Interior Removal

This will be a gradual process, but we did begin the removal of the interior components. Most of the interior will be replaced with new parts, but we will save everything until the new pieces are installed near the end of this project.

The first action taken was to remove the shoulder harness mounting points for both seats. We will probably replace these with retractable belts when we are at that point in the rebuild.

Shoulder Harness Removal

Shoulder Harnesses

At :13 in the video Episode Twenty-Two summary the soft top frame stowage bracket is removed. Each bracket is held in place with three self-tapping sheet metal screws.

Soft Top Frame Stowage Bracket in Place

Soft Top Frame Stowage Bracket

Next was the removal of the rear shelf carpet and its securing snaps. The process begins at the 1:00 minute mark in the video.

Rear Shelf Carpet

At 1:25 minutes into the video, the rear upholstered quarter panels and hardura covered wheel wells are removed.

Quarter Panel and Wheel Cover removal

Because the hardura wheel covers are glued in place, they left quite a mess when removed. We will need to try some adhesive removal to clean the surfaces.

Hardura Residue at Wheel Wells

We discovered that the covers were originally red. A previous owner had dyed or painted them black.

Hardura Covers removed

Although not removed at this point, it was noted that the wiring harness to the rear of the car is routed through a hole in the frame that is covered by the rear quarter panel.

Wiring Harness Behind rear Quarter Panel

 

At 4:24 into the video, the RH side seat, seat rails and carpet are removed. Each seat rail is secured to the floor with two bolts into captive nuts.

RH seat, seat rail and carpet removal

There is a wooden packer piece between the carpet and the floor for each seat rail.

Wood Packing Pieces at the Seat Rails

The upholstered panel under the RH door was then removed. It was held in place with four self tapping oval head screws with cupped trim washers.

Upholstered Panel Under the RH Door

Episode Twenty-Two summarizes the removal of the interior components highlighted above. https://vimeo.com/770800213/f36ec43100

RH Side Front Kick Panel  and Carpet – On November 17, while working on the final installation of the fuel delivery system it became necessary to remove the RH side front kick panel and front carpet. The kick panel was held in place by three self-tapping oval head chrome screws with cup washers and the two slotted screws that hold the door check strap in place. Once the fasteners were removed the kick panel was lifted out of the car exposing the wiring harness that is routed to the rear of the car.

The carpet was held in place with two floor snaps at the top of the carpet.

Video Episode Twenty-four summarizes the removal of these components:https://vimeo.com/773034332/b4bf5c4504

RH front kick panel

RH Side Front Carpet

 

 

Assorted Interior Modifications

Original Interior

The original interior was medium red with black piping using leather and matching “leathercloth” vinyl. Carpet was also red and black armacord finished the boot interior. An adjustable plastic 16 1/2” steering wheel was standard.

Interior Modifications

Upholstery and Carpet

The interior finish materials were supplied by Heritage Trim. http://www.heritagetrim.com/. While somewhat expensive and not particularly fast on delivery, they provide a premium product with top grade materials. As the images show, I decided on black leather upholstery with red piping. Although I would have preferred a brighter red material for the piping, I was quite pleased with Heritage Trim.

Heritage also supplied the carpet, and while a material very close to the original is available, I decided to go with Wilton Wool which is a softer cut pile and to my view a more elegant look.

Heritage Interior

Heritage Interior

 Steering Wheel

The Steering Wheel was replaced with a Moto-Lita wheel made of mahogany wood. It is ordered with a complimentary hub so that the original control head (trafficator) and horn button may be used.

Moto Lita Wheel

Moto Lita Wheel

 Fiberglass Gearbox Cover

Using a Toyota five speed gearbox required relocating the hole for the shifter in the gearbox cover from the original side mount to a center location. A fiberglass cover is available from http://www.britishcarspecialists.com/. The fiberglass cover is lighter, cooler as it does not conduct the heat like the original metal cover, and was easy to modify. I covered the gearbox cover with Dynamat Extreme and an additional layer of aluminum duct insulation to keep things cool.

Fiberglass Gearbox Cover

Fiberglass Gearbox Cover

Interior Insulation

Anyone who has ever driven a stock Healey knows that the interior, particularly in the footwells, can get quite toasty but the combination of sealing firewall holes and installing modern insulation materials can virtually do away with the cockpit heat. I used Dynamat Extreme in the Bloody Beast and then installed a layer of aluminum backed foam duct insulation used in home HVAC systems on top of the Dynamat. All gaps between the pieces of insulation were covered with aluminum tape.

Dynamat Extreme

Dynamat Extreme

Interior Insulation

Aluminum Interior Insulation

Tilted Driver’s Seat

Big Healeys have reasonable legroom for those of us who are over six feet tall, but the designed seating arrangement places the driver very close to the steering wheel. One way to improve on the situation is to add spacers of varying lengths to the studs on the seat rails. The effect is to create a slight rearward tilt to the seat that then permits a little more arm extension for driving. I just picked up the extensions at the local hardware store.

Tilt Seat

Tilted Seat

Cup Holder

While I do not permit any beverages in the Bloody Beast other than water, the good ol’ American cup holder is a convenient accessory to the Healey interior. I borrowed the idea from Roger Conte – Ausmhly [email protected]. I used a Volkswagen Jetta cup holder #1J0 858 601D and mounted it under the parcel tray. Works like a charm and virtually hidden when not in use. This link will navigate you to the detail page on the cup holder: https://valvechatter.com/?p=3487

Cup Holder Empty

Cup Holder Empty

Alloy Pedal Covers

Just to dress up the pedals a bit and to provide an improved pedal surface, I installed alloy covers on the original pedals. My brake and clutch pedal covers were custom made and a gift from buddy Mick Nordquist, while the accelerator pedal came from Denis Welch Motorsport http://www.bighealey.co.uk/content/wider-accelerator-pedal.

Alloy Pedal Covers

Alloy Pedal Covers

Arm Rest/ Console

The padded arm rest provided as original equipment in the MK1 interior, while attractive in appearance, was pretty useless in that it was too low for one to actually rest an arm on the pad while driving. I decided to use the cushion as supplied by Heritage Trim to fabricate the top of a box or console to be installed on the gearbox/propshaft tunnel.

I began to form my idea for the console by fitting a cardboard shoebox to what I considered to be ideal dimensions, and then built a wooden box to provide some storage along with a fully functional arm rest. I encountered the need for lots of weird angles, but eventually got it all worked out and was very pleased with the outcome. After hinging the top, I covered the box in the wilton wool carpet and created something that appears original to the untrained eye. I could have permanently mounted the box to the tunnel but chose not to do so. This allows me to reposition the arm rest as desired.

Console Installed

Console Installed

Console Box

Console Box

Console Box

Console Box

Console Interior

Console Interior

Console Box

Console Box

Console Lid

Console Lid

Console Installed

Console Installed

Rear Luggage/Parcel Shelf

MKIII owners have a nice luggage shelf behind the front seats if they need more storage space, but MKI owners didn’t have that convenience. Inspired by my upcoming cross-country trip, I decided to bold my own. The shelf is completely removable, but alas, unlike the BJ8 owner, I cannot just fold my up and out of the way. In my case, I either travel with it, or without it. This is the link to assembly directions and more images: https://valvechatter.com/?p=3508

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage Shelf

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 6

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 6

Spare Tire Cover

While not technically the “interior,” I wanted to dress up the boot for appearance purposes nut also to protect clothes or other objects place in the boot that would have been exposed to a spare tire. I had a local upholstery shop sew a cover for me. I then cut a slot in the rear for the hold-down strap and I was in business. It makes for a much cleaner look in the boot.

Spare Tire Cover

Spare Tire Cover

Rear Luggage/Parcel Shelf

Luggage/Parcel Shelf

This is a pdf file of the assembly plans for the luggage/parcel shelf, followed by several images of the assembly process:

BT7 Parcel Shelf

 

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 1

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 1

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 2

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 2

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 3

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 3

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 4

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 4

 

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 5

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 5

 

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 6

Luggage/Parcel Shelf Image 6

 

zz

Interior

Rear View Mirror

The parts manual does not provide much information on the rear view mirror. The assembly apparently came from Lucas and was installed as an assembly. Perhaps there is Lucas documentation available someplace, but I did not find it. My original mirror was pretty dirty and the height adjustment post would not tighten properly. A new mirror assembly is available from SNG Barratt, but I decided to use my original. I did purchase a new “Interior Mirror Mounting Clamp/Boss – C20697/1”, that addressed my sliding adjustment problem:

Mirror Mounting Clamp/Boss

Mirror Mounting Clamp/Boss

I also had my original mirror re-silvered by Tim Inman at Inman Historic Interiors www.historicinteriors.com/Resilvering.html The resilvering costs about $65 including shipping. The finished product looked like new. Reassembly is pretty easy but it does require carefully bending four tabs that secure the tensioning spring for the mirror ball joint. The image below shows the mirror casing and the spring assembly with adjustable post.

Rearview Mirror Before Assembly

Rearview Mirror Before Assembly

The image below show the installation of the post and tensioner spring with mounting plate:

Installing Rearview Mirror Components

Installing Rearview Mirror Components

The image below shows the tensioner spring plate tabs bent back to secure the spring plate:

Tensioner Spring Tabs bent into Position

Tensioner Spring Tabs bent into Position

A very fine sprung wire holds the tensioner plate to the mirror assembly as seen in this image:

Rear View Mirror Retaining Spring

Rear View Mirror Retaining Spring

The mirror casing cleaned up with some polish and hand buffing:

Polished Mirror Casing

Polished Mirror Casing

The final step was popping the mirror back into the casing to complete the job!

Resilvered Mirror Installed

Resilvered Mirror Installed

Of course, the generous use of Walnut veneered wood and supple leather hides make a Jaguar!

Wood Trim

I will have all of the wood professionally refinished. possible vendors include:

http://www.classicdashboards.com/gallery-jaguar-restoration-photos.html

Classic Dashboards is operated by Simon Lorkin who is located in France.

British Autowood operated by Saul Chaplin is in Altamonte Springs, Florida: http://www.britishautowood.com/index.htm

 

 

Leather Trim

I have not yet decided if I will have the leather and vinyl work custom stitched or if I will go with one of the primary suppliers:

John Skinner at: http://www.jaguar-trim.co.uk

or,

BAS Ltd. at: http://www.basjaguartrim.com/mk2daimler250.htm

or,

Aldridge Trimming at: http://www.aldridge.co.uk