I don't know about you, but for me there's nothing that detracts from the used-car experience like the previous owner's wear, tear, and lingering odors. Accordingly, one of the first modifications I like to perform on any new-to-me Corvette is to replace the no-longer-new-to-it interior. And at almost 10 years of age, my '02's carpets and mats were in dire need of a refresh.
As one of the go-to sources for interior-replacement options, Mid America Motorworks carries everything an industrious DIY'er needs to quickly and easily give his or her car's cabin a full makeover. For our purposes, we picked out some OEM-styled carpet, along with complementary batches of sound-deadening material and heat-blocking padding.
How'd it go? You'll have to read through to the end of the story to find out. For now, let's take a closer look at what's required to give a C5 interior a new lease on life--and a heightened focus on comfort.
01 But even with the floor...
01 But even with the floor mats removed, it’s easy to see that the interior of this 150,000-mile C5 was showing its age.
02 Other issues included...
02 Other issues included a large water stain on the left side of the cargo area.
03 Since we were planning...
03 Since we were planning to add sound deadener, getting pre-install dB (shown) and heat readings was a must.
04 The disassembly process...
04 The disassembly process starts with the seat-track foot covers.
05 Next, the retaining nuts...
05 Next, the retaining nuts for the track are removed.
06 And, finally, the seat’s...
06 And, finally, the seat’s wiring can be disconnected.
07 There’s no telling what...
07 There’s no telling what you’ll find under the seats of a car this age. French fry, anyone?
08 With the seats removed,...
08 With the seats removed, the trim is popped out…
09 …followed by the seatbelt...
09 …followed by the seatbelt covers.
10 At this point, you should...
10 At this point, you should be able to pull the carpet out pretty easily…
11 …leaving you with a rather...
11 …leaving you with a rather bare floor.
12 Repeat the process on...
12 Repeat the process on the driver side, starting with the removal of the dead pedal.
13 With the front carpeting...
13 With the front carpeting out, the riser may be removed by gently separating it at the seam found behind the seats.
14 Next, the roof-panel cushion...
14 Next, the roof-panel cushion pads are taken out by giving them a twist…
15 …allowing us to remove...
15 …allowing us to remove the rear carpet pad.
16 Carefully disconnect the...
16 Carefully disconnect the lighting array before removing the rear panels.
17 That’s one bare rear ...
17 That’s one bare rear hatch!
18 For now, however, we set...
18 For now, however, we set our sights on installing the rubber Corvette Heat/Sound Deadener…
19 … and C5 Foil Sound Deadener...
19 … and C5 Foil Sound Deadener kits from Mid America.
20 Using 3M’s 80 rubber-and-vinyl...
20 Using 3M’s 80 rubber-and-vinyl spray adhesive, coat the reverse side of both kits and begin the installation with the rubber bits—but not before taping off any areas that might need protection from the sticky stuff.
21 Next, the hatch area gets...
21 Next, the hatch area gets the foil-backed kit installed using the same process…
22 …followed by the cock...
22 …followed by the cockpit.
23 As shown here, the rubber...
23 As shown here, the rubber Corvette Heat/Sound Deadener kit alone is a good 0.05-inch thick.
24 Add in the C5 Foil Sound...
24 Add in the C5 Foil Sound Deadener kit, and you have a one-two punch against unwanted heat and sound.
25 With the A/C and heater...
25 With the A/C and heater tube reinstalled, our ’02 is ready for carpet.
26 This portion of the job...
26 This portion of the job begins with the included carpet-foam kit.
27 These pieces are applied...
27 These pieces are applied using spray adhesive. Our choice is 3M’s Super 77.
28 Next, we grabbed the rear...
28 Next, we grabbed the rear pieces…
29 …and set to re-covering...
29 …and set to re-covering our skeletonized Vette. Some trimming or heat-gun use may be required to optimize the fit and finish.
30 At this point, our C5’s...
30 At this point, our C5’s cabin is looking almost brand-new.
31 We hit the homestretch...
31 We hit the homestretch with the rehab of our coupe’s rear cargo-door covers. The locks easily snap out.
32 While our kit didn’t come...
32 While our kit didn’t come with pre-cut carpet swatches, it did have enough extra material for us to redo the covers ourselves. Pay extra attention to how the carpet mounts to the backside. Reference photos will be worth their weight in gold here.
33 It took a few tries, but...
33 It took a few tries, but the results looked great.
34 And since you can’t put...
34 And since you can’t put old mats back into a freshly carpeted car, we invested in one of Mid America’s “My Choice” floor-and-cargo-mat sets.
35 Nothing tops off a new...
35 Nothing tops off a new interior like fresh floor mats.
36 And the cargo mat…wow—lots...
36 And the cargo mat…wow—lots of class in a low-buck package. As for the final results of all the extra insulation, we knocked nearly 12 decibels off our C5’s interior sound levels alone. (Believe it or not, the cargo mat was responsible for a couple of those db.) Heat inside the car, meanwhile, dropped by 10 degrees. Looks like our interior refurb was a success on all fronts. vette