To Dye or Not

[My Mach 1 51]

Hi All, Does anyone on here have any experience dyeing the interior trim on your mustangs? How did things turn out? How does it look and are you happy with the results?Here’s my predicament I ordered new deluxe door panel in 3D Red from Dashes Direct with matching red carpeting on the bottom of the door panel for my Mach 1.The Red is more of a Maroon as opposed to dark red.So it’s a different colour red. The seat covers from TMI are dark red but very dark aswell and slightly different than the door panels. Now both of these are completely different red  from the rest of the interior which is a brighter red and not Maroon. So I was thinking about ordering a set of seat covers in black from TMI and dyeing the rest of the interior black to match. So there’s no mismatch in the reds. 

[69RavenConv 286]

Dying vinyl can work out ok. I found misting it on in several coats worked best. I brushed it out with a horsehide paint brush (the kind you paint a house with) a few seconds after applying each coat. This seemed to cut the sheen, that artificial shiny look, and it came out looking authentic.

I have a red standard interior. The carpet, upholstery and door panels I bought were a good match for the originals but I had to dye a black dash pad and steering wheel pad and paint the plastic dash extensions and bottom of the door interiors. I would guess doing black like you are contemplating would be easier than keeping the red like I did.

Two things I quickly discovered:

1. Some of the "1969 Dark Red" that vendors sell is not close to the red Ford used. In fact, the "Bright Red" (often listed as a 1968 color) can be a better match. Probably not an issue with black.

2. The color of the dye and paint varies widely from batch to batch. I would buy 2 rattle cans at a time and hope they were good. If not, I bought 2 more from a different vendor. Again, probably not an issue with black. SEM and the "Generic" brand (I think it's Martin Senour) were about the best.

I got lucky with the dye I used on the dash (SEM dye bought at NPD) and the paint on the doors - they turned out great. I'm still not happy with the red paint I used on the hard plastic parts and will probably re-do it at some point.

Good luck whether you go with black or red!

[Bob & Sue 110]

I've done some carpet & interior panels never as big of a job as your doing. I use a Paasche VLS airbrush you can control the amount of spray easily and blend any areas to the depth of color you want. I usually take a sample piece or the car to Wesco to get an exact match, they haven't failed me yet.

I'd try a couple test pieces before going for your large of a project.

If you use an airbrush you should get a water separator & charcoal filter even with an airbrush pump.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00397N8NW/ref=asc_df_B00397N8NW5356420/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=394997&creativeASIN=B00397N8NW&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167129414796&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=7093087796298115687&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9033474&hvtargid=pla-304225103747

[JET 445 43]

I dyed all my interior, my advice would be to dye the rest of the interior to match the seats, you don't want to dye the seats. I took a sample of my seat vinyl to a paint store and they eye matched a vinyl dye to match it. Every man and his dog has a black interior, I say stick with the red !!!

[Vicfreg 771]

I would keep the Red. It's cool.

[My Mach 1 51]

Hey thanks for the input guys. That's a cool color interior Jet445. I like it. I was able to get a refund from Damien at Dashes Direct for the door panels because they simply did not match. I was talking to Gene Painter and will just get him to redo my original door panels. I'm just waiting for the sample colored vinyl to arrive to confirm the color..I like the suggestion to take a sample of my interior to a paint store and have them match up the "dark red" in a vinyl paint and try it out. If they can match it up at least close then I'll keep the interior dark red. Frankly I do like the red because it's a different color. I talked to TMI and they say 5 weeks for them to make a full set of dark red seat covers and same for Gene on the door panels. If I can find a store to make up some vinyl paint I'll be very happy!! I'll keep you guys posted.