Q: What forms of payment do
you accept?
A: I accept Paypal, check, or money order. I do not accept credit cards at this time.
Q: Why don’t you accept
credit cards?
A: I don’t deal in nearly enough volume for it to be feasible to offer this service.
Q: Who are you?
A: I’m Jim Irace. I’ve been on all of the f-body message boards as Jim85IROC for many years. In fact, I was on thirdgen.org since before it was called that. I also am the co-owner of www.iroczone.com.
Q: Why do you sell these
items?
A: I do it mainly for the fun of it, but I also use the profits to fund my own car projects.
Q: Why should I buy from you?
A: I own two thirdgens myself, so I’m very familiar with them. I have installed most of the products I sell, and in many cases I’ve written tech articles that can be found on www.iroczone.com (and eventually linked from the product pages).
Q: I also have another
vehicle. Do you offer products for that
vehicle?
A: Probably. Most of the products I sell are available for a lot of other vehicles. I can get carpet for almost anything. Headliners, door panels and seat covers are available for a lot of the more popular vehicles (G-body cars, Fox body Mustangs, etc).
Q: How does your carpet
compare to my stock carpet?
A: It’s not 100% identical. The stock carpet is nappy and wavey. My carpet is thicker and more plush. It has a much higher quality appearance. The premium carpet is even thicker and more plush. The colors are not exactly the same, but there enough to choose from that you should be able to find one that’s very close. Although they may not tell you, nobody else’s colors are a 100% perfect match either, especially once their carpet starts to fade. There are only so many color options that an aftermarket carpet manufacturer can provide compared to the thousands of original colors used in all makes & models over the years.
Q: How does your carpet
compare to everybody elses?
A: Almost all retailers sell ACC carpet. I assume they all sell ACC because when they sell it in high quantities, they can buy it cheaper. I used to sell ACC (I can still get it for you if that’s what you really want), but was not happy with the quality. Most of their colors fade, some of them in just a matter of months. I have it in my GTA and it faded. When I decided to search for carpet for my IROC, I wanted something better. The carpet that I sell is more fade resistant than ACC, and is also a thicker, more plush looking material. The drawback to my carpet is that I have less color choices than ACC offers.
Q: How do I know what color
to buy?
A: I can send you a couple free samples so you can decide for yourself. I have some colors that are not listed on my website, so I will usually discuss what type of color you want and send you a few samples that I think are close to what you want.
Q: You don’t have the exact
same color as my stock carpet. What
should I do?
A: Since GM didn’t even get all of their interior materials to match, chances are, your seats don’t match your door panels which don’t match your carpet. Having a slightly different carpet color won’t matter as long as you replace all of the carpet. Pick the color that best compliments your other interior colors.
Q: What’s the difference
between your standard and premium carpet?
A: My standard carpet has a thread count of 800 threads per inch, and is approximately ¼” in height. The premium carpet has 40% more threads (1,000 per inch) and is approximately 3/8” in height. The added density of the premium carpet helps it look more consistent over the contours of the floor, and gives it an overall more luxurious appearance. However, there are less colors to choose from in the premium line. The colors in the premium line are also different than those in the standard line, even though sometimes their name is the same. If you like a color in one line, don’t assume it’s the same in the other line! Make sure you get both samples if you’re not sure.
Q: How hard is it to install
the carpet?
A: It’s easy if you can work a screwdriver, a wrench and a razor blade. I’ll have a tech article soon, but essentially you need to remove your seats, center console, and all panels around the perimeter of the carpet. Then you remove the old carpet, and place it right over the new carpet to get a ROUGH idea of where the shifter hole should go. Just cut a small slit in the carpet that you can slide the shifter hole through. Once the carpet is in the car, you can cut it bigger to make it fit right. Once you have the carpet positioned properly, slice an ‘X’ over the front seat bolt studs and poke them through the hole. For the back seat bolts, re-install the bolts before putting the carpet in, then you can slice an ‘X’ the same way you did for the front studs. If necessary, trim some of the extra away from the door opening area. Everything else just reinstalls.
Q: What does the heel pad
look like on your carpet?
A: It depends on what you order. You can have the stock style heel pads (dead pedal, floor, & trans tunnel) or you can have just a single heel pad on the floor for a more custom appearance when using floor mats. If you don’t specify, I’ll usually default with the stock heal pads on the standard carpet, and the single heel pad on the premium carpet, but it’s always best to tell me which you’d prefer.
Q: What is the mass backing?
A: The mass backing is a rubberized backing that is applied to the back side of the carpet to provide extra sound deadening and heat protection. Overall its effect is minimal and most buyers choose not to use it.
Q: What is Jute padding?
A: Jute padding is a gray-ish fiber that comes on the
back of the carpet to provide padding, sound isolation and head isolation. This comes on all of my carpets.
Q: What are the floor mats like?
A: The floor mats are made from the exact same materials as the carpet, so they are a 100% perfect match in color and texture. They are available with the stock-style vinyl binding, or a serged binding for a more luxurious appearance. The serged binding is the default style, so if you would prefer the stock-style vinyl, you need to say so.
Q: What shape are the floor
mats?
A: The shape is the same as the OEM mats. Previously the shape of the mats was quite a bit different, which I didn’t realize until I bought a set for myself. If any of my previous customers are unhappy with the shape of their mats, please contact me.
Q: What is the return policy
for the carpet and/or floor mats?
A: Since the carpet and mats are custom made to order, they are not returnable. If something is wrong with it, you can return it within 90 days, so make sure you open it up when you get it and take a look, even if you don’t intend to install it for a while. I can take it back if there is a defect in the product or you got a different color than you ordered, but I can’t take it back if you just don’t like the color, so make sure you get some samples from me before ordering if you have any doubts at all!
Q: Are your door panels exact reproductions?
A: No. The factory materials are not available. These door panels are made with materials that are as close to factory as possible, but they are different. These are the same materials that are available on the seat covers, so replacing both will help maintain consistency. The door panels are made out of fabric covered ABS plastic instead of the factory cardboard. This means they won’t warp if you get them wet.
Q: I need door panels without
holes for the arm rest or window crank or…
A: That’s fine. My door panels come as one solid piece. It’s up to you to cut out the appropriate holes, but they ARE marked on the back so that you’ll know where to cut.
Q: Do your door panels come
with the black plastic top rail?
A: No, they don’t, but that is available separately. Scroll to the bottom of my door panel page for that piece.
Q: How do you install the
door panels?
A: Your stock door panels are held on to the door with a lot of push-in connectors all the way around the perimeter. Once you get the door handle trim and arm rest off, you need to carefully pry the panel away from the door with a trim panel removal tool, or a slotted screwdriver wrapped in tape (to protect your paint). Pry as close to the snaps as you can. Once all of them are removed, with the window down, pus the plastic top rail toward the window while pulling up. Once the door panel is off you’ll see how to separate the top rail from the old door panel. Once the new ones are assembled and the proper holes are cut, you simply just slide the top rail in, then re-attach all of the push-in connectors, and reinstall the door handle trim and arm rest.
Q: What is the return policy
on your door panels?
A: I have a 90 day return policy for defects in craftsmanship, or if you didn’t get what you ordered. I can not take it back if you decide that you don’t like the color or the fabric, so if there’s any question, ask it before you order!
Headliner, sail panels & sun visors
Q: Are your headliners the
same as my stock headliner?
A: No. These headliners are made out of ABS plastic instead of that pressed fiberglass material. The shape of the hardtop headliners is a bit different, in that instead of being totally flat, they are shaped to conform more closely to the roof panel. This will give a bit more headroom in hardtop cars. These headliners also do not have the plastic clips up near the windshield like the stock headliners. The material over the ABS is almost identical to the stock material, and the colors should be very close if not exact for most colors.
Q: How well do these
headliners fit? I’ve heard conflicting
comments.
A: Overall these headliners don’t fit as well as a stock headliner, but are a major improvement over a sagging, worn out headliner, especially if the fiberglass backing on your stock headliner has deteriorated. If you have a show car, you may want to pay to have your stock headliner professionally recovered, if there’s enough of the backing left to work with. The overall fit is not bad if you take your time to get the best fit while installing it.
Q: This headliner is sagging
near my windshield.
A: Yes, unfortunately they do tend to do that, especially the t-top headliners. When installing your headliner, it’s best to use Velcro adhesive strips to help keep it up. On cars with an overhead console, this won’t be necessary.
Q: I’ve heard that you have
to install the dome light backwards. Is
this true?
A: I’m not sure. I installed the headliner into a car with an overhead console, and the dome light cutout was EXACTLY the same as the dome light cutout in my factory headliner, but it’s possible that the cars without the overhead console had a different cutout for the dome light. Since the headliner comes with the fabric uncut (only the ABS plastic is cut), you can cut only the amount of material that’s necessary, so that even with the dome light positioned correctly, there won’t be a gap showing.
Q: How do I install the
headliner?
A: I wrote a tech article that shows the installation of a t-top headliner. The installation of a hard top headliner is basically the exact same thing. If you don’t have an overhead console, then you may need to use the Velcro mod mentioned above to help keep the windshield area up. Here’s the article: http://www.iroczone.com/technical/headliner/
Q: How well do the sail
panels fit?
A: They don’t fit as well as the stock panels. They attach with Velcro instead of the tabs that fit into the slots on the body. Their shape is also a bit too pointy at the rear, and you can see the speaker sound cutout through the material. These are a nice upgrade if your stock sail panels are destroyed, but if your stock ones are still in good shape (minus the fabric), then you may want to try recovering them. If you are buying the headliner kit (headliner, sun visors and sail panels) you can get the headliner, sun visors and 1 yard of bulk material for the same price as the regular kit. My headliner installation tech article shows pictures and shows you how to recover the sail panels: http://www.iroczone.com/technical/headliner
Q: Do the sun visors come
with the passenger mirror?
A: No.
Q: Are the hard top and t-top
headliners the same?
A: No. T-top headliners are curved to conform to the headliner shape, and the hard top visors are straight for the same reason. Make sure you order the right ones!
Q: What is the return policy
on your headliner, sail panels and/or visors?
A: I have a 90 day return policy for defects in craftsmanship, or if you didn’t get what you ordered. I can not take it back if you decide that you don’t like the color or the fabric, so if there’s any question, ask it before you order!
Q: Are these seat covers like
the ones I can buy in Wal Mart?
A: NO! These seat covers don’t go over your existing seats like the cheap stuff in Wal Mart. These actually replace the existing fabric that’s on your seats.
Q: Are these seat covers the
same as the factory covers?
A: No. The factory materials are no longer available. These are made with similar appearing materials, but they are not the same. The material on these seat covers is more durable and more comfortable than the factory material. The stitching and styling of the seat covers is the same as your factory seats. The material is the only difference.
Q: Do these come with the
tools I need to install them?
A: Yes. They come with hog rings and the hog ring pliers, along with step-by-step instructions.
Q: How do I install these?
A: The seat covers come with step by step instructions for you to follow. I also hope to have a tech article in the future that shows the entire procedure.
Q: What is the return policy
on your seat covers?
A: I have a 90 day return policy for defects in craftsmanship, or if you didn’t get what you ordered. I can not take it back if you decide that you don’t like the color or the fabric, so if there’s any question, ask it before you order!
Q: Do these seats bolt directly in place of the
factory seats?
A: No. These seats come with universal sliders. It’s up to you to adapt your factory sliders to work with these seats or to modify the universal sliders to work. Most of my customers build adapters that bolt to the bottom of the seats, then bolt to the factory sliders.
Q: Do
these seats recline?
A: Yes.
Q: Do
these seats fold forward?
A: Yes, but not like your stock seats. You need to turn the adjustment knob to bring the seatback forward.
Q: Are
these seats comfortable?
A: Yes, for most people. If you’re a large guy, you may find the lower seat section to be a bit snug around your hips. These seats feel very similar to early C4 Corvette seats.
Q: Will
these seats match my back seats?
A: Not really. They aren’t made from the same fabric that GM used.
Q: When I
got my seats, the plastic covers over the hinges were broken. What do I do?
A: Just let me know. Unfortunately, the packaging leaves these covers a bit vulnerable, so it’s not too uncommon for them to break during shipping. Just let me know and I’ll get a new set of covers right out.
Q: Are
there any colors available other than what’s shown on your site?
A: Not right now. I’ve got my fingers crossed that the manufacturer will start offering gray and tan, but they don’t at this time.
Q: What is the return policy
on your seats?
A: I have a 90 day return policy for defects in craftsmanship, or if you didn’t get what you ordered. I can not take it back if you decide that you don’t like the color or the fabric, so if there’s any question, ask it before you order!
Q: Do you sell stock
IROC/GTA/Whatever wheels?
A: No. I offer a refinishing service. I need you to send me your stock wheels, and I will have them professionally refurbished to like-new condition, and will then ship them back to you. This service is not real cheap (about $225 per wheel, plus all shipping costs) but is about half the price of buying a set of brand new OEM wheels, if you can find them at all.
Q: What
wheels do you sell?
A: I sell the complete lines from American Racing, Boyd Coddington, MHT, Foose, Oasis and Boze. I do not stock any wheels. All of them are ordered from the manufacturer when you place your order.
Q: What backspacing
& offset do I need?
A: On an 8” wide wheel, you need 0 offset, which translates to 4” of backspacing. If you want any other width, you need to determine what backspacing and offset you need before you order. I can not take returns on wheels once the tires are mounted or if there are ANY marks on them at all, so be 100% sure of your backspacing on custom sizes.
Q: What
is your return policy on wheels?
A: I can exchange them if there is a manufacturing defect. Some of my wheels can be returned as long as tires were not mounted and they are in 100% new unused, unscratched, unbreathed-on condition. Any wheels that are custom made are non-returnable.