I did a few Google searches to try to find some auto upholstery shops as I was running out of time. I came across P&L Auto Upholstery, which had some good Google reviews and after talking with the owner over the phone, they sounded like a good shop. I visited them once, and although their shop was a old school, they seemed like they knew what they were doing.
I asked if they could recover the visors with Mexican blankets, and I was told it would be no problem if they were thin enough. After a few weeks and purchasing some Mexican blankets at the Tanque Verde swap meet, we dropped the car off.
We were asked if the old P71 ticket writing light should be kept, and they suggested they could remove it and rewire it. OK, it was broken and we hardly used it anymore. They also backed out of covering the visors with Mexican blanket. We asked later if they create covers or sleeves, and they seemed to think that was an OK idea.
After a day and a half, I received a phone call that the car was done, but it was a pain in the ass they said. The dome light doesn't work anymore, meaning the light stays on all the time, so they removed the bulb. Also, the spot light stopped working. Oh, and they broke a couple of seat bolts. Great, here we go again.
When we picked it up, we spoke a bit with the person who supposedly did the wiring, and although I explained there are three wires for the map light, they swore there were only two in the passenger A pillar, where the wires run up to the dome light and lighted visors if they exist. They showed me how to remove the a pillar cover, and I quickly left.
Some times I might be tempted to have the vendor redo the work, but when you know they are full of shit and they admit that they don't know what to do next, it always seems like a better idea to just leave with what is left, especially if I know I can do a better job.
That weekend I spent about a half hour undoing their wiring work. They obviously didn't know the basics of wiring. I was privy to a wiring diagram, but anyone with a minimal experience with a wiring light or multi-meter could have figured it out. They used simple crimp connectors and in some places, left bare wire exposed. Electrical fire anyone? I wired it properly, and since I was already considering putting in a more aesthetic looking civilian dome light, added that too.
Apart from the wiring they actual upholstery work was OK, but the reassembly work they did was awful and looked hurried and sloppy. The visors were not screwed in properly. The A pillar covers have rubber gaskets that seal the gap between the covers and the glass, and these were ripped apart. Most of the door weather stripping was installed badly with gaps and sometimes ripped because it was folder over itself. Most of the door thresholds were not installed correctly.
The positives? The headliner looks better and is not dropping down into our faces. The carpet fits much better, and the visors are not beat up.
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