Page 6: The Interior
 

We had the air-conditioning vents re-vacuum metallized.  This was the original process used by Frigiking.  They must first be painstakingly disassembled since the horizontal deflectors are black.





 



We covered all of the dash pieces in custom leather chosen by our client.  New wood for the interior was purchased.  In the photo to the left you see the wood going in.  Due to the thickness of the leather there can be clearance issues.  We solved this by pressing the dash for several days with a piece of wood tightened down progressively with a screw.  This way we minimized the risk of cracking an expensive piece of wood dash trim.  Also, note the original wood spacers under the right piece of trim.


This is another shot of the dash top.  Notice we did all off the dash fitting before installing the windshield.








 


The car originally had a mono Becker Europa.  Our client wanted a stereo so we sourced a Europa II in great condition.







 


Here we address the problem of having modern, retractable, three point safety belts in a Pagoda.  The original "Kangol" belts in 280s are effective but cumbersome and confining.  The issue is that there is not much room to install the retracting mechanism of a more modern belt system.  We choose factory Mercedes belts for obvious reasons.  I have seen similar belts installed near the floor behind the seats.  This solution limits the rearward travel of the seats.  Our method locates the mechanism behind the quarter panel.


 

A slot is cut in the quarter panel through which the belt goes.  The belt is secured at the top and bottom using the original fastening points of the Kangol belts.







 


As you can see we did all of the fitting and fabrication before the new upholstery was installed.

The belt receivers must be bent out slightly to clear the console box.





 


The flap of upholstery behind the belt, covers the rear window defroster cable port.

 

 

 

 

 

 


More of the dash pieces going in.










 

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