Hello everyone,
As a new member of the site, I thought I'd take a thread out to introduce myself. My name is wehats, or weh for short. I live in Billings, Montana, and my dream car is..
The 1988 Festiva L
The L was my first car when I started driving. I got my original red one from my grandfather at 300K or so miles. I immediately fell in love with the car. After several years of young foolishness, the Festiva (which had become my trademark and a legendary car in my circle of friends) began to show signs of age. Towards the end, I was over 450K miles..
Anyway, I lost the car. My dad took it after it broke down and I never saw it again. Presumably it's in a junkyard somewhere; I've looked all over, and no signs. One of my greatest regrets in life is not holding onto that car I apologize for this obvious heresy. I was young.
In the last couple of days, I've had the good fortune of buying a new one though! A black 1988 L with 129K miles and purrs like a cat. I've been driving it non-stop in the last two days I've owned it and have begun making big plans. Which is where this fine community comes into play..
I want to transform this little black Festiva into the piece of art it truly is. The problem is, I don't know anything about cars. I can change my own oil, but otherwise I am clueless. I have a million questions and I'm hoping you guys can be the help I need to make this classic car turn heads on the street. I took a couple of pictures today for your viewing pleasure:
1. The driver's door handle (and mechanism, I think) are torn off. Also, the trunk latch mechanism is broken and the trunk won't close fully. I swept the junkyard and the Ford dealerships in town and they have nothing. Is there a place to get these things besides eBay, and what pieces do I need?
2. The body is in pretty good shape except for the dents above the drivers door and in the rear of the passenger side. It looks like they are part of the main body of the car. How do I get those repaired? (welding or something?)
3. After body work is complete, I'd like to get a fresh coat of paint. Any estimates or tips on that whole process?
4. Finally, I'd like to eventually replace the interior, maybe get new seats, and install a sound system. I'm going to read all the articles on the forum, but do you have any specific advice on these operations?
Thanks for everything in advance. I look forward to making this car beautiful with your help.
weh
As a new member of the site, I thought I'd take a thread out to introduce myself. My name is wehats, or weh for short. I live in Billings, Montana, and my dream car is..
The 1988 Festiva L
The L was my first car when I started driving. I got my original red one from my grandfather at 300K or so miles. I immediately fell in love with the car. After several years of young foolishness, the Festiva (which had become my trademark and a legendary car in my circle of friends) began to show signs of age. Towards the end, I was over 450K miles..
Anyway, I lost the car. My dad took it after it broke down and I never saw it again. Presumably it's in a junkyard somewhere; I've looked all over, and no signs. One of my greatest regrets in life is not holding onto that car I apologize for this obvious heresy. I was young.
In the last couple of days, I've had the good fortune of buying a new one though! A black 1988 L with 129K miles and purrs like a cat. I've been driving it non-stop in the last two days I've owned it and have begun making big plans. Which is where this fine community comes into play..
I want to transform this little black Festiva into the piece of art it truly is. The problem is, I don't know anything about cars. I can change my own oil, but otherwise I am clueless. I have a million questions and I'm hoping you guys can be the help I need to make this classic car turn heads on the street. I took a couple of pictures today for your viewing pleasure:
1. The driver's door handle (and mechanism, I think) are torn off. Also, the trunk latch mechanism is broken and the trunk won't close fully. I swept the junkyard and the Ford dealerships in town and they have nothing. Is there a place to get these things besides eBay, and what pieces do I need?
2. The body is in pretty good shape except for the dents above the drivers door and in the rear of the passenger side. It looks like they are part of the main body of the car. How do I get those repaired? (welding or something?)
3. After body work is complete, I'd like to get a fresh coat of paint. Any estimates or tips on that whole process?
4. Finally, I'd like to eventually replace the interior, maybe get new seats, and install a sound system. I'm going to read all the articles on the forum, but do you have any specific advice on these operations?
Thanks for everything in advance. I look forward to making this car beautiful with your help.
weh
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