We now resume our regular programming!

The blog has been left idle for a little while during the holidays, while I was attending to preparations and also enjoying some downtime. I hope everyone has been enjoying their holidays and (hopefully) some time off. Now that the big day is over I can get back to posting here.

First up is a little something for the Focus.

Just as I had recovered the arm rest recently to match the seats, I had to replace the e-brake boot as well. As I had mentioned, since I have the Sport package on my Focus I have seats with silver stitching – but that’s it. The steering wheel, e-brake boot, shift boot, and arm rest cover all had black stitching from the Factory. I decided early on that this had to be addressed, hence the new parts from RedlineGoods.

There was an issue however. While the arm rest cover had been added to their catalogue, there was still no option for an e-brake boot. I could have sent off an OEM piece to them to use as a template but there was another company whose products I was interested in trying out, and they were much closer. I got in touch with JPM Coachworks.

They were willing to help out so I sent off to them a brand-new OEM boot and trim panel to be used as a template. It may seem a bit excessive to buy a new part to almost immediately have it torn apart, but I wanted to keep my car intact in the meantime and with my employee discount the piece didn’t cost much at all.

Fast forward to December, and waiting for me one day was their version of the boot. Again I took the chance to change the material as well and went with Black Alcantara to match the shift boot. Since the armrest would see more wear I had opted for leather and it also matches the steering wheel that way. The boots however, were a chance to add some Alcantara to the interior.

JPM really goes above and beyond with quality and detail, not just in the pieces they make but even in the packaging.  I was very pleased with what I saw when opening the box.

I had them attach the boot to the plastic base since they had everything there, and that saved me some time when I went to install it in my car.

The last shot of the original boot in the car. You can see how the shift boot and arm rest match the seats now but the e-brake boot is the odd one out. No more.

The removal was very simple; the plastic surround would be popped free and the boot slid off the e-brake. This is one of those times that having a set of trim-removal tools really pays off. If you don’t have some, get them!

Removed. Time for new parts.

The new boot was slid on and the plastic trim clipped in place. Much better! I think everything works pretty well together despite being from three manufacturers (Ford, RedlineGoods, JPM) and while subtle it really updates the interior and makes it look and feel more upscale. It has taken about a year to get all three parts changed but it was well worth it in my opinion.

As you can see the steering wheel is the last item with black stitching. Something may have to be done about that, but looking at the prices for a JPM wheel I think I’ll wait for now.

Don’t think it’s not on the to-do list though.

-Bill