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2010 Mustang / 2005-2009 retrofit ideas?

36K views 24 replies 12 participants last post by  youngstang07 
#1 ·
I like a lot of the styling elements used in the 2010 but not all of them. To me the body lines look more like the 94-04 range then a classic car and lets not talk about those tail lights. But because the 2010 and the s197 are similar its likely some parts can be swapped.

If any one has a 2010 service manual like the one for the 05-09 that was out online feel free to chime in.

Here are some of the retrofits I have heard of.

Belly roll pan: adds some stability to the front and improves aerodynamics.

Steering wheel swap: the 2010 has radio control buttons. With a custom harness and aftermarket head unit we should be able to use those buttons. Reuse your airbag to keep costs down.

Airbag swap: get the new 2010 logo on you steering wheel

Seat cover swap: the leather seat covers from a 2010 fit our cars just fine.

Outside mirror swap: I've only heard this can be done because the cars use the same door. I've never seen it done.

After I read we use the same door as the 2010 I got an idea. Do you think its possible to fit the inside of the door on our doors? Looking at a picture or two I'm feeling it is possible. My concerns are how much of the hardware would be reusable the door handles and the switches might be a lost cause. My other concern is the spot where it touches the dash, I'm thinking we would have more room based on the pics but I can't tell, obviously we would want to cap the hole for the heat vent as its not going to be work. What do you think?
 

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#3 ·
The interior is definitely nicer and more plush. But I love the straight forward functional look of the 05-09s. I think the doors may clash with the rest of the interior. Maybe not, just saying.
 
#5 ·
The biggest problem you'll have with a 2010 door vs 05-09 door is the Air diffuser for the mirror. If you do hide it as you suggest, then how?

Other concern would be where the speaker and where they mount.
 
#6 ·
If I where doing the mod today, I would find out if that duct end that sticks out through the speaker area is part of the panel or not. If it is part of the panel then I'd cut it off. Either way we'd be left with a hole I'd cover with a plastic cap. The 'vent' up by the glass would be left as is.
 
#8 ·
I think that falls into the catagory of more expensive then buying a new car. the rear quater panels and tailights are kind part of the core of the new body.
 
#9 ·
Great idea about the door panels and seat covers---keep us posted on how it works. Looks like something I'd like to do also.
 
#10 ·
I wish I had the cash to drive right in, but I've got to save for a down payment on a house!

But I did just notice that www.fordpartswebsite.com has the 2010 parts listed now.

Looking at the steering wheel update idea I see 6 steering wheels. 3 of them at the same price with the same description, 1 more expensive (by about 100 bucks), 1 cheaper (by about 30 bucks) and 1 being the most expensive (about 150 more then base)

Trying to figure that all out I did some google research and from what I can tell there are 4 steering wheels used in production right now.

An all black plastic one that only has cruise control (looks like an 05-09)
A leather wrapped wheel with audio controls and a satin look.
A leather wrapped one with what looks like it might be swade just above the center spokes.
A red leather steering wheel.

Now I'm guessing I've put them in the price order, with the leather wrapped with audio controls being the base model with 3 different part numbers. I can only guess there are 3 different part numbers because there are 3 interior colors.

Any one able to shed more light on this?
 
#11 ·
For every one who was been on edge waiting for me to update this thread.

yes, it is possable. No its not cheap, yes there are some steps to 'converting' the panel and have it fit.

1st the bad news.

1) These door panels are not cheap. The cost about 300 a peace from the dealer. Not a price I was willing to pay. I just got a drivers side panel from ebay for 140.

2)The window switches have changed harness plugs and the window switches from an 09 will not snap right into place in the 2010 switch plate. With same effort and a cutting tool I've modified my 2010 plate and glued the 09 switches to it (I actually did this months ago for the passenger side. I have not done the drivers yet but expect it to go the same) the silver lining is the green lights still match my dash.

3) the new panel does not fot on the door exactly like the old one. Many of the bolt holes are in different spots, the panel itself is about 2mm shorter top to bottom and two struts need to be cut off all together
. I will have pics are moore soon
 
#12 ·
I am now 99% complete on my door panel swap project. I just need to order one $25 part to cover up a bolt and I'm all done.

I thought some people would like to see pics of my 2007 gt with 2010 interior door panels. There are a few issues you need to be aware of if you are planning to do this swap.

  • These panels are not cheap. The basic package ones from a dealer are $300 and the premium package ones I used are more like $700 new. You want to get your panels from a parts dealer and finding a matching set can be difficult.
  • You can reuse your 'plug' where the lock pin goes into the door panel.
  • You can reuse the plate behind the interior latch
  • the lock/unlock switch can be swaped out for your old one
  • the windows switches will require work to get them to fit. The new switches will not plug into your old harness. What I did was shave down all the plastic nubs on my old switch as well as the mounting point so it slid in but did not lock into place. I then super glued it into place. I also had to dremel out the hole the switches rise up through in the front so the switches had enough room to rock back and forth right.
  • the panel has two or three posts that are desinged to socket into place inside the door. The do not match up to the older door well and need to be cut off.
  • The panel is not exactly the same size, in fact its a bit smaller. Some interior opeque plastic will be noticble if you don't trim it back.
  • The bolt holes do not line up all the way around, many do but you will use less bolts to secure the panel to the door. You will also need to drill two holes per panel. See the pics below for a close up.
 

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#16 ·
I am very pleased. I find the 2010+ styling more comfortable to sit next to, and the 'chrome' trim bits match up to the rest of my interior. The perforated pattern also matches my seats and it all looks very factory. People who don't drive mustangs can't tell I did anything and thats a plus to me.

As for the red panel. You're going to need to find a junk yard or something that is selling them as salvage. In my experience no one will have a matched set. Don't stay local either. Use Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market to search for what you want all over the country, call yards everywhere and get quotes with shipping. I called a few in my search and many were happy to take pics of the parts before I bought them so I could see if it was what I needed. Going this rough I would expect you to pay $250 a door. If you really want this look and money is no object go to your local ford dealer and get them to help you find the part number for that trim level. I would expect that path to cost more like $800 a door.
 
#17 ·
how well do the door panels match up to the other panels in the car. Are there any gaps any where. You say the panel itself is shorter then the 2005-2009 panel. Is there a space at the bottom or anything?
 
#18 ·
With the door closed there is no gap but when the door is open, as you can see in my pics, there is a few mm left exposed the old panel covered. Once you've got two screws in that you have to drill for it looks nice and snug but is still a few mm short. You could avoid this issue by trimming the opaque plastic bit on the inside of your door back, but I did not feel it was needed.

The sail panel behind the mirrors match up perfectly. No modification is needed, everything just fits. You can also reuse the ring around your lock pin, and the square plastic panel that goes behind the interior latch. These parts are identical between model years.

The texture of the panel matches perfectly. Its the same texture ford has used in several cars.

You'll need switch plates from the 2010+ years. the old switches and the plates will need modification to fit together, or you could use new switches and modify your wiring (in theory, I did not go this route)
 
#19 ·
It really looks great. Something I'll have to keep in mind when I get my mustang. I already would like to switch out the seat covers to the 2010+ leather seats. It really looks like it works with the existing interior.
 
#20 ·
While I really like the interior of the 2010+, I still really like the more retro styling of the 05-09. I still want those seat covers too though
 
#22 ·
I've wondered myself if a 2010 dash swap would be possible. I suppose it technically should be possible, but it may not be practical. when swapping the dash, you are potentially going to need to swap out the majority of the interior. You have the radio and controls, then the gauges as well. And who knows if the dash in the 2010+ will mate up correctly with the panels on the pillars or the center console. Could be more trouble then it is worth.
 
#23 ·
A full dash swap will be a huge problem, but I'd bet its possible. You would need to replace everything. radio, gauges, vent ducts, center console. everything.

The real nightmare there is the electrical. A lot of your cars brain is inside that dash, but you'll want to keep the original modules unless your some kind of genius ford tech and it almost a guarantee you'll have to make a custom wiring harness to blend the generation gaps.

then there is the cost. I image this would rank in at a few thousand for second hand parts, and 6 times that for ford dealer new parts.

In short, I would not recommend it.
 
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