When I has launched this special Porsche project.I had a vision of what I wanted the finished look to be. Before the paint process began, I met with Sean from Spotlight Customs to discuss options. I knew that if the exterior of the car will be bright and flashyI need a furniture to match its weirdness. The biggest drawback of the 996 generation 911 is an unattractive interior material, and I can’t stand the original boring gray leather anymore, so why not start over?
Luckily, I got on the Spotlight waitlist last fall, as their 2024 schedule was full before the year started. My turn on their dance card finally came, and on Friday we started digging into the details.
I arrived at Spotlight on Friday morning, ready to see the fruits of their labor, and to deliver a few more items before the hard stuff hits in a few months. The sports seats I delivered last December, Driver side damaged and passenger side intacthas been put together into a fine chair. The back and sides have been painted to match the exterior, and the sumptuous Italian leather and gorgeous faded wool inserts we picked out months ago have been bowled over and alakazam into a new sports chair. The whole thing looks absolutely stunning.
The center console fits perfectly too. Would be hard to install in a car, as it looks great as a piece of art on my living room bookshelf.
So with the driver’s seat and center console done, I stopped by to give them some more stuff to cover in some gorgeous leather and fabric. We dug out our tools and started tearing down.
Four bolts later and the passenger seat was out. I had to apologize to Henry, my 16-year-old Bassett/Beagle mix, for removing the seat he was sitting in on the way down.
I don’t remember who it was, but I remember hearing a race car driver on a podcast, maybe Jenson Button or Dario Franchitti, say that they had spec’d a car with sports seats for the driver and comfort seats for the passenger. I asked my passenger princess wife if she wanted the sport seats to be more aggressive at the beginning of the process, and she said she liked the stock seats. So we have a new sports seat for me and the old comfort seats ready to be replaced for her. I think they’ll look great when they’re matched and refitted.
Likewise, we pulled the door panels out and prepared them for restoration. The uppers, like the seats, will be upholstered in luxurious green leather, and the original carpeted lowers will be treated to fabric to continue the two-tone feel.
Once these parts are done, I will replace the finished green parts; carpets, seats, center console, and door panels. Later this year, after some mechanical work is done on the car, it will be delivered to Spotlight for them to remove the dashboard, do new roof without sunroofand finishing the trim. Hopefully by next spring I will have a finished car to enjoy for a long time. For now I am driving with a minimalist interior.
