Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 (edited) Im restoring my 88 Reatta and working out some of the electrical issues. I need to check and rework all the electrical connectors, splices, and grounds under the carpet. So I figured while im at it why not completely remove the carpet and give it a good cleaning. It's in great shape, no wear but some serious coffee stains on the passenger floor. If I just try using a steam cleaner I could be sucking stains out for eternity. And proably adding more problems to the electrical issues that develop with excessive moisture. Edited January 2, 2011 by ReattaFan1 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 88atta Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 (edited) RF1..you're right. I would definitely take out the carpet. It can be a bigger project than it seems because to do it the seats need to come out, console panels have to come off, etc. but this will give you access to everything. I wouldn't rush the project rather try to break it down into increments. Devote time to the carpet of course (a great carpet stain remover is Folex, find at Home Depot, comes in various containers; best and most economical is the gallon container) but the electrical will be the most time consuming; the other items I would consider would be the seats..lube, tighten secrews, bolts and a good cleaning as well and since you have them out, replace the driver's seat lumar support bag (see Ronnie's site and/or do a forum search for the instructions) if it is applicable to your type of installed seats. After all this has been accomplished you should be ready for a few dozen beers and time to forget this even happened for another 20 years. Good luck. Edited January 2, 2011 by 88atta (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handmedownreatta Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 if the colors faded it might be a good time to dye it while removed from the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I hope and pray both of your seats move before you try this.I did this on my '89 last May.. BUT my driver's side seat control ground had corroded, and the seat wouldn't move. I hat thought it was just the seat motor. So after much cursing, blood, sweat, and tears, we finally got the seat out. all to find out that it was just a little wire that came loose to cause all that trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Hey Guys! Thanks 88atta I'll pick up a gallon of Folex. Marck, both seats move. I can see where you'd have problems removing them if they didn't. Man, That'd suck! I'm glad you got it back working. I'll check out the dye treatment as well. It is a little faded. I'll be sure to take my time with the whole project. The Radio also need new capacitors to clear up the static in the audio. It'll be a fun project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Richard D Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I did that on a T-Bird I owned, someone dumped a large coke on the passenger floor. I would get it clean with a hot water extraction attachment, or so I thought. As the gray carpet fully dried it would wick up the coke from the jute padding and look worse the next day. I did this three times before I pulled it out and used my pressure washer on it. Guess what, it came back when fully dry, bought a new carpet. Hope you don't have this problem.Good Luck,Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handmedownreatta Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 The Radio also need new capacitors to clear up the static in the audio. It'll be a fun project.i just swapped in a module fropm a 94 regal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 does the Regal radio have the EQ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadster90 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 (edited) I am going to start a new thread - the brown coffee stains is more of an issue that meets the eye....momumental problem I am affraid.....has been addressed here before with no real happy resolution......Hope we can resolve.....Nic Edited January 3, 2011 by nic walker (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tarheel Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I am going to offer some experience on removing coffee stains from a new Buick carpet that has a light tan color carpet. Coffee had splattered from the armrest holders and there were several quarter size spots. I mixed some OxiClean per their instructions, and dabbed it on the stains, and then blotted it up with a clean towel. The stain disappeared and the carpet color was untouched. Worked perfectly. I bought the OxiClean at Walmart.The materials and dyes may be different now, but it would be worth a try on a small area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I am going to offer some experience on removing coffee stains from a new Buick carpet that has a light tan color carpet. Coffee had splattered from the armrest holders and there were several quarter size spots. I mixed some OxiClean per their instructions, and dabbed it on the stains, and then blotted it up with a clean towel. The stain disappeared and the carpet color was untouched. Worked perfectly. I bought the OxiClean at Walmart.The materials and dyes may be different now, but it would be worth a try on a small area.Ive head OxiClean is great for removing stains. Another good idea. I also plan on separating the padding insulation from the carpet before soaking and cleaning. If the padding is too bad then I'll just replace that prior to reinstalling the carpet.Hey Marck! I was looking for the link you sent me on the carpet dyeing instructions. I think I remember him giving the formula for the Medium Beechwood saddle color. Thanks Buddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Hey Marck! I was looking for the link you sent me on the carpet dyeing instructions. I think I remember him giving the formula for the Medium Beechwood saddle color. Thanks Buddy.http://forums.aaca.org/f116/carpet-dye-recipe-beechwood-tan-281272.htmlHere it is, perhaps Rawja should add this to the Reatta Resources page at the top, or Ronnie to ReattaOwner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Martel's recipe is now on ReattaOwner.com.Carpet Dye Recipe-Beechwood (Tan)*-*ReattaOwner.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handmedownreatta Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 does the Regal radio have the EQ?just bass and treble.all i need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 (edited) Edited January 6, 2011 by ReattaFan1 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mc_Reatta Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 The blue wire looks like the control cable for a remote CD player that was installed in the trunk that had a head unit in the console. Need a better pick of the plug for positive ID. Maybe a Kenwood, hard to tell from the pic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Click on the pic. It blows it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 (edited) Click on the pic. It blows it up.When you click on the thumbnail the pictures enlarges. Oh yeah! Be warned... It's a Reatta owners nightmare. This car was disgusting. It will never meet my standards but at least it will be 100% functional and clean. I may end up moving north sometime next year. I'll use it as my winter ride then someday I'll have that pristine Reatta for the summer when the salt clears. But I wont leave the south until I find her. Where else are you going to find a car without salt damage. I may get the 91 so I'll have both interior styles. Edited January 6, 2011 by ReattaFan1 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 You haven't seen disgusting until you saw my car when I bought it. I'm considering the fact that I may have been mental when I thought the '89 was a good project. The carpet was literally so white/black/green that I was sure I was going to have to replace it. Your interior is beautiful compared to what mine was!But hey, isn't anyone who buys a Reatta (or two.. or five...) mental to a degree?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rawja Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Careful with the pressure washer. I ruined the grey carpet from my '89 parts car by over-doing it. Carpet fibers were shed and it's not useable now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wws944 Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Now that the carpet is out, if it were me, I would take the carpet over to a good full service car wash. Let them try to clean it - hopefully with deep cleaning tools and shampoos that won't do any further damage to it. As Roger said, it might be easy to ruin it with a simple pressure washer. Then hang it on a clothesline in the sun to dry out.If a few spots remain, you might then consult with a real carpet or rug cleaning pro. But maybe they are in places where the mats or seats would cover them?Worst comes to worst, there are a few outfits that sell new custom-fit carpeting for Reattas. It isn't that expensive - especially if you install it yourself. Search the archives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Now that the carpet is out, if it were me, I would take the carpet over to a good full service car wash. Let them try to clean it - hopefully with deep cleaning tools and shampoos that won't do any further damage to it. As Roger said, it might be easy to ruin it with a simple pressure washer. Then hang it on a clothesline in the sun to dry out.If a few spots remain, you might then consult with a real carpet or rug cleaning pro. But maybe they are in places where the mats or seats would cover them?Worst comes to worst, there are a few outfits that sell new custom-fit carpeting for Reattas. It isn't that expensive - especially if you install it yourself. Search the archives.Thanks guys! I'll check into a local detail shop. Ive just finished vacuuming to remove the deep done in dirt. It looks like some nasty grease from under the seats. Speaking of the seats I have some repairs that I want to do. Ive started another tread so see if there is anyone that can give advise on leather repairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 The carpet looks pretty good. I forgot I had a little green machine carpet cleaner. I picked up some Folex as suggested. I was also used some Goop brand hand cleaner to break up the hard caked on stains. Take a look!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Wow! that looks great!! I'm going to have to ry come of that! Where'd you buy the Folex? and the goop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 88atta Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 RF1 Looking 1000% better. As someone else has stated, once you re-mount the seats and put in some pads it will look much better. If you're still not happy there is still the dye or paint route but a least your canvas is now workable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Wow! that looks great!! I'm going to have to ry come of that! Where'd you buy the Folex? and the goop?You can find everything at Home Depot. Next I'll get the RIT dye and I'll post pics after Im done. Once I get it stained I'll set the carpet aside to dry and tackle the sub flooring electrical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wws944 Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Looks great! Sunlight is recommended for drying it out. Mildew hates sun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest re-reatta Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Really looking forward to seeing before and afters of the dye job. Doing a great job of documenting the process. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 Martel's recipe is now on ReattaOwner.com.Carpet Dye Recipe-Beechwood (Tan)*-*ReattaOwner.comI got the STUFF! Wa-Mart had both colors I had some stain wicking on the carpet. It reappeared on the driver side in heavy soil areas. It's strange the stain on the passenger side didn't come back. I believe that was coffee stain. The folex did a wonderful job on those stains. Today I had to pretreat and I went over the entire carpet again with the carpet cleaner. Now, just waiting for it to dry for a day or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Richard D Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 When I was trying to get the big gulp coke out of the passenger side carpet on a T-Bird, gray carpet after every time I cleaned it with a hot water/steam extraction I would suck out as much moisture as I could and carpet would look great. To avoid mold I used a small hair dryer aimed at the carpet on low and when dry the brown stain would wick up the carpet fibers. Last time I put the hair dryer under the carpet so it would dry from the bottom. No Difference. New molded carpet was the answer. I no longer allow drink's in either of my classic cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 (edited) Installed the carpet back in today. I thought I'd post some before and after snapshots before the seats were installed.BeforeAfter BeforeAfterBeforeAfterAfterBeforeAfterBeforeBeforeIn the last picture I see some areas that show some pink still. I have anther quart of dye for touchup.Much better that when I started thats for sure ツ Edited January 26, 2011 by ReattaFan1 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 88atta Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 (edited) I kinda liked it before you started..it had a lived in look! NOT ...It looks great Doug..well worth the time and effort. I agree with one of your prior postings, the quality of the pile after coloring looks excellent; seems to have added depth/plushness to the eye; can we get some kind of feedback on the actual feel of the finished product? I'll bet you have stimulated many an owner to attempt the process this year. Edited January 25, 2011 by 88atta (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ReattaFan1 Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 It's Nice and soft. I'll be heading over to Padgetts place one day soon with the car. I'd like to get his opinion on it and see what he thinks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest re-reatta Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Freaking Unbelievable!!!!! I was thinking of trying this before buying carpet even before you documented it. Now I know I'm going to dye. MONEY SAVED!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KDirk Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Wow.That is a about the only reaction I can come up with to the before/after pics. The cleaned, re-dyed carpet looks like new, even the nap is uniform with no visible wear. If I ever get a 2nd Reatta, I will be doing this rather than replacement. While I am happy with my replaced carpet in my 91, I wish it was the original as it had better sound deadening coating on the underside and much better nap. And, since I am considering claret red over tan for my next car (if/when it actually happens) then I can use this process. Has anyone else tried mixing dyes to recreate the other OEM colors besides tan? KDirk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 . Has anyone else tried mixing dyes to recreate the other OEM colors besides tan? I'm going to try grey in the next few weeks here. Just need to have a warm day.. I'll figure out a good recipe and post it here. I think grey and tan fade the most. Then blue, but burgundy not so much. I can't speak for flame red though.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAVES89 Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 I'm going to try grey in the next few weeks here. Just need to have a warm day.. I'll figure out a good recipe and post it here. I think grey and tan fade the most. Then blue, but burgundy not so much. I can't speak for flame red though..Marck, Hoping you have the dark gray, which is my color [on the black]. That is what I want to try next spring. Please be sure to post the formula. BTW, My windshield cracked yesterday, getting a new one thru insurance on Friday. They never batted an eye, just scheduled me. Back to your normal forum... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Marck, Hoping you have the dark gray, which is my color [on the black]. That is what I want to try next spring. Please be sure to post the formula. BTW, My windshield cracked yesterday, getting a new one thru insurance on Friday. They never batted an eye, just scheduled me. Back to your normal forum...Nope.. I'm going to be attempting the later '90/'91 grey... but I'm sure if you used a higher concentration on the stuff, you'd probably get the darker grey. Wow! That's great about your windshield! Glad to hear that. What insurance do you have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 88atta Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 RF1 ... Doug....see what you have started!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCReatta Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 What if everyone took a color and attempted a recipe this summer? That'd be something fun and interesting.. Just a thought. I claim light grey.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now