Tutorial: Applying Vinyl Wraps to Interior and Exterior Panels

We have this great thing called 'wraps' that let anybody with some patience go far towards customizing their interior. It just so happens that I'm doing that right now so you guys (and gals... Maybe) can see my screw up - I mean this awesome center console.

All jokes aside, the woodgrain was fading from the Florida sun so I figured I would re-doing it in black. I considered a woodgrain wrap but I'm glad I went with the former.

When I got this car - and if you remember, I'm surprised - the interior was torn up. The phrase I used was it looked like a dog had owned it and drove it around with all his bitches.

Driver's seat? Ripped to shreds. Passenger seat - almost as bad. And the back seat? Also almost as bad. It seriously made me wonder if a family of werewolves owned this car. How do you manage to rip up every seat, badly, and then do the center console too? It looked like sh*t! Luckily I was able to redo it cheap.

I painted the floormatts using vinyl paint, reupholstered the center console in a soft black cloth, put black seat covers on, and it totally changed the look and feel of the interior. Before? Grandpa's car (who owned dogs). After? It looks damn respectable. And I just did the wood part of the center console and made that black too. Paint it black... (Someone gets the reference.)

I was originally going to do the ashtray too but then I realized it actually looks nice like that and matches the woodgrain around my power window buttons.

What you need to do for a big area like this is roughly mark the areas you're gonna cut on your wrap. I set it down on the area it was gonna go and used a marker to draw where I have to cut. For example, I had to cut a square around the shifter. Leave yourself a little extra wrap. You can always cut some off.

When you apply the wrap in it's rough form, it should go beyond every edge. Using the area around my shifter as an example, I had to put the wrap down as straight as possible, press down all around the shifter so it's in place, and then I simply used a razorblade to cut around the edges. Take your time! Go slow and follow the lines of whatever panel you're working on. If the wrap is gonna fold over like on a rounded edge, leave enough for that exact reason.

If you look closely, you can tell I made a couple mistakes. Not to take anything away from me messing up but the wrap I got was kinda crappy. It didn't stretch or respond to heat so in order to fix the wrinkles, in one case I had to make a small cut. The area I did in one sheet is also pretty big meaning it was hard to get what is essentially a huge sticker to stick flat. You may be able to see where I patched the wrap on the left side.

Guys, get a good wrap from a shop. I got this at one of the auto supply stores and it's okay but could be easier to work with. It doesn't stretch so anything rounded is hard to get right. Around the ashtray, it was popping up in the corners so I had to get a 3M adhesive. This stuff is a little messy (use it when it's not hot or it dries too fast causing you to rush) but perfect for holding down wraps and even emblems. It also scrapes off if you ever take it off.

I forgot to mention that you should clean the area you're gonna be wrapping so it sticks well. Take your time putting the wrap down. It is very important that it doesn't get wrinkles or bubbles so work slowly from one side to the other. If you DO end up with a couple wrinkles, you can usually get them out by peeling the wrap back a little bit and re-doing it or cutting and overlapping it if there is simply too much wrap in one specific area.

I don't think it would happen with a quality wrap but like I mentioned earlier, the rounded edges tend to come off. In the top photo you can see that quite a bit won't stick and in the bottom photo I am pointing to the problem area with my screwdriver.

This is how you fix this. You have to be somewhat quick because the adhesive dries quick but also careful because you can make a mess. Just use something like that small screwdriver to pick up a little glue that you have poured out onto something and, if possible, lift the wrap up slightly and get a decent amount of glue on that edge. Then you're gonna want to quickly press it down with your finger or maybe another tool for maybe thirty seconds. If you touched the glue, use a 'wiping' motion going away from the wrap to get your finger off of it without pulling it back off.

It's the same thing with the exterior panels although since they're a little easier to work with usually, I would recommend actually putting some 3M right on the edge of the wrap where it's gonna come up at the same time as you're putting it on. These wraps are weather resistant but a little extra adhesive can't hurt.

It makes a huge difference. I never realized how much this peeling paint was detracting from the car. This is before:

And this is after:

That's it for now. Comment if you have any questions. I hope this inspired you to work on your own car.

Mine has come very far in the year or so that I've had it. I live paycheck to paycheck but I've been able to not only fix a few things that went wrong such as power steering pump and alternator but I've redone a good amount of the interior and I can say this is MY car with MY taste. The thing that bothers the hell out of me, however, is that the hood sits wrong because of that damn hood hinge. It's about time I change it out. Thanks for reading!

Tutorial: Replacing Lexus LS400 Alternator

The Chariot or Lexy is back on the road five days later and driving really well. I was able to replace the failed alternator without any real problems. The lack of power coming from the old alternator, somehow, was causing or at least contributing to a rough idle and I just made a 40 mile trip with no problems on the new one, thank God.

Replacing the alternator is pretty easy in this car. As an amateur, if I wasn't taking breaks, it took about three hours but I ran into a problem with the original electrical connector.

These are the tools you will need:
14mm socket with extensions (2in. or so)
C-clamp to hold belt (optional)
New alternator

Unplug your battery when you do this job.

This is the old one. You can see I tried cleaning it to bring some life back but it just died the next day. In the above picture, you can see the bottom bolt. The top one is actually a nut but they're both 14mm. That's what holds the alternator in place.

You're gonna have to take the serpentine belt off first. Don't worry, it is very easy on this car. Find the tensioner, slip an extended 14mm socket on there, then turn it to the left all the way to loosen the belt and take the belt off the alternator with your other hand. It will stay put nicely.

Don't forget! It makes it easier if you use a C-clamp to hold the belt in place so it doesn't slide off while you're working on the car. Don't forget to take it off later. If you're new to this, I suggest writing down a step by step for yourself.

Once the belt is off, you are free to take off the top 14mm nut and lower 14mm bolt. There's also two connectors at the back of the alternator towards the top. One of them comes off by taking off a nut that I believe is 14mm aswell but it might be 12mm (sorry). The other wires use a connector. You press the clip on the top of it down and wiggle it out. It might be hard to get out.

In my case, the connector was stuck. I had to actually break it apart CAREFULLY with a screwdriver so I could get to the three wires. I don't know if it matters but keep the wires in order (it probably matters...). Luckily they hold on pretty well without a connector but it's a pain plugging them in. Take your time and go by feel, not sight, because you can't see much. I would take the bolts off first, lay the alternator down on the metal brackets in the engine compartment (not the AC lines!), and take them off that way.

When you put the new alternator in, I recommend you stick it back in place with the bolt and nut before you plug your three wires in, unless of course yours came out with the connector in tact. If you don't, they tend to pop out as you manuever the alternator in place.

The first picture below shows the alternator (the one on the right) with the three metal prongs for your wires.  The picture below that shows how I plugged them in individually. Because the wires don't move, they stay put.

When the alternator is in place and connected, you need to put the belt back on. Easy. Again use one hand to loosen the tensioner and slip the belt on the alternator. It should already be on the other pulleys. Put the battery back and you're good to go!

Update on my LS400 - Coming up on a year

For those of you who are new to the blog, I bought my 1995 Lexus LS400 for $300 after an acquaintance crashed it head-on at a slow speed. I had it running well within about a month.

The hood was bent into a V shape, one of the headlights was kaput (that's dead in Russian), the radiator support was bent, the radiator had big holes in it, it needed a new power steering pump, rear brakes, and a change of all of the fluids.

At this point it was running nice. I replaced the coolant temperature sensor and sender (a separate unit for the gauge in your dash only). I got a new hood on it although I still need to change out the passenger side hood hinge which I will post a tutorial on.

I fell in love with this car when I first floored it but I've fallen even more in love with it as time progressed. This is hands down the best car I've ever owned. The way it drives, the way it looks... Everything about it. I just love it. I am keeping this car possibly forever.

The car didn't give me any problems for probably six months. During this whole time, although I had the PS pump replaced (I did all the other work myself), there is a separate part of the power steering system - the ACV (air control valve - an unnecessary system) - that has been slowly leaking power steering fluid which is fine for the time being except...

It is killing my alternator. Actually, it killed it yesterday. I had a piece of hose connected to the ACV to move the drip out of the way of the alternator. This worked for a long time until a few days ago the battery warning light started coming on and after some inspection, the hose had somehow moved to where it was probably dripping power steering fluid onto the alternator. Great. I had it tested and it was putting out 11.6v which was enough to keep the car going but it died completely on the road yesterday morning.

I got probably 50 miles out of it after the battery light came on. The car ran fine as long as I didn't have my lights on or anything. Just know that if you get this light, if you keep driving, you WILL die somewhere on the side of the road. My logic was that if the output isn't going down, I figured it would run for a little while. It didn't work out that way because it didn't lose output slowly. Instead it just died all of a sudden.

Because it's the power steering fluid that got onto the alternator that is damaging it, I thought I might have some success cleaning it. I've heard of a couple people taking it off the car and pressure washing it, letting it dry, and putting it back with good results.

Following this logic, I decided to use brake cleaner to get some oil off the alternator because I was washing it on the car. I used brake cleaner (important!) because it evaporates and leaves no residue. Otherwise you have to use an ELECTRICAL CLEANER. I almost made the mistake of using diluted degreaser.

Initially, I was cautious cleaning it. I didn't drench the alternator in brake cleaner because I was afraid of killing it. It didn't kill it so I washed it a couple more times, thoroughly, but it just died a couple days later so don't bother.

When I first cleaned it, I thought it may have helped because the battery was staying charged longer. I could tell because when it would go under a certain voltage, it would mess with some sensors and develop a rough idle. However I realize now it had nothing to do with me cleaning it. It was actually the outside temperature. If it's cold, the alternator puts out less power. Warm, more.

Let's go back to my main reasons for buying this car in the first place. Besides the fact that I needed a car, there is two reasons I bought this car.

1. It is one of my all time favorite cars and is already a classic to those who can see. It WILL be a classic in the truest sense of the word - mark my words.

2. It was a mechanic special and I wanted to learn how to work on cars top to bottom. When I got this car initially, I understood very little about fixing cars. In the time that I have owned it, I have learned SO much. My knowledge and especially competence has doubled.

Bonus! 3. I wanted to restore this car. This is a million miles car, no doubt about it. In the state I bought it, thankfully all the major things are up to date such as the timing belt and transmission. However, small things continually fail.

These are things I can usually fix for $20. For example, getting a small crack in one rubber piece of the intake. There's a lot of dry rotted going on. In the time I've owned this car, I've replaced a lot. I am knocking out one thing after the other. As long as I can afford it, I almost don't mind because my goal is to have this car running like new within a year.

So what's the next step for The Chariot?

Fixing everything wrong with it in one go.

It is in a location that I can work on it and I will have the alternator in a couple days and I have all the other parts. I figure now is a good a time as any to fix all the body work, like the way the hood sits, along with everything mechanical.

I am plugging the ACV part of the power steering system when I get the alternator out. That will actually give me more room to loosen the ACV. It's hard to get a wrench in there. That will cover the slow PS fluid leak.

Next comes the alternator. I will be very happy to know I have a good alternator with no danger of getting damaged again.

And last but not least, not only am I replacing the hood hinge so that the hood can actually close, I am going to replace the whole radiator support if I feel I have enough time/resources.

At that point, dear readers, my car should be running with no check engine light or anything. Finally the time is here! Once I am done with that, it's on to a car back exhaust and I will be SO damn happy. Thanks for tuning in. Anyone wanna send me money?

That's a joke. Happy New Year's!