Painting Steering Wheel and Shift Lever

[pblach]

I have a 2002 Blue Bird with the black accents on the steering wheel and shift lever. It costs too much to buy the blue accents from Ford, and I have been told by several people that these black accents can be painted blue. Has anyone had any experience doing this, and where would I go to have it done?

Penny in San Diego
pblach@ucsd.edu

 

[George]

Penny:
You could try a body shop. But in the long run you may do better replacing the steering wheel and knob, which is probably what you refered to as "costs too much".
I'll do a little home work and see if I can help.

 

[Anezangl]

Penny, do to the explosion of the "Tuner" market, ( the little foreign cars w/ the loud fart cannon exhaust ) some of the after market paint manufacturers have come out with what they call paints designed for car interior color changes. I have an 19 year old son who changes his interior color w/ every girl friend change! He gets them at the local parts store. They call it paint but I really think it is more like a stain because it seems soak into the leather and fabrics. Go to some of the 'Tuner" sites and ask around.

 

[George]

Penny:
You could try a body shop. But in the long run you may do better replacing the steering wheel and knob, which is probably what you refered to as "costs too much".
I'll do a little home work and see if I can help.

Penny: Here's a response from an expert on painting the wheel:
George,
This is definately not something I would recommend. The paint that is applied to the steering wheel and shifter is baked in. I think that this person would regret it after a while, once the paint started chipping.

 

[pblach]

Thanks to everyone who responded to my questions about painting the steering wheel and shift lever. When I said that it "cost too much" for the Ford parts, I meant that I had a quote from my Ford dealer for $402 for the steering wheel and $341 for the shift lever. Also, there would be at least an hour of installation at $90/hour. I could not believe that these parts would cost that much!

I was told by one member that there are dealers who would customize their Birds with unusual colors, such as rose colored steering wheels. Apparently they just painted over the original colors. That was the reason I asked if anyone had experience in doing the painting.

Thanks for your advice,
Penny in San Diego
Blue 2002 Bird with black Accent package

 

[George]

Penny:
Galpin Ford of California "Galpinized" several Ford Thunderbirds. Their website used to show a pink one in their "history" of the dealership on www.Galpin.com . On their Galpinized website, you should find a Barris custom made for them, if it is still there. It graced their 2003 or 2004 calendar. There's also a mint green and a dusk rose to be found on those pages.
Since you are in CA, possibly you could contact them - Just a thought

Others that carry TBird parts are, Rick at Worldclasswheels.com (not just wheels either)
Hotcharriots .com, Powersportcars.com, Kustomautomotive.com and others. Almost all of these are in CA/NV which may be close to you. Certainly closer then they are to me.
Keep us posted.

 

[critterpainter]

There is a peron in Canada that sometimes lists parts off an 02. He has the "blue" wheel and knob. I PMed about them and hes wanted $250 for them...Exchange for my black. I passed

Bill

 

[dchamb]

Look in "2002-2005 thunderbird for sale" section, select it at the bottom of the page from the drop down menu, you will find a posting for a salvage yard with thunderbird parts. They may have what you want at a price more suitable.

 

[pblach]

Thanks for The Information

Hi Bill,

Thanks for the information about the person in Canada. I will check it out!

Regards,
Penny in San Diego

There is a peron in Canada that sometimes lists parts off an 02. He has the "blue" wheel and knob. I PMed about them and hes wanted $250 for them...Exchange for my black. I passed

Bill

 

[hankfl]

I have an 04 with sand colored interior. I damaged the finish of the shift knob removing the lower console. Dupli-color vinyl & fabric specialty coating made for a flawless repair.