

I'll take pictures later today or tomorrow. Right now the rear of the car looks like ass because its just carpet padding, but it should turn out pretty nice by the time I'm done. That is, of course, if I manage to cut the carpeting well enough. Fitting the carpet around the edges and gluing it on securely will probably be the hardest part.

 

More updates to come this week.

[AWeb80]

Sweet

[1990lumina]

Lol to stop my back speakers from rattling I siliconed them to the car. Now they WON'T come off.

[xtremerevolution]

Lol to stop my back speakers from rattling I siliconed them to the car. Now they WON'T come off.

 

I would have sent you a couple square feet of sound dampening if you had asked. I still have like 50 square feet of it lying around.

[xtremerevolution]

Alright, finally some more pictures.

 

These are crap cause I took them on my phone, but I'll get more as progress continues.

 

 

It looks a bit ugly, but keep in mind that this is just the carpet padding and that I'll be covering it all with carpet soon. And yes, in case you were wondering, that is indeed plumber's tape holding the middle piece on. I used the things on top of the rear deck to keep the padding down so it would get glued down tight on the deck's creases evenly. It looked pretty nice when I took them all off.

 

And here's a preview of what it's going to look like. The new carpeting will be pretty close to the color that I carpeted the board with.

 

 

 

 

[slick]

I'd be VERY leary about keeping those amps out in the open like that. It's just asking to get broken into.

[xtremerevolution]

I'd be VERY leary about keeping those amps out in the open like that. It's just asking to get broken into.

 

Yeah, I know, this was discussed earlier in the thread. I park my car with a loud ass alarm (Viper V5500) up a 500 foot driveway in sky high corn farmland 2 feet from the front door of my 450 square feet studio. If someone so much as coughs outside, you'll hear it because its all dead silence aside from the crickets. The only other place I'd keep my car is in the parking garage at my work, which is at a global insurance company where they have 20+ cameras per parking garage. This is where every other person is an executive making $80k+ a year. My windows are also tinted, and if anyone were to come steal something from a car in that parking structure, I'm fairly certain my car will be the last one they would look at.

 

Believe me, I thought about it plenty of times, and I'm fairly certain that there isn't a single place I'll be parking this car where it could get broken into.

[slick]

I guess what I mean to say that is if a thief wants to break into your car, they will. Unfortunately, alarms don't stop thiefs, especially since 70% of people never look at the car who's alarm is going off.

 

From working in an installation bay for many many years, it really only takes a thief less than 30 seconds to steat stuff. A flatblade screwdriver and a pair of snips is all it takes.

 

I will also add the fact that I did Alarm installation for several years (DEI, which owns Viper), and I also have an alarm on my vehicle, with 2 sirens and extra sensors. However, I would never leave anything intentially out in the open for people to see.

 

Anyways, I'll get off that topic now, and back to the thread.

[xtremerevolution]

Alright, I'll think about it. Maybe I'll put the amps facing into the trunk as they were before, since I'll get what I want in getting rid of all the ugly plastic.

 

And then, maybe I can get some bean bags in the back with some regular seat belts you'd normally find in the middle seat of a rear bench.

 

I'm still open for crazy ideas.

[AWeb80]

 

I'm still open for crazy ideas.

 

a big BUICK 6 insignia

[Night Fury]

Alright, I'll think about it. Maybe I'll put the amps facing into the trunk as they were before, since I'll get what I want in getting rid of all the ugly plastic.

 

And then, maybe I can get some bean bags in the back with some regular seat belts you'd normally find in the middle seat of a rear bench.

 

I'm still open for crazy ideas.

 

I like THAT idea!

[AWeb80]

[xtremerevolution]

That's not a bad idea. That would actually look neat if I spraypainted it right on the new carpeting using a stencil made from cardboard.

[pontiacmaniac94]

yah, i wouldnt want to have the amps in the car that open either! however, if you have more than just liability insurance, and they are "bolted" to the car, (not wired to it, or glued, etc) they will cover it. it will be a pain though, because i garauntee you that if someone does decide to jack them, they wont spend the time and effort you did to put them in place, they will go to town....

 

 

why not put the buick logo back there? i like the "6" idea, but was yours even from that era?

[xtremerevolution]

Well here's the thing about it being stolen. I understand this part perfectly well. However, my main point is that I highly doubt that the vehicle will ever be parked in a place where the sound system can be stolen. Its either at my work's parking garage which has security cameras around every corner, or at my place in farmland where nobody would dare walk up your driveway, and if they do the alarm will sound 6 feet away from me. I think in 6 feet I can reach for my nearest 12" adjustable wrench and bust someone up pretty bad.

 

If anything gets stolen at work, I can just hold the company liable for it since everything there is under surveillance.

 

Aside from that, there's no other place I'll ever be driving this car.

 

Even despite this, I probably will still end up putting the amps in the trunk. I'll need to find a design to spray onto the rear carpeting though...

 

[Lumineer]

I read about half of this thread, then just skipped to leaving a reply. First off, the idea of removing interior stuff is the coolest shit ever! That's something I have in mind once I live on my own (my parents won't let me). I HATE interiors. However, I'm going to go apeshit with it. I want to COMPLETELY strip ALL the interior stuff, including the driver's seat and dash setup. I'll make a seat out of simple tubing, and add some sort of seat cushioning (also simple, and lightweight). I'll add my own custom guages that read out higher than the car can go, and I'll actually have more than just a fuel guage and speedo (which itself only goes to 85). Then, I'll put lightweight body parts on the car, and reroute the exhaust through the hood of the car (like demo derby cars, which are the shits). Then, I'll put the fuel tank inside the car, and relocate the battery to the interior as well, to protect it better. I'll do what little mods can be done to the engine to squeeze just a tad more power out of it, and put lighter mechanical components in to help acceleration. Lastly, I'll add a low-boost, regular road-car nitrous system to use when I want some extra punch. In the end, I'll have the fastest 3.1L LHO Lumina around! Oh, by the way.........there won't be any sound system (mainly because I HATE listening to the radio in a car. When I drive, I just want the windows open and the sound of the road and car coming through). Think about it.....all that won't even cost much! And, it will help fuel consumption.

[Brian P]

Well here's the thing about it being stolen. I understand this part perfectly well. However, my main point is that I highly doubt that the vehicle will ever be parked in a place where the sound system can be stolen. Its either at my work's parking garage which has security cameras around every corner, or at my place in farmland where nobody would dare walk up your driveway, and if they do the alarm will sound 6 feet away from me. I think in 6 feet I can reach for my nearest 12" adjustable wrench and bust someone up pretty bad.

 

If anything gets stolen at work, I can just hold the company liable for it since everything there is under surveillance.

 

Aside from that, there's no other place I'll ever be driving this car.

 

Even despite this, I probably will still end up putting the amps in the trunk. I'll need to find a design to spray onto the rear carpeting though...

 

 

Bottom line is if you LIKE your stuff and your car scratch-free from attempted break-ins, and want to preserve your work and keep it out of the hands of crack addicts and other pieces of shit out there, you'll go by the phrase "out of sight, out of mind". My cousin had a great alarm system, but his car got broken into by the pro's about a half dozen times in raw daylight at places like shopping mall lots, parking garages, school, his own driveway, etc. People out there have the tools to pull lock cylinders and disable alarm sirens faster than you could wake up from napping. He advertised his audio equipment that whole time and eventually he wised up. If you want to play russian roulette then please do, but it might be a hard lesson for you, like many others out there have gone thru.

[xtremerevolution]

Well here's the thing about it being stolen. I understand this part perfectly well. However, my main point is that I highly doubt that the vehicle will ever be parked in a place where the sound system can be stolen. Its either at my work's parking garage which has security cameras around every corner, or at my place in farmland where nobody would dare walk up your driveway, and if they do the alarm will sound 6 feet away from me. I think in 6 feet I can reach for my nearest 12" adjustable wrench and bust someone up pretty bad.

 

If anything gets stolen at work, I can just hold the company liable for it since everything there is under surveillance.

 

Aside from that, there's no other place I'll ever be driving this car.

 

Even despite this, I probably will still end up putting the amps in the trunk. I'll need to find a design to spray onto the rear carpeting though...

 

 

Bottom line is if you LIKE your stuff and your car scratch-free from attempted break-ins, and want to preserve your work and keep it out of the hands of crack addicts and other pieces of shit out there, you'll go by the phrase "out of sight, out of mind". My cousin had a great alarm system, but his car got broken into by the pro's about a half dozen times in raw daylight at places like shopping mall lots, parking garages, school, his own driveway, etc. People out there have the tools to pull lock cylinders and disable alarm sirens faster than you could wake up from napping. He advertised his audio equipment that whole time and eventually he wised up. If you want to play russian roulette then please do, but it might be a hard lesson for you, like many others out there have gone thru.

 

lol, no thanks, I learned that lesson once. I had a hifonics 1600w mono amp, Eclipse EA4000, 2Farad Cap, and Kicker L5 stolen. Never again.

 

So I think I'll take everyone's advice and keep the sound system in the trunk out of sight, since I also don't have a trunk lock.

 

Now to figure out how to finish the interior. Should I spray a design on the carpet in the back?

[slick]

I wouldn't, would look tacky and a bit out of place. Is the carpet going to be one piece, or several pieces? If several pieces, sewn together, or more or less just held into place?

 

I guess what I would do, to minimize rattles, it take very small amounts of expanding foam in between metal pieces (not too much, as that stuff really expands a lot!!!). Afterwards, some form of liner/protectant (trunk bed liner would work pretty well, it will weigh down the metal just enough so it won't rattle around, plus it will help dampen sharp noises). Then, lay down your insulation that I already see you have in place, and then your carpet. It will help quiet rattles that your stock interior did by being bolted into place, and not make it super noisy inside the cabin.

[xtremerevolution]

I wouldn't, would look tacky and a bit out of place. Is the carpet going to be one piece, or several pieces? If several pieces, sewn together, or more or less just held into place?

 

I guess what I would do, to minimize rattles, it take very small amounts of expanding foam in between metal pieces (not too much, as that stuff really expands a lot!!!). Afterwards, some form of liner/protectant (trunk bed liner would work pretty well, it will weigh down the metal just enough so it won't rattle around, plus it will help dampen sharp noises). Then, lay down your insulation that I already see you have in place, and then your carpet. It will help quiet rattles that your stock interior did by being bolted into place, and not make it super noisy inside the cabin.

 

I doubt it will be possible to place the carpet in one piece, so I'll have it in 3 pieces for the center and two sides. I'll place the sides first so they lay over the center, and have the center piece overlap on top of the sides. Its not going to perfectly match the original carpet in the car, but hopefully it will be good enough. I'm hoping the carpet will help a bit more in reducing road noise. I might even carpet the trunk later if this works well.

[Timm]

I read about half of this thread, then just skipped to leaving a reply. First off, the idea of removing interior stuff is the coolest shit ever! That's something I have in mind once I live on my own (my parents won't let me). I HATE interiors. However, I'm going to go apeshit with it. I want to COMPLETELY strip ALL the interior stuff, including the driver's seat and dash setup. I'll make a seat out of simple tubing, and add some sort of seat cushioning (also simple, and lightweight). I'll add my own custom guages that read out higher than the car can go, and I'll actually have more than just a fuel guage and speedo (which itself only goes to 85). Then, I'll put lightweight body parts on the car, and reroute the exhaust through the hood of the car (like demo derby cars, which are the shits). Then, I'll put the fuel tank inside the car, and relocate the battery to the interior as well, to protect it better. I'll do what little mods can be done to the engine to squeeze just a tad more power out of it, and put lighter mechanical components in to help acceleration. Lastly, I'll add a low-boost, regular road-car nitrous system to use when I want some extra punch. In the end, I'll have the fastest 3.1L LHO Lumina around! Oh, by the way.........there won't be any sound system (mainly because I HATE listening to the radio in a car. When I drive, I just want the windows open and the sound of the road and car coming through). Think about it.....all that won't even cost much! And, it will help fuel consumption.

 

lol, that would turn heads! Good luck with the exhaust! I was thinking of having a stock exhaust / straight through exhaust (forgot what their called) then have a Y splitter with a flange to go from stock to un-restricted. (and to avoid noise violations lol) but money and motivation became my problem.

 

But back on topic, I can't wait to see ot finished! This fourm is soo old! I'd go crazy if any of my projects took this long!

[xtremerevolution]

I read about half of this thread, then just skipped to leaving a reply.  First off, the idea of removing interior stuff is the coolest shit ever!  That's something I have in mind once I live on my own (my parents won't let me).  I HATE interiors.  However, I'm going to go apeshit with it.  I want to COMPLETELY strip ALL the interior stuff, including the driver's seat and dash setup.  I'll make a seat out of simple tubing, and add some sort of seat cushioning (also simple, and lightweight).  I'll add my own custom guages that read out higher than the car can go, and I'll actually have more than just a fuel guage and speedo (which itself only goes to 85).  Then, I'll put lightweight body parts on the car, and reroute the exhaust through the hood of the car (like demo derby cars, which are the shits).  Then, I'll put the fuel tank inside the car, and relocate the battery to the interior as well, to protect it better.  I'll do what little mods can be done to the engine to squeeze just a tad more power out of it, and put lighter mechanical components in to help acceleration.  Lastly, I'll add a low-boost, regular road-car nitrous system to use when I want some extra punch.  In the end, I'll have the fastest 3.1L LHO Lumina around!  Oh, by the way.........there won't be any sound system (mainly because I HATE listening to the radio in a car.  When I drive, I just want the windows open and the sound of the road and car coming through).  Think about it.....all that won't even cost much!  And, it will help fuel consumption. 

 

lol, that would turn heads!  Good luck with the exhaust! I was thinking of having a stock exhaust / straight through exhaust (forgot what their called) then have a Y splitter with a flange to go from stock to un-restricted. (and to avoid noise violations lol) but money and motivation became my problem. 

 

But back on topic, I can't wait to see ot finished! This fourm is soo old! I'd go crazy if any of my projects took this long!

 

It helps having another car to drive around while this one looks like ass. Plus money was a bit of an issue in the past couple of months. I'll probably have to pick up another tub of carpet glue, but otherwise I should be making some more good progress this weekend.

 

I've decided I'll be mounting the amps in the back for the reasons posted earlier. Too bad I can't mount them where I had originally wanted to, since they look pretty badass. Oh, and I'll be getting you guys a video of what the exhaust sounds like now, to silence the claims that 3800's have a ton of rasp and sound like ass.

 

I'm really not that concerned about how its going to look. Any carpeting is better than cheap plastic, so long as its fitted and glued on right. You know what would be cool?

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2x-Black-JDM-4-Point-Racing-Seat-Belt-Harness-Universal_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a552Q7c39Q3a1Q7c66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a12QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14Q2el1318QQhashZitem230275434659QQitemZ230275434659

 

Its tempting. What do you think?

[mra32]

I think you should invest in something else before that harness. Its just a plain hassle. I've never known anyone with a street car that needed them.

 

It would probably end up being less safe because the people in them would be less inclined to take the time to strap everything up. I dont know about that harness, but we use the one below on the race car. Its known to be one of the best It takes about a minute to get strapped in with people helping you. This is when you are in full race gear with a somewhat small driver opening area, however, so its not really comparing apples to apples. Its also damn near impossible to drive without one, when yr pulling 2 g's.

 

http://willansmotorsport.com/index.php/Single-Seater/Lightweight-Silverstone-Single-Seater/Detailed-product-flyer.html

 

 

Those harnesses also mean a harness bar, so you'd probably have to weld something up to bolt into your car. I doubt they make harness bars for w-bodies, lol.

 

As far as saftey is concerned, harnesses are pretty worthless without a cage.

[xtremerevolution]

lol, ok. Forget about the racing harness then, haha. It was just a wild idea that passed through my mind.

 

As an update, amps are in and connected, but I'm having issues with the head unit.

 

http://www.w-body.com/forum/index.php?topic=70193.0