Interior and Upholstery 73 Deluxe interior Conversion

tdziub85

New Member
Mar 11, 2018
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Erie, PA
Hi everyone. I am pretty new to this forum and I need some advice. I recently started a small restoration project on a 73 Mustang Fastback. I'm working on the interior and I need to replace pretty much everything inside. I ordered an interior kit from CJ Pony while it was on sale. Seat upholstery and carpets seem to fit without issue. Now I come to the door panels and they will not line up properly. My main question here is if the cars factory interior was standard and I ordered the Deluxe interior will everything line up the same or could that be why the door panels don't seem to fit.

It is also possible that I am just doing a bad job of installing them.

Let me know your opinions.
 
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Deluxe door panels should fit right in and everything should line up ,there may be a couple of clips at the top of the door that may need to be removed so the panels will set in the correct location ,any pics?
I will post some pictures when I get out of work tonight. These are reproduction door panels and it appears that the holes for the door clips are not in the exact same location as the factory door panels.
 
Did they list the door panels for both 69-70? or were they different part #'s. The reason I ask is because I tried to put a pair of stock delux panels off a '70 into a '69 that had the standard interior and they did not fit.
 
Standard door panels in a 69 -70 have a couple of clips at the top of the doors that the top trim screws to ,you have to memove those clips to fit the deluxe door panels ,and i would think the 71-73 would probably be the same

I removed a couple of clips that were to far to reach and I got it part way on but with only a few clips holding it I am afraid it will rattle or worse, pull right off when i shut the door.

From what I can tell the TMI door panels are just not made with any real precision and the clip holes are in different locations. I read somewhere else that drilling new holes is the only real fix to this problem. If I had it to do again, I would reconsider these panels.

I am also finding that the replacement cups that go around the door handle do fit in the panel real well either.
 
There are no screws on this door panel that I can see. It takes fifteen clips all the way around. I was able to wiggle some of the clips and remove a few others and got the panel attached but when it is on, the belt line does not touch the window. Taking a closer look at the original piece that came off, it looks like it is deeper than the new door panels. Im just not sure how to make these things fit.

I appreciate the feedback I have received this far but it seems I am still looking for a solution. I am afraid I may get to the point where I have to sell these deluxe panels and buy some standard panels and hope they will fit.

Any more ideas?
 
This is a deluxe 69 door ,had deluxe panels, you can see the screw holes i have circled ,71-73 is pretty much the same thing
20180317_150559.jpg
 
If it didnt have deluxe panels there will be no screw holes ,the screws went through the carpet at the bottom ov the panel and drilled directly into the door shell
This is a deluxe 69 door ,had deluxe panels, you can see the screw holes i have circled ,71-73 is pretty much the same thing
20180317_150559.jpg

Were the screw heads visible from inside then?

The other issue I see is that even when the panel sits flat on the door, the belt line is pulled away from the window for some reason. I cant find anything that is in the way.
 
I have attached pictures of the back of the door panel and the door itself. While taking the picture I realized that the curvature of the door panel is hitting the door and forcing the panel to not sit flat. That doesn't seem normal unless the doors are different for deluxe and standard interiors.
 

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I just wanted to put in my update regarding the door panels. I got tired of messing around with the deluxe panels and returned them to CJ's. They were surprisingly ok with returning all the parts for a full credit. Then I decided to just buy standard door panels and they went in without any issue. I am now 95% complete with my new interior.

Thanks for all the help.