E36/7 interior rehab

Jamesons Viggen · 01-02-2016, 06:53 PM

I have been meaning to tackle the interior of my M Roadster for a long time.

Convertibles have a hard life when it comes to their interiors.

I bought mine with 60k in 2009 and in good shape. The interior material quality is early 90's and had room for improvement. It came with a rare RAID airbag steering wheel and some knock off AC Schnitzer pedals.

I added LeatherZ door panel arm rests and center console lid in black Alcantara. I put in a ZHP shift knob, the missing voltage gauge(joined by a boost gauge), updated '00+ headlight switch and other small trim upgrades. I also converted the drivers side knee panel to the euro panel which is cleaner/slimmer and look and got one covered in matching leather. I also did a full audio install a couple of summers ago.

That brings us to my winter project.

One of the first issues were the seat bushings. In all E36/7/8 cars the rubber turns to goo and it allows the seats to move on accel and decel. So I took them apart and put in the resin bits that take up the slack.

Next I had a commonly busted AC button and cracked shifter plate around the button.

So the plan was to buy a new ac button and repair the shift plate($180 at ECS tuning and WILL break again). But I wanted to do something a bit different. E36/7/8 M cars were offered with two tone interiors like this:

I wanted to do a similar color break, but not use COLOR to break things up, but materials...the material being Alcantara. The plan is for the dash, door panels, seats and console to deviate from black Nappa the same way the oem does but using the suede. It will be subtle and very OEM+. In some places I plan on adding contrast stitching in silver to pull a bit of exterior color into the interior.

I am not about to buy a sewing machine and try my hand at the seats and dash pods. I wanted to tackle the center console. I started out slow, got great results and built up my confidence. The key was keeping the material taut and knowing how to make the right relief cuts in corners.

I love how thin the material is and so the transitions, openings etc are super crisp. It came out better than pics, does not look like an amateur job. The repairs to the button surround are invisible as done from behind, the suede makes it look like new.

Then I went and put on my console/cupholder which was a large lump of black plastic. It seemed out of place now. So in I went with the suede.

I am left with this issue:

The arm rest looks faded and tired(its now 6 years old). I also dont want it this material anymore, but black Nappa with silver stitching*my brake and shift boot will be the same). So a local friend is going to make that for me.

I also got spooked seeing my car listed as a classic on my usual BMW parts database. So I ordered the matching euro glovebox which I will recover in black Nappa.

I will finish the project by having the seats, door panels and dash done by a pro. The end result will be closer to what you would expect from an modern M car with an extended leather package. There will be almost no plastic to touch, everything being Nappa and Alcantara. But you can go overboard with that stuff, following the OEM breaks, it should be subtle enough.

Well, that's my winter project so far!

vonmayr · 01-02-2016, 07:08 PM

Very nice! Subscribed for more updates

Jamesons Viggen · 01-10-2016, 10:55 AM

Console is back in, fought me less than I thought it would. Everything worked first try. Gotta get the stereo in and the seats in this week.

I dropped off the shift/brake boots and arm rest with a friend who will custom stitch leather with silver thread for me.

Jamesons Viggen · 01-25-2016, 11:28 AM

Jamesons Viggen · 01-29-2016, 11:29 AM

Cant wait to put these on!

rjd598 · 01-29-2016, 11:31 AM

Zhp shift knob has to be one of the greatest add ons for manual owners. Loved mine.

Jamesons Viggen · 01-29-2016, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rjd598

Zhp shift knob has to be one of the greatest add ons for manual owners. Loved mine.

LOL, yep. I think I had mine ordered before taking delivery of the car.

m5james · 01-29-2016, 07:30 PM

Looks good, I like that red and black combo as well. I just got a 97 328ci 5spd from my mom w/ 88k on the clock. I can agree about vert interiors...she had the typical E36 a-pillar leak for 2yrs and I didn't know it was as bad as it was until I was forced to finally pull the seats and carpet from the vehicle in order to dry it out. This weekend I'll be water-repellent treating the convertible top and trying to fix any and all leaks I can find before finally throwing the carpet and interior back it...gotta do it quick before I forget how it all goes back together lol

Jamesons Viggen · 02-22-2016, 09:12 AM

Just waiting on a couple more pcs to be leather wrapped.

01-02-2016, 06:53 PM	#1
Jamesons Viggen Brigadier General 199 Rep 3,780 Posts Drives: '98 M Roadster stg 2+ S/C Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Rochester Hills MI iTrader: (3)	E36/7 interior rehab I have been meaning to tackle the interior of my M Roadster for a long time. Convertibles have a hard life when it comes to their interiors. I bought mine with 60k in 2009 and in good shape. The interior material quality is early 90's and had room for improvement. It came with a rare RAID airbag steering wheel and some knock off AC Schnitzer pedals. I added LeatherZ door panel arm rests and center console lid in black Alcantara. I put in a ZHP shift knob, the missing voltage gauge(joined by a boost gauge), updated '00+ headlight switch and other small trim upgrades. I also converted the drivers side knee panel to the euro panel which is cleaner/slimmer and look and got one covered in matching leather. I also did a full audio install a couple of summers ago. That brings us to my winter project. One of the first issues were the seat bushings. In all E36/7/8 cars the rubber turns to goo and it allows the seats to move on accel and decel. So I took them apart and put in the resin bits that take up the slack. Next I had a commonly busted AC button and cracked shifter plate around the button. So the plan was to buy a new ac button and repair the shift plate($180 at ECS tuning and WILL break again). But I wanted to do something a bit different. E36/7/8 M cars were offered with two tone interiors like this: I wanted to do a similar color break, but not use COLOR to break things up, but materials...the material being Alcantara. The plan is for the dash, door panels, seats and console to deviate from black Nappa the same way the oem does but using the suede. It will be subtle and very OEM+. In some places I plan on adding contrast stitching in silver to pull a bit of exterior color into the interior. I am not about to buy a sewing machine and try my hand at the seats and dash pods. I wanted to tackle the center console. I started out slow, got great results and built up my confidence. The key was keeping the material taut and knowing how to make the right relief cuts in corners. I love how thin the material is and so the transitions, openings etc are super crisp. It came out better than pics, does not look like an amateur job. The repairs to the button surround are invisible as done from behind, the suede makes it look like new. Then I went and put on my console/cupholder which was a large lump of black plastic. It seemed out of place now. So in I went with the suede. I am left with this issue: The arm rest looks faded and tired(its now 6 years old). I also dont want it this material anymore, but black Nappa with silver stitching*my brake and shift boot will be the same). So a local friend is going to make that for me. I also got spooked seeing my car listed as a classic on my usual BMW parts database. So I ordered the matching euro glovebox which I will recover in black Nappa. I will finish the project by having the seats, door panels and dash done by a pro. The end result will be closer to what you would expect from an modern M car with an extended leather package. There will be almost no plastic to touch, everything being Nappa and Alcantara. But you can go overboard with that stuff, following the OEM breaks, it should be subtle enough. Well, that's my winter project so far! __________________ '98 Dinan/RMS stage 2+(VAC cams, CES Cutring etc) '15 Buick Regal "T"(wife) '06 Saab 9-5 Combi 5mt (full suspension, LSD, clipped turbo etc)
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01-02-2016, 07:08 PM	#2
vonmayr Major 699 Rep 1,199 Posts Drives: 2015 M3 Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Tucson, AZ iTrader: (0) Garage List 2015 BMW M3 [0.00] 2015 BMW X5 sDrive 35i [0.00]	Very nice! Subscribed for more updates __________________ Best Regards, Robert (BMWCCA #471893) Loreley 2015 / //M3 6MT SO over full SO, Exec,Susp & Lighting, HK & Blk 19's - ED 15 May 2015, Redelivery 23 July 2015 My photography: WWW.PBASE.COM/VONMAYR My ED Adventure http://www.vonmayredadventure.blogspot.com
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01-10-2016, 10:55 AM	#3
Jamesons Viggen Brigadier General 199 Rep 3,780 Posts Drives: '98 M Roadster stg 2+ S/C Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Rochester Hills MI iTrader: (3)	Console is back in, fought me less than I thought it would. Everything worked first try. Gotta get the stereo in and the seats in this week. I dropped off the shift/brake boots and arm rest with a friend who will custom stitch leather with silver thread for me. __________________ '98 Dinan/RMS stage 2+(VAC cams, CES Cutring etc) '15 Buick Regal "T"(wife) '06 Saab 9-5 Combi 5mt (full suspension, LSD, clipped turbo etc)
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01-25-2016, 11:28 AM	#4
Jamesons Viggen Brigadier General 199 Rep 3,780 Posts Drives: '98 M Roadster stg 2+ S/C Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Rochester Hills MI iTrader: (3)	__________________ '98 Dinan/RMS stage 2+(VAC cams, CES Cutring etc) '15 Buick Regal "T"(wife) '06 Saab 9-5 Combi 5mt (full suspension, LSD, clipped turbo etc)
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01-29-2016, 11:29 AM	#5
Jamesons Viggen Brigadier General 199 Rep 3,780 Posts Drives: '98 M Roadster stg 2+ S/C Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Rochester Hills MI iTrader: (3)	Cant wait to put these on! __________________ '98 Dinan/RMS stage 2+(VAC cams, CES Cutring etc) '15 Buick Regal "T"(wife) '06 Saab 9-5 Combi 5mt (full suspension, LSD, clipped turbo etc)
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01-29-2016, 11:31 AM	#6
rjd598 Banned 1745 Rep 6,695 Posts Drives: F30 340i Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: San Diego,CA iTrader: (2) Garage List 2016 BMW 340i [0.00]	Zhp shift knob has to be one of the greatest add ons for manual owners. Loved mine.
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01-29-2016, 07:30 PM	#8
m5james Colonel 443 Rep 2,062 Posts Drives: '10 X5M Alpine White on Sakhir Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Marysville, WA iTrader: (0)	Looks good, I like that red and black combo as well. I just got a 97 328ci 5spd from my mom w/ 88k on the clock. I can agree about vert interiors...she had the typical E36 a-pillar leak for 2yrs and I didn't know it was as bad as it was until I was forced to finally pull the seats and carpet from the vehicle in order to dry it out. This weekend I'll be water-repellent treating the convertible top and trying to fix any and all leaks I can find before finally throwing the carpet and interior back it...gotta do it quick before I forget how it all goes back together lol __________________ '10 BMW X5///M - Alpine White on Sakhir Orange - JB4 w/ HCP Stage 2 BEF, NGK 97506 @ .20, SS tubing & BMC filters, gutted cats, AC Forged 312 22's, H&R 2" '98 BMW 740iL - ///E39 M5 6spd swap, fully built engine (sleeved, P&P, cams), 3.46 LSD, H&R Stage 2/Bilstein HD, Magnaflow 14816's '97 BMW 328ci - ///E36 M3 clutch & L/W flywheel, Z4///M 18's
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02-22-2016, 09:12 AM	#9
Jamesons Viggen Brigadier General 199 Rep 3,780 Posts Drives: '98 M Roadster stg 2+ S/C Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Rochester Hills MI iTrader: (3)	Just waiting on a couple more pcs to be leather wrapped. __________________ '98 Dinan/RMS stage 2+(VAC cams, CES Cutring etc) '15 Buick Regal "T"(wife) '06 Saab 9-5 Combi 5mt (full suspension, LSD, clipped turbo etc)
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