I've been mulling over some plans to mod my interior a bit. This is a pic of the Bonne GXP interior, but my car has the same tan leather...


Obviously there are a few features my car doesnt have, such as the tu-tone seats, the white instrument panel, and the carbon fiber-look vents, but I have similar scheme in mind.

I plan to pull my dash panel, console insert, vent surrounds,window switch covers and door handle backings and give them a glossy piano black treatment.

Since the shifter handle is already black, and my steering wheel is the same dark taupe color pictured (sans carbon fiber inserts) I was thinking a black leather wheel would look more at home.

I've done quite a bit of online scouring, looking at pics of salvage parts and I think a wheel from a 2006 GP will fit. Similar to the one pictured here (but no TAPshift...06-up also has no cruise switch in the wheel))


The column mount and clockspring appear identical, as well as the connections for the airbag. Wiring for the audio controls appears to be the same as well save for the plastic connector, so some splicing may be required to mate with the Bonne plug. Aside from that, it looks to be a bolt-on swap.

If BlackArrow or anyone else happens to know of some other incompatibility that I am unaware of,please do chime in. I've had this posted on the Bonneville board for several days and no one has offered anything to suggest there would be a problem.
I also like that there is medallion in the center of the GP wheel that I can add a "Ghosthawk" decal to...which I think would be nice touch.

There is also a remote possibility I could add the white GXP gauge set if I can figure away to cover the "GXP" logo (dont know if I could get a decal that small to cover it) I had already found its a bolt in swap with only one wire needing to be changed (several others have done it and it looks great, but only on the SLE since the supercharged SSEi uses a different gauge layout)

nice tim! looks like youre headed in the right direction with your car! The 2 tone interior on the GXP's look amazing, too bad the GP's didnt have that kind of creativity...haha

Been chatting with a guy at US Speedo who says he might be able to fix me up with a set of GXP gauges. I think those would be nice addition given the white color of the car.

I cant wait for the weather to break and get bit warmer so I can start doing some of this paint work.

I'm also gathering parts to do some power upgrades as well. I really wanna get the engine bay on this car looking righteous.

hv3, 3" dp with h/f cat, Power log, hv throttle body! sounds like a good mod list to me!

I ordered the GP steering wheel yesterday, and a Wheelskins cover for my convertible. If the install on the vert comes out looking as good as the pics on the website, then I'll probably get a tu-tone black/tan cover for the GP wheel on the Bonne also.

Looking forward to hearing about the wheelskins cover. Mine is getting pretty beat up and haven't found anything I like yet.

nice tim! cant wait to see the outcome!

I installed the Wheelskins cover in the Sebring yesterday. My stitching talents leave a bit to be desired as you can see in the pic below. I started in the center at the bottom rim of the wheel and moved to the left.

The instructions plainly tell you to pull the cord TIGHT...and the even tell you the holes are reinforced so the tighter the better. As you can see by how much tighter the stitches are along the top and down the right side, I got a better handle on things as I went.

Picking the right holes and getting a good, close pull around the spokes can be a little tricky, but I feel much more confident about tackling the GP wheel when I get it installed in the Bonnie.

I think the finished look overall is very good, and far better than the slip on cover I was using. The feel is not quite as thick as before but still very nice. I highly recommend the product and will be using it in the Bonnie for sure.

Your door is ajar

Looks good. Are the holes pre punched or do you have to do the spacing your self?

Also around the spokes what did you sew the cover to?

Thanks for the tip about the door! LOL

The holes are pre-punched and the leather is doubled over a reinforcing strip (so the instructions say) so you can tug away.

The space in front of the spokes you loop a faux stitch just on the front side and then pull as tight as you can on either side of the spoke. This is where a little hole counting comes in to keep you on track. Dont worry about running out of cord, I had WAY more than I needed when I got done.

A little update on the Bonnie,

The 2.5in d/p w/hi-flow cat and hi-flo TB are installed. Our last trip to NJ netted 29.2mpg at 70-75mph. Yes baby!

I am still collecting parts for my LIM job and plan some underhood dress-up in the process.

Today I completed the install of the GP wheel and painted interior parts, along with the Wheelskins cover and new shift boot.

Here is a before shot...


(Drum roll please)...and the end result today


Passenger side and door panels and tan shift boot


"Bonnie the Ghosthawk" wheel medallion


In my efforts to stretch the wheel cover around the bulges at the 10 & 2 position, I managed to snap the lacing cord. Pos-10 worked out fine, but you can see the gap at Pos-2 where I had to re-start lacing again and lost some tension...grrrr


Now maybe some embroidered floor mats...maybe a contrast color binding in black/tan. Rotors and calipers are next on the list.

I'm not feeling the black an tan. I think a darker brown like the shift gator would work better.

yeah...not so sure about the black and tan...but it does look sharp, clean, refined. Like it's meant to be like that. Darn good work, Tim!

BTW: don't forget the HV3 while you're doing the LIM. That SURE woke up Colleen. That and the CAI. Be ready to tune IF you decide to do the HV3 and CAI, though. I'm burning lean...still. Think I'm gonna have my local body shop drill through the floor pan and install a rubber grommet like in our spare tire wells so the wideband can go straight from the bung into the cabin.

Know what? forget what I said about black and tan. I took another long, hard look at her...she looks...right. May I suggest a more color-matching boot than what you have now? Or perhaps black? Whatever the case may be, Bonnie is looking DARN sexy! She would be what TBat would date and marry...and TBat woulda been what Bonnie would want to date and marry. Mutual arm candy, doncha know?

I picked the closest thing Wheelskins had to offer. They had another lighter color called "sand" but from the pics it looked way too light. An exact match would have been sweet but I dont know where I would have pulled that off...other than a pricey upholstery shop. (the boot I took off was black, but I thought that would be over done with the black painted parts)

We took the car out to dinner tonite and the lights in the audio buttons area all working fine (something else the old wheel was suffering from)

Rick, I've been back and forth on the HV3. Two guys on the Bonne board said it felt like it hurt low end response, but mostly I'm having a hard time making myself cough up that much coin for a piece of molded plastic...especially when I'm also wanting the YellaTerra 1:8 rockers even worse...so many parts, so little funds!

dont listen to these noobs! lol The black and tan gives it a "classy" look, i like it Tim!