DHC report nr. 90; Interior finished

With the seats in place the “only” thing left to do on the interior was the centre console. The console itself (the part with the heater controls) wasn’t the problem, that slipped in place very easily. But before it could be fitted I first had to adapt it a bit to accommodate a simple radio. This is always a bit of a problem with the limited space available in a TR7’s console. First I just put the radio’s mounting sleeve in place and bent a few of the tabs to keep it in place. But due to the angled position that was not going to work. So plan B was put into operation, I glued the sleeve in place with some heavy duty window sealant/glue. And with the sleeve in place the centre console was put aside for the time being, so the sealant could cure a bit.

Next job, and the most dreaded so far, was getting the wiring for the radio and some extra interior lights sorted. This took me nearly all of the afternoon. But I got it sorted in the end!

Then came the most difficult bit, connecting everything up to the centre console. But after a bit of a fiddle I managed to get everything connected. And as I already stated the console slipped in place without a problem.

Left me with the centre piece of the console, which surrounds the gearlever. As space is tight to fit this one with the control console in place, I opted to put it in place loosely before fitting the control console. As the handbrake cable isn’t adjusted yet I could pull the hand brake lever right up enabling me to push the centre console backwards to give me more than enough working space. Only problem I encountered here was the seam in the centre of the transmission tunnel carpet which was to thick, so I had to cut part of the seam out. After which everything fitted quite nicely. And to finish the interior I connected the radio to its wiring and slipped it in place. Very pleased with the overall look!

Last bit, cleaning and checking the engine and gearbox and putting it in the car ...