DIY: Change Door Fabric

[iluvmyVersa08]

I finally tackled this project ALL by myself

I did the rear door today.

Here's the DIY:

First begin my rolling down the window.

1. Remove the round silver knob near the handle.



I then removed the black rubber piece also (behind the piece removed in step 1).



2. Using a flat head pry off the armrest piece that has the window controls on it.



Once removed disconnect the window switch by pulling on it (white piece).

3. Rear doors have one screw holding it in place. Remove the screw.



Here's the naked door:



4. Now you can measure the fabric and start by trimming it to fit.

I tucked the edges in underneath the leather, and sprayed the area with glue to get tacky.



Glue it all on, trim the edges, stick the door handle piece back on, and now it's ready to go on the door.



Back on the door:





NOTE: I didn't put the silver piece back on yet. I might be painting it a different colour.

[homero89]

Looks good. I didn't know SL's came with leather door armrest.

[iluvmyVersa08]

I don't know if it's real leather, but it looks like it LOL!

[yankeefan0525]

That looks great. Personally I wouldn't do that because I like the interior how it is but it looks really good. Plus it is really creative.

[iluvmyVersa08]

Thanks yankeefan0525.

I was bored of the current fabric, and it wasn't very girly for my tastes. My cargo cover was wrapped in the same fabric.

[norton3]

looks good, you've really personalized your V and made it your own, it's great that you are not afraid to get your hands on and do it yourself!

[iluvmyVersa08]

Norton3: I love being able to take this car apart. For the most part everything on here is clipped on (it feels like a toy car). It's easy to remove almost everything and have some fun with it I love it!

[iluvmyVersa08]

All four doors are complete

[JayyV09]

its amazing how much u customized ur V into a "Hello-Kitty-Mobile" lol looks great!

[iluvmyVersa08]

its amazing how much u customized ur V into a "Hello-Kitty-Mobile" lol looks great!

Thank you I appreciate it.

I can't wait to be able to drive her again tomorrow.

[Codelicious]

Wow, that looks fantastic!

I wanted to do this before, but I wouldn't want to cover up the original fabric. When you had the doors off do you know if there is a way to remove the current fabric?

[iluvmyVersa08]

Wow, that looks fantastic!

I wanted to do this before, but I wouldn't want to cover up the original fabric. When you had the doors off do you know if there is a way to remove the current fabric?

I'm sure you could just rip it out, but if I did I didn't want to be left with no padding underneath the new fabric.

I have a few more things planned to make with the leftover fabric.

For me, the original fabric was getting boring and too boyish. I love this because it's different and makes the car into something I like

[carlos15]

you should do the seats and show us how that would be awsome :]

[iluvmyVersa08]

you should do the seats and show us how that would be awsome :]

Lol. I'm waiting for someone else to do that first.

[carlos15]

yahh im thinking of just buying sparco seats. or bride sells fabric and just buy a roll of that and have my mom upholster my seats (she does that for a living) i duno yet the bride seat fabric is way more easy on your wallet

[iluvmyVersa08]

yahh im thinking of just buying sparco seats. or bride sells fabric and just buy a roll of that and have my mom upholster my seats (she does that for a living) i duno yet the bride seat fabric is way more easy on your wallet

Lol!

Ya my mom is making me something w/ the leftover fabric I have.

But for the seats, whatever you do, it has to be airbag friendly. That's my biggest concern with getting seat covers.

[carlos15]

ehh well i dont think sparco seats are airbag fridnly and if i get the fabric well i dont think that will matter to much

[iluvmyVersa08]

ehh well i dont think sparco seats are airbag fridnly and if i get the fabric well i dont think that will matter to much

Not airbag friendly?

Not something I want to mess around with though. I'd hate to think if I ever needed the airbags to deploy and they didn't because of the seat covers.

[eeshazor]

Wait what do seats have to do with airbags? I don't get it :[

[carlos15]

theres airbags on the side of the seats

[iluvmyVersa08]

A couple interior shots showing off the new doors

[HelloKittyPrincess]

this is so creative :] i was wondering what kind of fabric you used? just good old cotton ?

[iluvmyVersa08]

this is so creative :] i was wondering what kind of fabric you used? just good old cotton ?

It is a thin material and is stretchy. You want something not too thick that you can work with and tuck into the creases.

[iluvmyVersa08]

Here's a shot showing the seat covers and door panels:

[HelloKittyPrincess]

ok thanks ! also curious about how you tucked the fabric into the creases? is there enough space or do you kinda have to work it in there? about how long will it take to finish all four doors?

PS!~ i'm a hello kitty lover myself and i love what you've done to your car! i work at sanrio and it's like heaven!

[iluvmyVersa08]

ok thanks ! also curious about how you tucked the fabric into the creases? is there enough space or do you kinda have to work it in there? about how long will it take to finish all four doors?

PS!~ i'm a hello kitty lover myself and i love what you've done to your car! i work at sanrio and it's like heaven!

You work at Sanrio!? OMG! I'd be in heaven too ... only we don't have any Sanrio stores around here

Well start with a piece big enough (with extra material) to cover the stock material. Then trim it so that there is less than an inch left around and I used a credit card to tuck the excess material in. Be sure to start glueing it from one side and work your way across so that there are no creases.

Did you see the rest of the pics of my car?

Check out the following link:

One set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aplpix/set ... 582459974/

At a show:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aplpix/set ... 565225549/

[iluvmyVersa08]

I painted the small piece around the handle pink recently:


And the centre piece:


And added a pink front grille:

[HelloKittyPrincess]

ahhh! that is too cute lol so are all those pieces just snap on basically? seems like everything is so easy to take off and put back on without anything breaking.

i'm actually about to get my new 2011 versa this week but i can't decide on black or white =\ im probably going to do my mods with a pink theme or purple but i don't know which one looks better. what do you think?

and that totally sucks that you dont have any sanrio stores around you ! where do you get your fix of hello kitty items then?!

thanks for the tips :] i'll probably be asking you a lot more when i get my car!

[iluvmyVersa08]

ahhh! that is too cute lol so are all those pieces just snap on basically? seems like everything is so easy to take off and put back on without anything breaking.

i'm actually about to get my new 2011 versa this week but i can't decide on black or white =\ im probably going to do my mods with a pink theme or purple but i don't know which one looks better. what do you think?

and that totally sucks that you dont have any sanrio stores around you ! where do you get your fix of hello kitty items then?!

thanks for the tips :] i'll probably be asking you a lot more when i get my car!

I usually order everything from eBay. You can find stuff here too, but I find it cheaper to just get it sent from overseas. I have been to some Sanrio stores in the US also, so I've picked up a few things there.

A Black or white exterior would look good with pink or purple. My car is red and I think it matches the pink nicely. Someone called her a Valentine's day car (Pink & Red)

The car is very easy to work on. I have managed to take off a lot of pieces on my own without breaking anything. Just think of our car as a big LEGO car. Everything is snapped together. There are a few screws in each door holding the entire piece up, but other than that, it's easy to rip off the door.

[TexasMade89]

I painted the small piece around the handle pink recently:

LOOKS COOL...WHAT KIND OF PAINT DID U USE...I WUZ THINKIN OF DOING THE SAME THING BUT I DONT WANT SOME CHEAP PAINT THAT WILL CHIP OFF...