Body side moulding
So here we are at a point on this car I really did not want to tackle. One I am dealing with a very expensive paint job. Two I have never done this before and three the body shop couldn't figure out how to do this. In the body shops defense and after talking to several folks the hardware kit I originally had was not correct, even though it was supposed to be. Word to the wise here is the link to the CORRECT kit below.
http://www.herbsparts.com/proddetail.asp?prod=192-69TC&cat=661
Dan aka DieselDazzle Special thanks to him for putting me on the appropriate patch to figure out how to do this correctly. I have asked everyone under the sun and no one could remember or knew how to. So I figured out how to accomplish this daunting task.
In the kit they give you enough of the plastic clips and pins for all the holes. When I removed the trim from the GTX originally I had only two metal stud clips and acorns which were in the last rear hole in the door. I decided to put two on the rear trim behind the door in the wheel opening areas and two more on the ends by the rear bumper. Also, two went in the second hole from the front of the door.(aided in installing the longest piece of trim by yourself) Those where the only holes that did not have remnants of clips and the old trim in those areas was glued on back in the day by a previous owner. The two original clips and acorns are clearly different than the new ones. The originals go into the rear of the door which is in the door latch area. I decided to paint them black to match(they were black when removed) and are smaller in height. The taller news ones will hit the frame. No one offers the original type fasteners.
First took my small file set and filed out each hole to remove any paint build up. Then I took some touch up paint to each hole and allowed it to dry. Once dried then I installed all the clips. On the backside it has four tangs. I placed there tangs in the hole and with a putty knife with tape around it(to protect the paint) and carefully push the fourth tab in from the top. BTW I tried the finger nail thing and trust me the putty knife trick is quicker and your fingers will thank you. The dry fit the trim to see if any adjustments need to be made and check the fitment of the clips on the trim itself. I had to trim some places so the trim would snap over the clips, You DO NOT want to find this out after the fact...Check, recheck everything, every piece.
Once all clips are in now here comes the dangerous part. THE PINS. Each pin has a slotted head and are slightly oval to key in one way in the clip. You cannot push these in by hand. I used gibbs lube(what I had handy) and with a small Q tip I lubed the clips and the pins. Then I made a protecter pad of tape(several layers) about 6 to be exact. So you have to use a flat head screwdriver and line it up with the slot and force the pin until you feel it lock. Reason why I had a "safety pad" of tape was to protect the paint due to slippage of the screwdriver. Fortunately that never happened. To give you an idea of the force to push the pins in on the front of the car I had to chock the front dolly unit. So I had the tape above the clip, two fingers on the flat head(piece of paper towel wrapped around the head) and the other hand forcing the clip in. Also, place a small towel over the end of the screwdriver your palm will be happy you did that.
Finally, after all the clips were installed it was time for the trim. I place tape on the topside on the panels and I was not worried about the organisol paint. As Dan related to the cud trim do not get forceful and bang it on like a raped ape, lol. You can damage the trim doing as such. Take a rag and use your palm etc and pop the trim on. Before I forget the clips have a thin plastic extension to guard against the trim slapping the paint. Total time for me was about 16hrs over two days but all went Perfect! Well, all but one piece of trim was not anodized well so it had to make a trip.
