Erlingtheyounger
Member
Well ain’t that a beauty! Looking very swish sir. Jaipur was made to set next to black leather on that evidence! 
Project EUD (2001 Jaipur Red TDI AMF)
- Thread starter 2work
- Start date
2work
Well Known Member
Evening Erling,Well ain’t that a beauty! Looking very swish sir. Jaipur was made to set next to black leather on that evidence!
Thank you for the encouraging words Sir. You know I like the Twist & Soul combo and was going to consider this as an option in the future. Since driving around in this refreshed cabin earlier today has made me realise it needs to remain Soul only.
As the headlining is starting to drop I truly beleive a black fabric headlining is in order. Just so happens I have 3x tins of Soul Volico Paint to address the roof furniture. Another warmer weather task though but quite excited to see how it turns out.
Kind regards,
Tom
2work
Well Known Member
Evening all,
Whilst the weather continues to tip it down I have decided to start something indoors that can be taken outside when weather permits. Some of you may have seen the Wanted thread where I ask for a pair of rear Leatherette Door Card Armrests to recolour to Black.
Well I have a pair of fronts in Red Leatherette that I obtained from Steve @Cenick some time last year. These were supposed to recoloured to Twist and fitted into Project OEM, a job for another time as I’m really wanting to give this stunning A2 some enhancements.
The back end of next week will see me meet up with Parmjit @slumdog to collect the rear door cards but I couldn’t wait to see what I could do with the fronts I had in the garage.
I swiftly got my weapon of choice out, the mighty Dremel and removed the armrests. Then proceeded to remove the aluminium clip (very fragile item) along with the plastic trim cover. Here’s what it looks like off of the door card and at much disgust to the other driver here, on the kitchen island:
You can see I am about to employ some Furniture Clinic product, but not before a full clean down to remove every last bit of grease and grime. It was astonishing how bright the red colour actually is after a deep clean, it looked rather nice but wasn’t stopping there. A little sacrificial but needs must unfortunately.
The armrest was warmed up with a hair dryer so it was warm (not hot) to the touch. The first coat of colourant is simply wiped on. Below you’ll see how thinly this wipe over is, just to form a base coat which was dried off with the hair dryer:
Whilst the armrest was still warm I went straight into dabbing on layers of this great product. A slow process but worth the time and effort. In total it received 9-10 thinly dabbed layers, it was fully covered after 3 but decided upon more due to these being in a high-wear area. The hair dryer was used dry the surface between each layer. It looks pretty good and will further darken over night:
Here it is back together stood on some toilet roll tubes to cure over night:
I’ll have this on the Soul drivers door card tomorrow evening along with the passengers which I’ll start in the next few minutes. Really impressed with the results of the Furniture Clinic product. That’s just an hours tinkering which has turned out splendid.
Picture to follow tomorrow afternoon/evening once the front door cards have received their refreshed Black Leatherette armrests.
Kind regards,
Tom
Whilst the weather continues to tip it down I have decided to start something indoors that can be taken outside when weather permits. Some of you may have seen the Wanted thread where I ask for a pair of rear Leatherette Door Card Armrests to recolour to Black.
Well I have a pair of fronts in Red Leatherette that I obtained from Steve @Cenick some time last year. These were supposed to recoloured to Twist and fitted into Project OEM, a job for another time as I’m really wanting to give this stunning A2 some enhancements.
The back end of next week will see me meet up with Parmjit @slumdog to collect the rear door cards but I couldn’t wait to see what I could do with the fronts I had in the garage.
I swiftly got my weapon of choice out, the mighty Dremel and removed the armrests. Then proceeded to remove the aluminium clip (very fragile item) along with the plastic trim cover. Here’s what it looks like off of the door card and at much disgust to the other driver here, on the kitchen island:
You can see I am about to employ some Furniture Clinic product, but not before a full clean down to remove every last bit of grease and grime. It was astonishing how bright the red colour actually is after a deep clean, it looked rather nice but wasn’t stopping there. A little sacrificial but needs must unfortunately.
The armrest was warmed up with a hair dryer so it was warm (not hot) to the touch. The first coat of colourant is simply wiped on. Below you’ll see how thinly this wipe over is, just to form a base coat which was dried off with the hair dryer:
Whilst the armrest was still warm I went straight into dabbing on layers of this great product. A slow process but worth the time and effort. In total it received 9-10 thinly dabbed layers, it was fully covered after 3 but decided upon more due to these being in a high-wear area. The hair dryer was used dry the surface between each layer. It looks pretty good and will further darken over night:
Here it is back together stood on some toilet roll tubes to cure over night:
I’ll have this on the Soul drivers door card tomorrow evening along with the passengers which I’ll start in the next few minutes. Really impressed with the results of the Furniture Clinic product. That’s just an hours tinkering which has turned out splendid.
Picture to follow tomorrow afternoon/evening once the front door cards have received their refreshed Black Leatherette armrests.
Kind regards,
Tom
2work
Well Known Member
Evening Joakim,
The answer to your question is absolutely yes. Ive had Furniture Clinic painted rear door card armrests in Project OEM for the last 2 years. No issue what so ever.
Ive also recoloured an A1 MFSW which was very worn around the top to the point it was actually rough and had it in OEM for a while before switching to a FBMFSW. The same A1 MFSW was in Project 250 for quite a while before it was also swapped for a flat bottomed variant. I still have the A1 steering wheel in the garage and the paint is still looking spot on.
Another item I recoloured with this product was a leather lidded A6 C5 armrest, I have rested my arm on this for well over 18 months now and it still looks as good as the day I attacked it with The Furniture Clinic product. Good results are of course all in the preparations. Just ensure the item to be painted is immaculate then warm it up between each thin coat. More thin coats the better.
Hope this answers your question.
Kind regards,
Tom
2work
Well Known Member
Evening Ed,
Yes they were removed for perfect colorant coverage. I’ll get some pictures of the armrest removal process when I get the door cards from @slumdog next weekend. It only takes 5 minutes with a Dremel. Attaching them to the door cards is achieved by kitchen cabinet screws which are available from most DIY places. The first batch I had were given to me by Ian @Proghound but when I run out I replaced them from ScrewFix.
Edit: for the benefit of Ed @CrispyEdd and anyone else out there considering this simple task then I here’s a few pictures to assist and explain.
To remove the armrest from the door card requires the use of a Dremel and a T20 screwdriver. Hopefully the picture below with enable other to have a go themselves.
This is a passengers side front door card. You should be able to see the weapon of choice I prefer to use along with the 11 melt fixings. These 11 melt fixings need to have the heads removed. Don’t use a drill bit as you risk causing damage to the tube which you need later on to insert the kitchen cabinet screws into:
Zoomed in you can see the bit I have on the Dremel along with a close up of a few of the melt fixings:
Seconds later the top of the melt fixings are removed:
You’ll notice above that only to exposed head has been removed. The tube part has not been cut or damaged.
Once all 11 melt points have been attacked with the Dremel then it’s time to remove the 3x T20 screws you can see just below the screwdriver:
Once these are removed the the armrest will easily pull away from the door card. Before I remove the armrest I ensure that the window switches are removed and the looms are free so they don’t get damaged.
Here’s the drivers door with the armrest reattached using the kitchen cabinet screws and accompanying washer. It is very secure and will most definitely not pull off with these after market fixings:
Kind regards,
Tom
Last edited:
Buchanan DTR
Member
As ever Tom I love the detail you take the time to post.
Are the leather armrests padded when compared to the standard version?
Are the leather armrests padded when compared to the standard version?
2work
Well Known Member
Evening David,
Not really unfortunately. The leatherette covering is of very similar thickness to that of the standard plastic covering, which does feel a little harder/tougher I suppose. Honestly I could have got away with just repainting a set of standard door card armrests. The main difference is the appearance and the texture between the two.
The standard looks like a rather cheap imitation of leather whereas the leatherette of course looks like genuine leather.
Anyone jumping into this glorious cabin probably wouldn’t be able to notice the difference if I had both standard and leatherette armrest which was freshly recoloured. The beady-eyed A2 enthusiast would know something wasn’t right though.
Kind regards,
Tom
2work
Well Known Member
Hello again Ed,
Have a look back at Post #47 as I’ve just added a few pictures for you Sir. If you need anything further then please do just ask. I’ll be doing the same process just after next weekend once I’ve collected the rear door cards.
Hope this helps answer you original question.
Kind regards,
Tom
2work
Well Known Member
Afternoon everyone,
The refreshed front door cards, sporting Black coloured Leatherette have just been refitted:
Drivers
Passengers
Any speckles or blemishes you see on the door card armrests are bits of lint from the cloth I just wiped them over with. A full detail will follow in the coming days once the colourant has fully cured.
I do need to repaint the switch bezels which will happen in time, the reason why I didn’t do that yesterday is that the passengers surround is damaged and the driver’s surround is only for controlling the fronts, a future retrofit will include rear electric windows.
Very happy with the outcome of this Mini transformation.
Cannot wait to have the rears looking just as refreshed in the next week or 2.
Kind regards,
Tom
The refreshed front door cards, sporting Black coloured Leatherette have just been refitted:
Drivers
Passengers
Any speckles or blemishes you see on the door card armrests are bits of lint from the cloth I just wiped them over with. A full detail will follow in the coming days once the colourant has fully cured.
I do need to repaint the switch bezels which will happen in time, the reason why I didn’t do that yesterday is that the passengers surround is damaged and the driver’s surround is only for controlling the fronts, a future retrofit will include rear electric windows.
Very happy with the outcome of this Mini transformation.
Cannot wait to have the rears looking just as refreshed in the next week or 2.
Kind regards,
Tom
Buchanan DTR
Member
Good to know Tom. I sometimes wonder is a little extra padding would help with the comfort on the armrest.
The finished product looks fantastic but i unfortunately don't have the patience or finesse to carry out such workmanship.
As expected this is a great looking project.
2work
Well Known Member
Evening David,
Always happy to help out if I can. I know geography is at play here but I would be more than happy to assist in the future if you wanted something like this doing. It’ll only cost postage as I’d do the recolouring FOC, I enjoy doing these type of things and they really do t take that long.
Kind regards,
Tom
Buchanan DTR
Member
Tom that's a VERY generous offer.
If something needs recoloured I'm left with the dilemma of black as you have done or red to match the leather.
I think a 6 speed conversion will need to be this year's focus probably with a new clutch which for the 90hp tdi seems to have jumped in price.
Not that my car is a project...
If something needs recoloured I'm left with the dilemma of black as you have done or red to match the leather.
I think a 6 speed conversion will need to be this year's focus probably with a new clutch which for the 90hp tdi seems to have jumped in price.
Not that my car is a project...
2work
Well Known Member
Cenick
A2OC Donor
I see that the MYP box close to you has sold Tom, which is good really as it means I don’t have to buy it
Sent from thin air
Buchanan DTR
Member
Not by me just to be clear but it's definitely on the agenda for 2023.I see that the MYP box close to you has sold Tom, which is good really as it means I don’t have to buy it
Sent from thin air
I had a look at an old thread about people's plans for 2021. To my amusement Tom had posted his plan was not to buy a third A2...
2work
Well Known Member
Wow,
I remember that, I’m not one for being great at keeping New Years Resolutions. 2022 see the addition of a Merlot Red FSI, Pine Green 1.4 Petrol and of course a Jaipur Red TDI.
I’ve since categorically been told not to buy any more. Also been inform that one of the keepers has to unfortunately go. I’ll not say any more on the subject but an associated Market thread will be created in due course.
Kind regards,
Tom
Buchanan DTR
Member
I've found that buying things the same colour means you get away with it.
I did that with 3 motorbikes that were all blue, just said it was the same one.
I suspect not everyone's wife is as uninterested in the vehicles that sit in the garage.
I did that with 3 motorbikes that were all blue, just said it was the same one.
I suspect not everyone's wife is as uninterested in the vehicles that sit in the garage.
2work
Well Known Member
Afternoon all,
Weather still slowing progress here so going to continue within the cabin for now.
I accept that LED interior lights aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, I personally like them. They give an enhanced illumination which will be of benefit when I get to reupholstering the headlining; really am considering changing the colour of the fabric and roof furniture to black, this will of course further darken the interior so the new bulbs will assist in cabin illumination for the boys find their bits and bobs they drop in the footwells.
Right now I have no future aspirations of changing the interior colour scheme to that of a 2-tone Twist and Soul which I mentioned in an earlier post. A completely black interior has certainly grown on me after commuting for well over a week now.
Thursday see me purchase these:
For the A2 you receive 7 bulbs:
3 for the front overhead light switch pack
2 for the vanity mirrors
2 for the rear overhead light switch pack
They arrived earlier this morning and only just found a spare 10 minutes to fit them. Very happy with the exceptional brightness compared to the standard bulbs. The set I have in Project OEM have lasted a few years now as they were also in my previous commuter, so fingers crossed these last just as long.
Continuing in the interior; I’m meeting up with Parmjit @slumdog in the next few hours to collect a pair of red leatherette rear door cards… May no longer be red before I retire for the day though. Further door card pictures to follow if it ever stops raining.
Kind regards,
Tom
Weather still slowing progress here so going to continue within the cabin for now.
I accept that LED interior lights aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, I personally like them. They give an enhanced illumination which will be of benefit when I get to reupholstering the headlining; really am considering changing the colour of the fabric and roof furniture to black, this will of course further darken the interior so the new bulbs will assist in cabin illumination for the boys find their bits and bobs they drop in the footwells.
Right now I have no future aspirations of changing the interior colour scheme to that of a 2-tone Twist and Soul which I mentioned in an earlier post. A completely black interior has certainly grown on me after commuting for well over a week now.
Thursday see me purchase these:
For the A2 you receive 7 bulbs:
3 for the front overhead light switch pack
2 for the vanity mirrors
2 for the rear overhead light switch pack
They arrived earlier this morning and only just found a spare 10 minutes to fit them. Very happy with the exceptional brightness compared to the standard bulbs. The set I have in Project OEM have lasted a few years now as they were also in my previous commuter, so fingers crossed these last just as long.
Continuing in the interior; I’m meeting up with Parmjit @slumdog in the next few hours to collect a pair of red leatherette rear door cards… May no longer be red before I retire for the day though. Further door card pictures to follow if it ever stops raining.
Kind regards,
Tom