[::CMS::]

Originally Posted by SaurabhSaran

CMS, what is your feedback regarding this Clay Bar, I am thinking of buying it.

The cost of Blue OEM Clay Bar is very less as compared to other clay bars from popular brands, so just need your opinion as you have used it.


-
SS

I was more concerned about any scratches / mar due to this, but I recommend using it than any branded expensive ones for medium usage, its able to lift off all the contaminants of a ~ 2 year old car.

[::CMS::]

The main drawback in Duster is the interiors. My plan is to upgrade the interior based on a theme, finalised the Tangerine - Dark Brown - Black color pattern (inspired by the 2014 Land Rover LWB) but with custom stitch pattern.

The first step was the seat covers and I chose Imperial Leathers based on the budget and scope for accommodating a custom design. Shivkumar had sent me a list of all possible designs, but I was looking for something else and so I designed a few but due to the high cost, I had to redesign with lot of compromise, initial design had a lot of customisation using high density foam on sides and back, but the new one was using the backing foam (double layers) limited to the front face.

Few of my design constraints were,

- should be w/o any horizontal lines which breaks the flow and make the seat very stiff
- should be soft so the material used was artificial leather with Nappa finish
- The main threads should highlight the shape of the seat so chose T10 thread with silver color instead of beige and the normal matching color for other joints
- should look OEM as much as possible so avoided zips and reused all the oem accessories including the strip for seat pockets
- All the extra padding (thigh support etc) should not look like a separate padding
- Surface should have maximum air circulation, so chose double stitch diamonds for the body touching surfaces. Also it adds to the aesthetics.

The end result has come out pretty decent and hats off to shivkumar and the other guy, i always forget his name, i believe hanumanth and his crew for their dedication as i had set the finishing expectation sightly high, even the stitching guys were cooperative in accommodating my demands including the straightness of the stitches, may be due to the rapo i could build with them. Eventhough they used to complete 2 or 3 cars a day, they dedicated one full day for this, even few final touches are pending, I will be doing it myself. Due to the constraints in the Duster stock seat foam, the sharp edges or joints are slightly curvy, but its not much of an issue.

Anyways they had agreed to do my remaining plan for the interiors including the dashboard and custom center console leather wrapping.

If you guys like the design, the trace patterns are available with them. You can choose any color pattern, better would be a medium - dark color than a light-dark comBo. Also we have made the trace pattern for the OEM steering cover.

Few snaps using my mobile :

Trace patterns is being created:














Trace patterns being transferred to the sheets:






Cutting / Sorting and backing foam and net cloth / Stitching:




















Padding :








Fixing starts:












Incar final finish:

[::CMS::]

Contd...






















OEM Steering cover:

[JoseVijay]

Oh my! What a finish. Duster looks very grand with those interiors. How much did it cost you? And what other upgrades have you planned?

[swiftnfurious]

Thats gorgoeus! I always wondered how would one get those diamond cuts on the seat (I am a huge fan of it) and I could get to see how they manage it. All the money spent on this is absolutely worth!

[::CMS::]

Glad that you guys liked the design.

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Thats gorgoeus! I always wondered how would one get those diamond cuts on the seat (I am a huge fan of it) and I could get to see how they manage it. All the money spent on this is absolutely worth!

I am also a fan of diamond stitch as it gives a rich look and feel to the seat esp on a leather material. But it can spoil the look if the diamond shapes are not proper, key is that it "should be a proper square".

Usually any installer follows a simple rule to create a diamond, they will make a trace piece with width same as the diamond width and draw the trace lines connecting the diagonal ends of the material. But this method will work only if the material is square in shape, if not, you will get a diamond, but a rectangular diamond and it will spoil the look.

Another issue is that if you follow a design theme and pattern, all the diamonds should be of same size in all the pieces. Usually, the installers will do wrong here also (if a trace sheet is absent), by making the diamonds based on the material size. Since my eyes look for details in a design, I pointed these to them.

So I made a trace jig for the smallest piece with diamond stitch, it came out as ~2" and followed the pattern throughout irrespective of the size and shape of the material so that all the diamonds looks same everywhere. Moreover I used double stitch diamonds where there is a gap b/n each diamond and used double layers of backing foam which gave more pop and richness to each diamond, also the gap will give more ventilation to the touching surface than a single stitch diamond.

Since the diamonds are not based on the size and shape of the material, the diamonds near the border will have incomplete diamonds, in order to give a proper edge for that design I had included a folded stitch at the extremes. Without a clear distinction using a visible stitch, it will not look good esp while using different colors. As shown in the pic below, I was looking for sharp turns for this border unlike the seat's curvy edges, but due to the constraints in the stock foam (may need a proper tie or lock to get the exact shape) we couldnt get as sharp as we wanted.




Following is a comparison picture from their sample images they did for an ecosport, where the diamonds are rectangle and doesnt look separate. Also note the difference in look w/o a proper visible stitch border for the diamond design area.

Originally Posted by JoseVijay

Oh my! What a finish. Duster looks very grand with those interiors. How much did it cost you? And what other upgrades have you planned?

Following are my plans, (donno when I will be able to complete)

- Follow the same color theme and pattern (along with black) for the rest of the interiors. All the grey colored plastics will be wrapped with leather.
- Leather wrapped dashboard and a fibreglass pod on the top of the dashboard for the Andrio's display unit and the provision for an android based HUD (extension of Andrio) using a laser pico projector near the meter console.
- Leather wrapped door panels with ambient light.
- Front and back side (detachable) custom center consoles with a provision for rear AC, separate internet and entertainment unit with 10 / 15" lcds (extension of Andrio).

[devil_klm]

Congrats ::CMS::. That was a marvelous work by imperial leather. Why did they extra leather around steering joints are kept as it is?

[::CMS::]

Originally Posted by devil_klm

Why did they extra leather around steering joints are kept as it is?

The OEM finish should have the steering wheel covered in full w/o any edges exposed outside. It requires opening the center portion of the steering wheel where the airbag is present, it should be done carefully. Since it was late ~9PM we thought to do it later, currently its kept folded inside so that it wont hinder the driving.

[Falcon_blr]

Hi ::CMS:: where did you get the B & C pillar vinyl wrap done in Bangalore?
Would you recommend getting this done?

[::CMS::]

Originally Posted by Falcon_blr

Hi ::CMS:: where did you get the B & C pillar vinyl wrap done in Bangalore?
Would you recommend getting this done?

It was done by me.


Update :

Last week I did the 30K paid service and the bill was 3K (usually costs ~10K), I spent only 3K (w/o alignment as it was done 1week back and w/o airfilter as I have K&N). I clearly asked the service manager what are the mandatory service steps to continue my warranty and to enter the service records for 30K, only following were required,

- Engine oil + Oil Filter + Nut + washer
- AirFilter
- Brake cleaning \ checking (eventhough I was not convinced, I wanted to check the condition of the pads). Since I have the habit of being in the service bay (sometimes I used to help the mechanics too), I asked the mechanic to check the condition of the brake pad, I knew it will definitely go for atleast 2K kms, I told him let it worn out fully then it will be changed. This will be a DIY now onwards.

Moreover I had observed that they do nothing apart from checking the functioning of lights/other electrical and fluids and washing under the name of "Service". So I asked them not to do that also as those checking can be done by any school kid and washing they themselves know I wont allow them to do as I do the detailing myself.

Yes, I did only that and my 30K service bill was just 3K.

[divyankar]

Originally Posted by ::CMS::

My French Bull dog was a calm pet till last saturday.
==========
For the time being, a few snaps of the Bull Dog with the last weekend's diy grill blackening using 3D carbon fibre vinyl for a proper aggressive Bull dog look: (sorry for the mobile phone pics)

Attachment 1159369

Attachment 1159370

Black grill is looking awesome.
I am not sure how it will look on my black duster.
Can you please share the pricing.

Mod Note : Please quote ONLY the relevant bits of a post. Quoting a full, long post inconveniences our mobile readers.

Thanks!

[::CMS::]

Originally Posted by divyankar

Can you please share the pricing.

I got it through eBay for ~300/- and did it myself.

[soumobakshi]

No Intention of hijacking your thread, just wanted to share a different perspective of the design pattern. Created at the same place as yours, Imperial Leathers but the Steering Cover was from JC Road hand stitched in order to avoid any harm to the AIR Bags for my 110 RXL. And an additional Pic of my Ride.

I wanted a color co-ordinate looks so settled with these matching combo.

Must Admit that a pretty interesting Detailing schedule you follow. I wash and clean on my own as well but restrict with Proclear high concentrate solution and Wax from Mig's

[::CMS::]

Originally Posted by soumobakshi

I wanted a color co-ordinate looks so settled with these matching combo.

Color combo matches well with the existing colors.

In my car, Black and Tangerine doesnt match with the color pattern, but I chose those colors since I have plan to follow the entire interior with that color theme.

[soumobakshi]

Originally Posted by ::CMS::

Color combo matches well with the existing colors.

since I have plan to follow the entire interior with that color theme.

Following this to see the outcome that you have planned. Honestly it sounds interesting.