When I first started looking into the RX-8 I was smitten by a photo of a pre-production model which had lightning yellow exterior with a 2-tone yellow interior. Dealer said "we can do that" and they did.

Another distance shot

Cool... now how about some closeups of the interior? :)

Interior. I love the way it's brightened up. Selected a leather that was just a tad lighter than the exterior. It has a subtle effect of making the exterior seem a bit more "buttery" which is just what I was hoping for. Just a subtle difference though. The seat sides aren't pure black either; they're "graphite", which complements the slightly "paler" yellow.

Was this done at the dealer or did they order it with yellow interior for you?

shot towards the front. Wish I could've taken these with my "Voodoo yellow" shift knob but it's out to the engravers. So, whassup with the steering wheel :p ... I think the prep dudes used some kind of treatment somewhere and it got transferred to the wheel making it annoyingly slippery. Decided to use a cheap wrap for now. Doesn't look that bad to me, actually...

heh... I couldn't resist :)



What, me worry?

Spring is bustin' out here

another orchard shot

I like the contrast in this one

another

another interior shot

closeup of the leatherwork/stiching

Front seat detail

they even kept slots for child seat attachments!

ROFL that "subject to flooding" picture cracks me up... :D

But i still want to know if the dealer do the yellow interior for you or did you pre-order your 8 to come this way from Japan?

Originally posted by BIU
Was this done at the dealer or did they order it with yellow interior for you?

The upholstery was done by Classic Soft Trim, through arrangement with the dealer. Left the car at the dealer, upholstery shop removes the seats and takes them to their shop. The re-upholstered seats are brought back and installed and the panels are done onsite. Took about 3 days.

Originally posted by Nubo
The upholstery was done by Classic Soft Trim, through arrangement with the dealer. Left the car at the dealer, upholstery shop removes the seats and takes them to their shop. The re-upholstered seats are brought back and installed and the panels are done onsite. Took about 3 days.

So did they charge you extra for this or not?

Is the warranty on the seats just the same as the OEM ones?

Originally posted by BIU
So did they charge you extra for this or not?

Is the warranty on the seats just the same as the OEM ones?

The cost was $1200 U.S. Not a bad deal, considering all I really wanted from the GT package was the leather and really didn't want the moonroof. This way I went with the cheaper sport package and added leather.

The leather warranty is 3 years/36000 miles.

VERY nice!!! Leather work looks like top quality.

That flooding shot will be a classic :)

WICKED .


CHEERS
MICHAEL

that looks awesome. how's the side panel done? is it leather or dyed?

Originally posted by chinx
that looks awesome. how's the side panel done? is it leather or dyed?

You know, that was explained to me at some point but I forget if the panels were supposed to be leather or vinyl. Just took another look and it has the same grain as the seats. Hard to tell by feel since the panel is rigid underneath. The tiny gathers in the corners look "leathery" to me... (correction; the panels are color-matched vinyl. The grain and appearance are spot-on though).

The seats are all leather. (correction - the yellow "seating surface" is leather and the graphite is vinyl.)

If you want your leatherseats with yellow stiching , its quite simple .

One oil based texta , marking pen , go over all stiching on seats etc , let it dry a quick wipe over seats presto Yellow leather stiching , nery effective and cheap .

All you need is marking pen , steady hand and good eyes and about halve an hour of your time .

cheers
michael

nice work
just remove the steering wheel cover :mad:

looks really good! hey lock & load... did u actually go through and do all ur stiching with the pen? id do it in blue if it works.

NIce! Looks factory-done!

Originally posted by Nubo
You know, that was explained to me at some point but I forget if the panels were supposed to be leather or vinyl. Just took another look and it has the same grain as the seats. Hard to tell by feel since the panel is ridgid underneath. The tiny gathers in the corners look "leathery" to me...

The seats are all leather.
The door panels are made with matching vinyl (so not leather). The seats are not all leather either - the seating surface is, but the seat backs are vinyl too. It's very hard to tell the difference though.
I should know - my interior was also done by Classic Soft Trim :)

NIce job! Looks good! Just checked out the site and when I get my blue 8 (coming 12/04), I would definitely think about doing this! Thanks 4 the pics and posts!

Originally posted by Tamas
The door panels are made with matching vinyl (so not leather). The seats are not all leather either - the seating surface is, but the seat backs are vinyl too. It's very hard to tell the difference though.
I should know - my interior was also done by Classic Soft Trim :)

I knew I should have paid more attention when we set it up :). It was a looong 3 months though :p

Originally posted by Kushballah
looks really good! hey lock & load... did u actually go through and do all ur stiching with the pen? id do it in blue if it works.

I certainly have it works great in yellow so i dont see a problem with any other colour .
cheers
michael

The car looks good, but does anyone else have a problem with the steering wheel?

Originally posted by desmo996
The car looks good, but does anyone else have a problem with the steering wheel?

Yeah, that thing has got to go. If you want a nice cover, they make ones that are an actual band of leather. It comes with a thick waxy thread and a couple of needles. You have to sew it up stitch by stitch but it looks great in the end.

I put one on my accord when the rubber started to crumble and people thought it was a factory leather wrapped wheel.

greese

I agree....lose the steering wheel cover...cheapens it. LOVE the yellow/blk leather though!!!!Sweet!!!!!

I posted several months ago about wanting to see a monthly photo contest for forum members. There was no replies so I dropped it.

We could choose ten or so pictures and then have a poll to decide the winner. Just something for fun.

Well, anyway...this is just the type of picture I was talking about. Absolutely priceless. You have my vote!!

LOL - I'll lose the steering wheel cover if I can get some grip from the original. I don't know if there's silicone on it or is it just that slippery from the factory? I tried rubbing it vigorously with a terrycloth and alcohol. Any other tips on getting some grip into the OEM leather wheel? Maybe I need some of that special mud they rub major league baseballs with.

Nubo

Get the K.Y.personall lubricant of your hands , and were ever else youve had it and that should help you get a grip on the steering wheel instead of yourself .

in jest ha ,ha .ha

cheers
michael

the sterling wheel wrap is different to say the least

I love the yellow interior
It looks so natural

Tight!

The Steering wheel reminds me of my old Chevy Impala. Take care of that. You took the time and money to do everything else. It's what your always holding on to and looking at, but if comfort matters???

Bill

Great shots, love the yellow seats, The flooding picture is priceless!

Nubo,

Perhaps you should apply your "bee" theme to the steering wheel like this image from the 2001 Tokyo Motor Show.

I'm not sure about that yellow instrument cowl. I bet it reflects wickedly on the windshield.

http://asmic.com/collect/rx-8tm/pics/rx8-pk03.jpg

Came out awsome Nubo!

Originally posted by rex
Nubo,

Perhaps you should apply your "bee" theme to the steering wheel like this image from the 2001 Tokyo Motor Show.

I'm not sure about that yellow instrument cowl. I bet it reflects wickedly on the windshield.



Thanks, I might do that with Wheelskins; especially if I can't beat this slippage problem.

Yes I think the yellow shell over the cowl looks great but would be unbearable in practice. Ever leave a sheet of paper on the dash?

Very nice looking RX-8. You did a great job with it. Really makes it special.

it's beautiful, but it would look sexy with accents and an appearance kit. lose the wheel and no spoiler

The interior looks sweet, but I must agree that the wheel cover must go. It looks like somethin my grandpa would have on his old chevy.

I kinda like it...but I don't think I can live with it on a daily basis....

Damn! Withering peer pressure on the steering wheel issue ;)

Okay! Okay! Hey, I said it was temporary!

It's gone now - some cleanings, rubdown with glycerine helped. Probably most important the weather has gotten warmer and so skin oil/sweat is breaking in the wheel leather. Grip is pretty good now and getting better.

So we can put that unfortunate style excursion behind us.

What size fuzzy dice should I get for the rearview mirror?

...don't forget the "sure-to-fade" plush dashboard cover :)

Originally posted by Nubo
What size fuzzy dice should I get for the rearview mirror?
I suppose a big yellow one would work fine if you wanna keep the styling consistent... maybe with black dots, how 'bout that? :D

Originally posted by Tamas
I suppose a big yellow one would work fine if you wanna keep the styling consistent... maybe with black dots, how 'bout that? :D

or a black one with YELLOW DOTS!!!:eek:

Originally posted by Nubo
What size fuzzy dice should I get for the rearview mirror?

How about a scented bumble bee! It would look very cute :D

Originally posted by desmo996
How about a scented bumble bee! It would look very cute :D

I couldn't resist myself, sorry! :D

:D :D :D

Did I hear a vote for a bee "hood ornament"? Now that's something I'd love to see!

Those look absolutely fantastic in that yellow car!
I just ordered the same work;Classic Soft Trim,excepting I've gone with black leather sides and perforated charcoal leather centers in my Ti Gray 8,along w the embroidered logo in charcoal.
While I'm there,it's time for the computer-cut tint (no ninny NEAR my rear defrost/antenna-I've been THERE before,lol!) and they also offer factory badges in dark charcoal chrome,so am likely to do that,also.

That yellow's gotta' make you smile every morning!

Nubo...loosk great....have a friend with a yellow cougar with same pattern leather.

you mentioned it earlier...go with WHEELSKINS (http://www.wheelskins.com/euroTone.shtml) for the wheel. I had one for about 2 years, they are great, but take about 45 minutes to install perfectly...a lot of sewing!

Originally posted by Preacher
Those look absolutely fantastic in that yellow car!
I just ordered the same work;Classic Soft Trim,excepting I've gone with black leather sides and perforated charcoal leather centers in my Ti Gray 8
You know, I was pondering the same idea when I got my leather interior at CST but then decided that having the black with the gray will be kinda dull. I wanted to have something more lively :D
Here (http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=19867) is the thread with my interior... :)
I think that their brick / black combo would also look sweet with the titanium.

I like a more low-key,old-school monotone euro approach,the red's too much for my taste.
(Damn,am I getting OLD or what?) :D
The charcoal I'm getting's only a tiny bit off of their black,I don't like gray at all in leather,and I'm offsetting the inserts with perforated leather,which will add a nice texture.
Am thinking of doing the gray headliner over in OEM smooth- match charcoal vinyl,as well,I figure it'd be easier to clean and better looking than the (ugly,imo) gray nylon-esque headliner.
I went with regular,grained leather,not the OEM 'smooth',like you did with the red/black-but I like the lower-key red that you installed,it did make me think for a minute,for sure,and it does look righteous! :)

Originally posted by Preacher
I like a more low-key,old-school monotone euro approach,the red's too much for my taste.
(Damn,am I getting OLD or what?) :D

I don't know about that... but I just turned 40 last month, so I guess I qualify as old too :D


The charcoal I'm getting's only a tiny bit off of their black,I don't like gray at all in leather,and I'm offsetting the inserts with perforated leather,which will add a nice texture.

Oh, I see... that'll look pretty good I think. Are you not afraid that the perforated leather will wear worse than the non-perforated? Also, will stuff not stick into the holes more or be harder to clean?


Am thinking of doing the gray headliner over in OEM smooth- match charcoal vinyl,as well,I figure it'd be easier to clean and better looking than the (ugly,imo) gray nylon-esque headliner.

Interesting idea... I'm not sure how hard it is to remove the headliner from this car or whether I'd want to take apart the 8 more than I did already :D


I went with regular,grained leather,not the OEM 'smooth',like you did with the red/black-but I like the lower-key red that you installed,it did make me think for a minute,for sure,and it does look righteous! :)
Thanks... :) I like it so far a lot. Hope it will wear well.
What exactly is that 'regular, grained lether' like? I don't remember that type of leather when I selected mine at CST. It sounds nice - maybe I should have gotten that too.

The 'smooth',OEM leather doesn't really have much grain,and I like that,but I saw the 'regular',grained leather and it reminds me of Porsche leather,so I went in that direction.
I'll keep you posted on the headliner,am talking to them in the morning about that very notion.....I despise the dirt-grabbing gray nylon-covered stock unit,and I only have 670 miles on my car.

Update:

The perforated charcoal leather in the centers will be 'smooth',the outer will have more visible grain.
I went with charcoal perforated inserts,and am having the headliner changed to black at the same time (goodbye,dirty gray!)
they also offer computer-cut tint,so I added that,and they're sending all my badges to AZ to have them plated in opal-tint black pearl.
One-stop custom shop,sans motor tweaks,imo.
Pics when I get back from Europe in a couple of weeks.

pics ??

very smooth, nubo... love the interior and the color.

Nubo - That flooding sign, LMAO. :)

Nubo, would you mind uploading some more pics, it seems they have been removed from the server. I would love to see the yellow interior, I was just thinking about this for a black 8.

Thanks

Yea, I wanna see too.

I don't remember Nubo's interior specifically. Was it the yellow version of the factory red/chaparral or like the prototype? Here's mine which is like the prototype 8 minus the steering wheel & dash color.
http://www.rx8club.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=53575
http://www.rx8club.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=53576

Here's Nubo's from elsewhere. Full Yellow Jacket.http://www.rx8club.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=23222

Nubo, would you mind uploading some more pics, it seems they have been removed from the server. I would love to see the yellow interior, I was just thinking about this for a black 8.

Thanks

Here are a few...

And YES, the steering wheel cover is long gone :)

..

...

.....

....

Thanks G-Rex and Nubo. Both interiors look great. Certainly what I was hoping to see!

nice job nubo

I remember looking at this a while back and was jealous as hell. Nubo how has that leather been holding up after 15 months? Did you ever end up getting the steering wheel done in yellow to complete the package?

Thanks G-Rex and Nubo. Both interiors look awesome.

agreed, very awesome :D

i LOVE that "subject to flooding" pic. NICE

I got yellow/black leather on my interior too, but I opted to have the leather perforated here in florida. 100% humidity + 90F = sticky situation.

I remember looking at this a while back and was jealous as hell. Nubo how has that leather been holding up after 15 months? Did you ever end up getting the steering wheel done in yellow to complete the package?

The leather seems fine so far. I recently cleaned it because the driver's seat was starting to get a bit dingy. It cleaned up nicely. It does only have about 9K miles on it so far though, and doesn't spend much time parked in the sun.

I haven't done the steering wheel. I got some swatches recently from Wheelskins, but their yellow is nowhere near a match; it is much darker. I've just gone with the stock wheel so far; I rub some sports "grip cream" into it once in a while to keep it from being too slippery. Haven't found the perfect dressing to keep it grippy. Ran across some stuff on the web called "Hammanol" that I might try...

I've made a couple other "yellow additions". I recently painted the fender vents lightning-yellow. The thread is in the "exterior" section. And a custom-engraved powder-coated yellow VooDoo shift knob, which is a good match. I've got paint left over from the vents so I'm eyeing some other stuff. The center knob for the audio is a good candidate. Also (cautiously) thinking about the bezels around the interior air ducts.

i LOVE that "subject to flooding" pic. NICE

Ah, so somebody restored the original pics! -- Cool! :)