Guest Posted December 10, 2003 Share Posted December 10, 2003 Looking for a burgundy (maroon?)driver's door arm rest for '89 Reatta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted December 10, 2003 Share Posted December 10, 2003 I am hoping this will be on of the project tackled by some vendor. At this time the only hope is finding a good used door panel or a really good vinyl repair guy.While I do not have access to a 1988-1989 Reatta, it looks like they could be used for all years, but the hardware would need to be changed and the window/seat control hole would need to be enlarged. Any comments on this from someone like Jim Finn that sees lots of parts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reattadudes Posted December 10, 2003 Share Posted December 10, 2003 we have both used and remanufactured door panels available. be aware that no used door panels will be perfect. we have never seen one which did not have the characteristic "alligator" look to either the armrest area or along the window sill. this is caused by the foam behind the vinyl actually breaking down, and delaminating from the vinyl.the remanufactured panels have both all new foam and vinyl, and have been re-vacuum formed, just the same as original. the remanufactured panels are the way to go if you want perfection. they have been very popular with our customers. we have sold over 100 sets since we began offering them about six months ago.please email us at www.buickreattaparts.com for more information on either the used or remanufactured panels.Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Posted December 10, 2003 Share Posted December 10, 2003 As Barney mentioned I think the only difference other than the trim is the size of the hole for the switches. I person could maybe cut an '88-89 style to work on a '90-91 but all of them are pretty hard to find in good condition.I do have a very nice burgundy '88-89 style panel available. I can be reached at jfinn@cpinternet.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reattadudes Posted December 10, 2003 Share Posted December 10, 2003 Jim,the only problems I see modifying the '88-'89 door panel to work on a 1990 or 1991 Reatta are: 1) the edge where the whole is enlarged will be quite ragged along the edges, and this will show on both sides of the bezel, and 2) there are two tabs on the newer style door panels for the bezel screw attachments, and the older style door panels don't have the holes. there would be no way to screw the window/switch bezel to the older style door panel.Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 Mike,I agree it probably wouldn't be a good idea. I did consider doing it about a year ago and also thought the edges would be ragged. I also thought there might be a problem with the opening but couldn't remember if the openings were exactly the same or not and didn't go and compare the two panels, which I should have before commenting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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