1955 Chevy 210 Custom Interior - An Inside Job

The foundation for the upholstery panels doesn't have to be wood. In the trunk, Art made all of the panels out of 0.050-inch aluminum. Note the trick little trap door converting the spare tire well into a small storage area for tools, detailing products, rags, etc.

During the reassembly of the car, Totally Stainless fasteners were used for the body panels as well as all of the interior garnish moldings.

While the template is nearly identical to the OE door panel, it is a lot more accurate and will fit a lot better.

In order to make an accurate door and interior panels, we first used template cardboard to make some patterns. The cardboard was trimmed to within a 1/16 of an inch of the door's edge so that when the panel is wrapped with material it will not overhang on the door and quarter panels.

Once the template is made, the pattern is transferred to a sheet of 1/8-inch oak veneer. This wood panel will become the foundation to your upholstered door panel.

The quarter panel template is made in much the same way. The gaps are less critical since the wind lace, carpet, garnish molding, and seat will be hiding the edges on all sides. When you are satisfied with the shape of the panel, it can be transferred over to the plywood and cut.

With the Tea's Design seat in place, it was time to layout the design for the panels. The first step was to determine a comfortable spot for the arm rests to go.

Small wire clips like these will hold the upholstery panels securely to the inside of the car. These fasteners will hold fast and still allow the panel to be removed to access window mechanisms, stereo components, etc.

Now that we had found where the armrests were to be mounted, their position was transferred back to the cardboard template. After looking at many car interiors and custom upholstery Web sites, a design was sketched out on the door/quarter panel templates so the design would flow from the front of the car to the back. The speaker location was also mapped out so it would fit the overall design of the interior.

Once we were satisfied with the design, the templates were cut up to provide a mask for the spray glue. These new templates will also be used for cutting the wood for the inset panels.

For the upholstery process a good pair of scissors, a cheap spray gun, a few acid brushes, chip brushes, and Weldwood Contact Adhesive will be your main tools for doing a top-notch job.

Before the wood panel is sprayed with glue, duct tape is placed over the panel fasteners to hold them in place and holes are made for the window and vent window cranks as well as the door handle. The new templates are placed on the wood to act as a mask so it will be much easier when removing the foam in this area for the accent panels. A piece of 1/4-inch foam is also rough-cut in the shape of the panel.

After spraying glue on the wood, remove the template cardboard masks and then spray the foam. Giving it a few minutes to "tack up," the foam can be pressed onto the wood. Using a sharp razor blade, the excess foam can be trimmed away.

Transferring the pattern of the accent panels onto the foam shows where the material needs to be trimmed away. Since the mark on the foam was made with a Sharpie, I cut the thick black line down the middle, giving me enough room for the upholstered panel to set down in the larger door panel.

These tee-nuts and small screws will be used to fasten the inset panels to the main door and quarter panel.