Subtle to dramatic effects can be achieved just by painting the trim pieces of your Mustang’s interior. If you don’t like the present color of your interior, you can also completely change it with professional results. Read along to see just how easy it is to completely change the look of your interior or just spice that bland dashboard and trim pieces up a bit for a more personalized look!

Submitted By: MarvinMyCat

The most common interior color change that is made is one that complements the interior by utilizing the same color of the exterior of the car. Many car manufacturer’s, including Ford, are now offering color-matched interiors for hundreds of dollars. You don’t have to spend that kind of cash to get the same or even better results.

Decide What To Paint

The first step is to decide on a few things before ripping out your interior pieces and spraying them down with paint. First figure out what color you would like your interior to be, along with any trim pieces that you want to paint. This is required as there are two types of interior surfaces that are usually painted, one is a soft vinyl, and the other is hard. The soft vinyl would be the type you find on the top part of your doors as well as the top of your dashboard. Hard vinyl is found on the lower parts of the doors, the rear interior quarter panels, your center console, and all your trim pieces (radio bezel, door cups, door pulls, window defrosters, etc.).

Choosing Your Products

There are two types of paint you will be using depending on which types of surfaces you want paint. Vinyl paint works best when used on soft plastic surfaces. Lacquer paint works best when used on hard plastic surfaces. If you plan to paint your interior panels, then use a non-glossy or mat finish (do not use a glossy finish) in order to match the existing finish of the existing interior panels. The following companies make some of the best interior paints and dyes available today:

• LSR Vinyl Dye and Vinyl Lacquer
• LSR Gray Primer/Sealer - filling minor abrasions/promoting adhesion on hard plastic
• Krylon Lacquer Spray – for hard vinyl
• Dupli-Color makes a wide range of colors and paint effects for the following:
• Vinyl and Fabric dyes
• Adhesion Promoters
• Primer
• Clear Coats

As there are so many choices as to how to paint or finish your interior trim pieces, decide how you want the completed product to look. Some choose to leave the textured finish, and some like the completely glassy smooth finish on these parts. Once you decide which parts and colors you would like, head on off to your favorite auto parts and hardware stores for the following products:

• 400-Grit or Finer Wet Sanding Paper (for smooth trim pieces)
• #000 Steel Wool (for smooth trim pieces)
• Isopropyl Alcohol
• Painter’s Tape and News Paper
• A Razor Blade or Sharp Knife (used for painting the trim ring of the shifter bezel)
• A Good Grease-cutting Dish Soap (Dawn)
• Scrub Brush
• Appropriate Paint Products

Some tools you will need in order to remove the various interior panels and trim pieces:

• Flat Tip Screw Driver Philips Screw Driver
• Small Socket Set With Long Extension Shafts
• 3/8" Torx Bit (T-43) for the seat belt removal (convertibles)
• Needle Nose Pliers
• Stereo Removal "Keys" or Four Small Long Allen Wrenches
• A Rag – for prying up on plastic pieces needing removal with a screwdriver
• A Kitchen Fork or Door Panel Removal Tool

Doors panels: Unscrew the door locks. Pull on the door handle and gently pry the back of the door cup out, and remove. Pry up the window switch plate/door pull, unscrew electrical switch panel from the plate. Remove two screws found where the switch panel was located. Pry out the Christmas tree fasteners found on the edges, and pull the panel up and toward the rear to remove.

Sill Plates: Pry these up and remove.
Rear Quarter Panels: Remove rear seat backs, push two tabs under seat bottom cushion to release rear seat bottom and remove. On the very top of the driver's side panel, facing the rear of the car, toward the outside of the car, is a plastic retaining push pin, remove this. Remove three or more retaining push pins - two are located where the seat cushion meets the panel, one is located toward the top on convertibles, the other half way down. The third or fourth one is located under the seat cushion you actually put your butt on, toward the front.

Seat Belts (Convertibles): Remove the cover on the retracting assembly on top, just over your left shoulder and behind when you drive. Unscrew the 3/8" Torx screw. Note: Don't try to remove the bracket that holds on the seat belt assembly by removing the two bolts on top, as it won't fit through the Mach 460 speaker holes later. Also, don't play around with the floor mounted assembly either, as it is more of a pain than its worth to remove. On the convertible, there is a plastic "T" piece that pulls straight up and out where the actual seat belt passes through the panel, pull it out. From behind the panel, pop out the smaller speaker grill. Be careful as there are metal clips that hold the grill in place and they can fly off. If one does take flight, use needle nose pliers to push the metal clip back on again. The large speaker grill does NOT come off, as the retaining studs have been flat-melted to keep the grill on. Slide the seat belt through the small speaker hole and then pass the seat belt retracting assembly through the speaker hole.

Front Kick Panels: Pull the retaining pin and then gently pull straight back on the panel.
Glove Box: Open the box, squeeze the back of the box together to disengage the box sides from the stop tabs, then remove a few screws. Remove the latching mechanism by removing screws, then pull the glove box panel off.

Steering Column Panel: Unbolt the two bolts on the underside at the rear edge of the panel. Pull this rectangular piece down and off to remove.
Center Console: Remove shift ball and boot if applicable. Remove shifter bezel as stated below in the next set of instructions. Remove two hex nuts at front top location up toward where the radio is located. Open the center glove box and remove the two front rubber stops. Unscrew the screws under the rubber stops. When removing the box compartment, note there are two retaining clips toward the back on the sides. Remove the two Torx bits at the bottom on top of a metal plate under where the bottom of the box was located. Unplug the wiring harness from the back of the DC accessories socket. Disconnect any wring harnesses by way of their quick release connectors. Pull the emergency brake up, and then remove the entire center console from the car.

Shifter Bezel: For automatics, move the shifter to Neutral. Use a cloth and a slot screwdriver to pry the bezel away from the console. Start at the top left and gently pry it away a little at a time while moving toward the bottom of the bezel. Once there, start on the right side and move down toward the center. Pull the center section of the bezel away from the console and remove. Disconnect the plug from the cigarette lighter and the gray clip from the traction control switch. To remove the cigarette lighter, depress the side clips and pop the unit out. Remove the Traction Control module in the same way and push it through the front of the bezel.

Center Console Trim Piece: First remove the radio and CD player using the stereo key or four Allen wrenches. Toward the back where the radio was, remove the retaining nut using a socket and extension. Using the rag and flat tip screwdriver, pry the top of the trim piece away starting on the left side and working your way down. Repeat for the right side and remove the trim piece. The center vents will come out with them. To remove the vents: The two vents are held in using heat welds. Break these welds apart to remove the entire double vent unit. In order to re-attach these later, use a combination of heat and super glue to re-weld and glue the welds back together.

Front Side Vents: Remove the panel under the steering wheel. Unscrew the two screws holding in the trim and vent, then remove. Open the passenger-side glove box, remove the two screws holding the trim and vent, then remove.

Window Defroster Vents: Pry these out using a rag and flat head screwdriver.

Windshield Defroster Vent: This vent is held in with a few screws. You will need to look through your windshield to see them. If you do not see any screw heads, then you can just pry the vent out. If there are screws visible, use a socket wrench with a Philips screwdriver bit to remove the screws.

Gauge Pod Trim: Remove the headlight knob by prying the inner clip outward – this is found within the slit in the headlight knob shaft. Remove the two nuts on the under side of the top of the gauge pod and pry the unit out from the top first.

Dashboard Clock: Push on the pod from the front; it has clips on the front that holds it down. The clock is wired to the car's power supply; unplug it.

Prepping Your Parts

INSPECTION
The most important process in painting interior parts is the preparation. First examine your parts for damage. If you find any damage on your interior panel pieces, such as gouges, scratches, or any other type of surface imperfections, you will want to sand down any high spots with the 400-grit sandpaper. Only sand the high spots down and not the entire area that is marred. For interior trim pieces, do the same, but if you will be sanding down the entire piece for a smooth finish, use the steel wool as well.

SANDING
If you want your interior trim pieces to be smooth and have a completely glossy finish, you will need to sand your parts. Skip this step and move on to cleaning your parts if you will be going with a textured finish. If not, then use 400-grit sandpaper to sand your pieces smooth. After you achieve a fairly smooth finish, move on to sanding with the #000 steel wool. Continue sanding until your parts are as smooth as you would like.

Remember that if you sand your parts, that after cleaning them, you will want to use an adhesion promoter/primer to help the paint stick to your parts and prevent cracking or peeling.

CLEANING
Next, you will need to clean your parts thoroughly. Start with a good warm soap and water mixture. A good grease-cutting dish soap such as Dawn is a perfect product for washing parts. Use a scrub brush and scrub the pieces down. Rinse the pieces with water, and repeat the process. If there are still areas that are dirty such as crevices, use a toothbrush to get the dirt out. Wipe the parts down and let them dry completely.

The last step in cleaning is to use a rag and Isopropyl Alcohol to remove any last traces of dirt and grease. Let parts dry again. If you still have dirty or greasy parts, then use a good specialized cleaning product such as Dupli-Color’s Prep Wipe or Grease & Wax Remover.

To fill in any low spots due to imperfections, use LSR Gray Primer/Sealer to fill in minor abrasions and to promote adhesion on hard plastics. For soft vinyl rips and tears, you will have to search for a vinyl repair kit or replace the part all together.

Painting Your Parts (Finally)

Now you get to paint your parts! This is your last chance to ensure that your parts preparation has been thorough. For any parts that you sanded, or any hard vinyl panels whether sanded or not, use an adhesion promoter/primer first for insurance. For parts that won’t be entirely painted, you will want to use the painter’s tape and newspaper to mask off the areas not being painted. If you are going to go with two-toned interior panels, you will want to make sure that the back sides of any openings are taped and covered with newspaper to prevent paint over spray from finding its way to the fronts of the panels.

Best results are achieved when spraying many light coats rather than just a few heavy coats. When dying vinyl, it is best to have at least three coats for good color coverage. For trim pieces, no less than three coats are desired. Some color kits require more coats, or multiple color coats of different sprays. Follow each of the manufacturer’s instructions for these types of products.

To mask off the shifter bezel to paint just the inner portion of it, fold several pieces of tape length-wise with the sticky sides facing out. Then lay the folded edge of the tape into the crease that runs along and around the shifter. Use a flat tip screwdriver to push the tape into the crease for a good bond. Next, take your sharp knife or razor blade and cut the tape within the crease on the side closest to the shifter. Remove the tape on the inside of the bezel, and complete masking the bezel off with more tape and newspaper.

Make sure that you are painting in a relatively dust-free environment. When spraying your parts, always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Generally, you want to paint your parts with multiple light coats of paint. Always use smooth even strokes when spraying the parts. Try to keep the spray nozzle perpendicular to the pieces being sprayed. Most applications to the trim pieces will require several coats to be applied, and that each coat not be completely dry, but rather tacky, when applying the next coat of paint. This helps the bonding of each coat of paint to the previous one. Read the instructions!

If you get a drip or run, or the paint crackles from applying too much paint, you can wet sand it lightly once it dries completely, then remove the dust and grit, and apply a few light coats of paint over the spot again to correct it.

To complete your painting process, finish the trim pieces with a durable clearcoat finish. If your product requires that the color coat be completely dry, after the parts dry, wipe down the parts to remove any dust that may have settled. Do NOT clear coat interior panels! It is best to let the painted parts sit for 24 hours before attempting to re-install them so as not to damage the paint.

Courtesy of   http://www.stangnet.com/