Category Archives: Interior

How to install 3rd Party Heated Cloth Seats 

Here is a quick tutorial on how to install 3rd party heated seats to your Dart, if it didn’t come that way form the factory. I live in Chicago, and I called around to get estimates on heated seats installed – they ranged from $250.00 – $400.00 per seat. This was a bit more than I was ready to spend, as I thought I could do it easily myself – wrong! Actually, it’s not that difficult, but it certainly isn’t as simple as many of the other mods. If you are patient, and take your time, you can do it, as well.

This is the seat kit I bought from Amazon, but it is also available on ebay, as well:
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Here is the link on Amazon that I purchased, and here is the equivalent ebay link. I spent $25.00 on the kit, which included two carbon fiber heating elements, a three way switch, (high, low, off) wire, inline fuse, and relay. You will also need an add-a-fuse if you pull power from the inner fuse block. I recommend giving it a fuse location that supports at least 20 amps, but 15 will work.

Here is everything that came in the kit, including (wait for it)… instructions! Voila!
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Here is a closeup of the relay and the switch:
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First thing, and most important, is grab yourself a 6 pack. It is very important you enjoy your time with your Dart. Vodka also works well.
Next step, is to disconnect the battery – failure to do so, will result in a trip to the dealer to reset your seat airbags, and if you love the dealerships like my friends know I do, you won’t be a happy camper.

Then, you have to disconnect the harness going to the seat, which is located underneath, and can easily be accessed from the floor in front of the seat. You simply pull a small plastic lever down, which releases the connection. Then you will need a T40 wrench with a bit of a handle on it, as the bolts may be a bit tight. There are three exposed T40 bolts, and one covered by a plastic trim piece in the rear, inside location (third pic below, on the right) which is removed by a single phillips screw.
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Anyone that comments about my dirty carpet can kiss my A$$. lol.

Now the seat can be removed. Recline the seat all the way back, and pull it out through the rear door. Get out your vacuum, as you will never have these exposed like this for cleanup. Once the seat is out, grab another beer, then pry outward on the lower plastic pieces at the rear of the seat where the back pivots.
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Underneath that piece you will find a single phillips screw – remove that, as well as the phillips along the side, on that same plastic piece left. I only removed the outside plastic, as the inside one was able to be lifted up enough to access the large 5/8″ bolts holding the top and bottom of the seat together.
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This is the part that can be bent outward to expose the bolts:

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This is what it looks like underneath that plastic cap:
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The two bolts have been removed in this picture: (5/8″)
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This is the inside piece, that comes completely off. This is what those magic bolts look like:
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Before you pull the halves apart, there is a single plastic connector holding them together for the airbags.
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Now you can get to the seat seams – They are held together by their own force with a plastic rail. Push the fabric in together to release tension, then they come apart pretty easily.
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Once you get the first plastic rail set apart, there is yet another plastic rail set inside, that also is removed the same way:
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If you want to change the seat covvers, or completely remove them, they are helkd together by two reverse zippers along each side. I did NOT remove this – there is plenty of room to stick your hands inside the fabric to access where the heaters go.
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The bottom front seat cover is held in the same way – a plastic rail set. Mine also had a small metal screw securing it, but it didn’t look factory, so I’m not sure. Pull the fabric forward to relieve the stress and slide them apart. Again, it doesn’t take much force to do so.
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The seat adjustment handle comes off by prying up the plastic cover and removing three phillips screws inside:
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Mine had hog rings down all of the seams, so those have to be pried apart. I didn’t have hog ring pliers, so I used some heavy needle nose. Once you free the first 3 or 4 rings, you can then slide the heat element under the fabric, and secure it with the adhesive provided. I did the same with the top half, too. The heating elements can be cut down in length, which is required. You can NOT, however, cut them width-wise. You can cut up to 2 holes for the hog rings, but I was able to slide the heater under the hog rings without any hassle. I didn’t even connect a couple of them back, but there is room to do so. Make sure the heaters are pushed down into the channels, so the hog rings and ties don’t stick up, and the seat still looks stock.

The center console has plenty of room for the cable, but I put the relay under the seat and secured it with ties – the two lines can go right underneath the center console trim with ease. You will need to drill a hole 13/16″ to accommodate the switch, but you can put it wherever you like. Here is mine:
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Finished install:
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It’s pretty easy to run the wire up the side of the center console, and over to the fuse box – there was plenty of wire to do so. I used the large metal bracket in the front, inside of the center console for a ground.

Go finish your beers and enjoy warmth! I have a Yukon with factory heated leather seats, and these heat up in half the time! I put mine on constant power, but I wouldn’t recommend that to others, as if it’s left in the high setting overnight, it will drop the battery voltage down to 10 volts -just below what it takes to start (I tested it) The reason I connected to constant is so if I am waiting in the car, and I don’t have the engine running, I can still have a fresh, toasty, Amish ass!!

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LED Lighting, switches, interior controls, Carbon Fiber Wrap

Wired in switches for all the LED lighting – 3 are used, one is a secret weapon that hasn’t been installed, yet. These switches are simple, on/off, and they are soldered on the back side, sharing a common ground.  Several of them are wired to constant power, for use at car shows, etc.

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LEDs were added to the glove box, cup holder, and backseat cup holders:
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I also carbon fiber wrapped my steering wheel pieces, although the bottom piece is still not perfect, and may need to be redone.
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I had to disassemble the HVAC controls, pull off the knobs, wrap the piece, and then assemble.  20160125_110531 20160125_110549 20160125_110608

Used red gap trim for the controls: 20160125_151328 20151226_212404 20151227_190127 20160128_094111 20160125_154452 20160125_195853 20160127_005524

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Interior Trim & Carbon Fiber Wrap with LED Lighting

Added some more carbon fiber trim in the cockpit.

I wired in some convenience LEDs in the trays, in the pockets, in the glovebox, and in the center console. In the pic, I drilled 3 holes above the cubby, then taped the leds to the inside of the plastic console piece. Then I added small holes in the pockets, and did the same with LEDs there and the glovebox.

This is how the wire is routed and attached to the pockets:

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Shift Boot, Short Throw Shifter & Interior LEDs

  1. I finally got my parts in the mail all the way from Europe – My Custom Redlinegoods shift boot! I installed this at the same time I installed the MPX short throw shifter, as well as a Momo shift knob. I really thought I wanted the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Carbon Gear Knob – but it was out of stock. I’m patient, so I would have waited, however, after doing more research, i found that this was not the best option. It is a plain grey ball, and didn’t seem to have the leather/comfort/grip/feel that I really wanted.

    This is really the coolest combination! The Redline Leather Shift boot looks AMAZING! They put a lot of detail into the products, and it looked even better in person than it did when I designed it on their website using their color tools. You can pick out stitching color, stripes, two stripes, you can do virtually anything. I got an email right away explaining the international shipping information, and what to expect. It showed up just as they said it would, and I am extremely happy with the whole setup.

    The throw of the shifter took a week to get used to, but now it’s like butter. I have not missed any second gear shifts, and the metal grommets (which replace 4 stock rubber bushings) feel more solid, more like a sports car should. The grip of the MOFO shift knob is groovy as well. Yeah, I know it’s Momo, but now I’m the Mofo!!

    I’ll be showing this beast off tonight at our local Berwyn Cruise Nights at the Depot District! Shazam!
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    I replaced all of the interior lights, as well as the trunk lights with LEDs.
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Ultra-Gauge

Hardly mods, but added some interior fun. Thanks to @starscream5000 @ dodge-dart.org, I bought an Ultra-Gauge. I love it! Now I realize that I do have a boost leak. I felt something amiss a few weeks ago, but never figured it out…no leaks, no missing hoses. It never showed up anywhere, until I had a gauge to show me. I will be doing the wastegate mod this weekend. My vehicle was manufactured in Sept 2012, which is way before they started figuring things out with the turbo, which was around April 2013 and later.

One of the first things added was my vent phone mount, between the steering wheel and the LCD display:

Found an orange ice scrapper: Ha!

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Footwell Lighting and Interior Pinstriping

I really dig what some of you guys have done with the interiors! That being said, I can’t find a way to change the display color in the LCD – everything on the interior matches in red/black – which I like! I realize red and orange looks bad, but inside the vehicle, I cannot see any orange. The red interior is pleasing to the eyes, and red is a more calming color than the orange, so I went with it. I added (no big shocker here) red footwell lighting under the dash on both sides, and added them inside the dash, peeking through the vents – I generally keep it on the “breathing” effect. There is also red led’s under the front seats, shining into the back seat.
I bought some red gap trim and used it in a few places. It came with adhesive, but I supplemented this with the epoxy on the ends and corners. I don’t know why, but I added the turbo sign to the glove box. I even bought a short, red usb cable to charge the phone.



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Clutch Extension and Cover

I like to sit far back in the seat, and with my right foot comfortably on the gas, I felt the end of the clutch path was a bit too far back. I modified the pedal slightly, using a full pedal replacement kit, and doubling up on the front end, then modifying the connectors. I used longer bolts from a hardware store and made sure they were super secured. IT brings the clutch up about 1/2 inch – not a lot, but I like where it’s at now.

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How to clean the Blower Motor / Cabin Air Filter

Here is a quick how-to explaining how to remove and clean the interior blower motor. This is the fan that blows fresh air into the cabin of your car. There is a filter that should be replaced every 6 to 12 months, but if there is debris in the blower motor fan, then a new filter won’t help. My car had always sounded like a team of fighter jets were coming through my vents when I cranked up the fan ever since I bought her – I thought, “Man, this car is perfect if it only didn’t have such a loud-ass fan!”

If your fan is loud, I recommend doing this procedure. It doesn’t take that long, but you will have to perform some amazing feats of dexterity and nimbleness to get access to this fan. Acrobatic or advanced yoga skills are highly recommended.

First of all, remove the floor panel on the passenger side, sitting just to the left of their feet. It simply pulls off with moderate force, help in by 3 plastic clips.
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Next, you have to remove the fiber top to the footwells. It is held in place by two black plastic clips going into the trim above it, just below the glove box. Use a pair of needle nose pliers or flat screwdriver to remove the clips, so you don’t rip the fiber panels.

Now, it’s time to do some stretching – maybe run a few laps, some jumping jacks… You need to look up inside the center console, above the footwell area, and behind the cabin air filter (which is white in the pic, and says “Air Flow ->”

If you position yourself upside down, behind that area, you will find the blower motor, secured with 3 screws. Removing these screws is my favorite part. Once off, the cover will come right off, and the blower is directly inside. Note which direction the tabs are pointing, so it can be put back, as it only fits in one way.

All this is well worth it, especially if yours looks like mine did:

Remove the debris, and put the blower motor and cover back on, then replace the footwell cover and plastic cover. Now go take a shower, as you have blower dirt and floor debris in your hair!

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