OK it looks like the vinal will come off of the trans tunnel no problem, what's the modern day replacement for the horsehair padding which I want to eleminate totally from the car.

Anyone have any suggestions or leads?

JC Whitney sells what you are looking for.

CLICK HERE

Wouldnt you rather replace the jute with something that doesnt absorb water/moisture. As far as I see that is what a lot of the z's floorpan rust is from, horsehair staying wet for long periods of time. You could use a closed cell foam (XLPE or EVA), which will not absorb or let any water pass thru it. Its not as easy to use as the material or jute but it is lighter and a similar price to the jute (in Oz anyway).

But lets hope well keep the moisture out of the car in the first place.

FWIW

260Zed

I'm doing some wholesale interior work and was looking for something to replace the jute in my Z. We searched the fabric stores, and some furniture upholstery shops and the closest thing we got was a %100 cotton and rubber fabric. It was similar to the backing of vinyl. I really liked the properties, but it was too thin (and too expensive to put on multiple layers and get it to the proper thickness).

So today, we went to a place that does headliners and interiors and brought a small square of jute. The guy who walked in from their shop looked at it and said "the jute we have doesn't look like that". He did refer to the new material as jute though, so it must be an industry term. It was the same thickness and mostly synthetic (recycled materials). He said it's what car manufactures use. Since it's mostly synthetic, it won't absorb much moisture. I also bought some really thin black vinyl that goes on the metal covers that go over the thresholds of the doors. Looked OEM and I have way too much for my current application. You might find the stuff at auto body repair shops, since some do interiors as well. In fact, this place was right next to an auto body repair shop.

The jute cost $5.50US for a yard that was 46 inches across and the vinyl was $12.00US per yard (only one yard necessary).