I got a 6:30 start this morning. I figured I would address the musty smell first to allow for some drying time. This afternoon is dedicated to a couple of mechanical repairs: valve cover gaskets and IAC cleaning are first up. Here are some pics from this morning'* fun

Better exterior shot
Mold
My other Bonnie lending a hand...or a hood in this case
Gross
ready for a bath
Empty
Another empty shot
Sunbathing

hey looks familiar, i had a lot of fun doing that, hopefully you are to. are you gonna get the carpets professionally cleaned? great time to check for those leaks

great time to rustproof under there too.

and soundproof!

Oh yea, LOTS of fun. Overall it'* not too bad of a job though.Just takes some time. As far as professional cleaning I guess the answer would be yes, but done by me. This is the stuff I used



The manufacturer, C.A.R. Products, is very local. Up untill about a year and a half ago you had to be a dealer, detailer or some other automotive business to buy it. Now they have over the counter sales. It'* good stuff. Dilute for general cleaning and use full strength for stubborn areas. Smells great too.

I don't think a detail shop could have got it any cleaner than I did 'cause I used the hose after scrubbing the hell out of it. It took all day to dry even after using the shop vac.The bad news is that I'm not extremely happy with the overall results. The sound deadening pads are still real stinky, one crumbled in my hands, and the carpet still has some rust stains and a hole in it. So I made the decision to replace the whole floor covering and the headliner.

Are you talking about rustproofing the inside of the car? I can't say as if I've ever heard of that before. I was supprised of the condition of the floor considering the pads were so soaked that there was standing water, but rustproofing? I need to hear more.

wherever there was water or rust under the carpet spray some rubberized under coating... helps stop rust....or prevent it.

Wow.... that must have taken you all day!
The shots of your "empty" car are really cool.

Ya know that carpet pad under there, Mine had been wet before too. Replaced with 7# foam padding. and the little card board peices by the front seatbelts, mine got wet and misformed, replaced with hand bent tin covered with rubberized bed coating.

I like that idea of the fabricated tin. I'm not sure if the intermediate padding can be reused or not, or maybe just the part under the seatbelts. If not, my first idea was to use some 8lb two part expanding foam. One of it'* uses is for fiberglass molds. From what I understand, this stuff once cured is very easily carved and shaped.

For the rest of the padding, I was thinking of something like firewall insulation. 1/2" thick foam with a medium density rubber backing. Is this description similar to the 7# foam padding you mention?

Monday, the interior was washed out with soap & water but the smell still remained. Last night, I misted a 50/50 mixture of bleach and water and allowed it to dry. This morning I checked it and there was a big improvement. Tonight, I'll sponge it out again with a more diluted bleach solution.

The car will be going to paint [hopefully] next week so I'm not in a big hurry to reinstall the interior. This will give plenty of time to make it smell good. Also, I'd like to replace the headliner, visors, dash and console along with the carpet and padding. Maybe I'll take a day off soon and rummage through the junkyard.

This is already done to some extent by the factory. Water + metal = rust. Water can be brought in and set by any number of things. People'* feet, less than effective door seals, sunroof, etc.

Rust-proofing is goooood...