As some of you may already know, I owned an xB at one point in time, but ended up selling it, then getting a tC about 7 or so months ago.. Well, after being disappointed with the tC aftermarket scene and crappy gas milegage I seem to be getting, I have decided to go back to the xB. (No posts about 'don't trade down' and stuff like that please).. I'm about to sell an old custom astro van that I drove in high school on eBay, also sold a guitar, amp and various other gear to fund this new project. I already have the xB's future A/V system ordered and on it's way ;) . So here are some questions that will help me shop for items:

Q#1: I plan on undertaking a huge transformation when it comes to the interior.. Hand carved, stained and sealed wooden interior pieces.. Including a half suede or leather covered, half wooden finish center console.. Problem here being the e-brake... I know that it can be re-located.. but what all will it take to do this? I'm not totally sure on where I want it to be located, but will I need to lengthen/shorten the cable somehow? Any help on this subject would be greatly appreciated.. If this cannot be re-located without an exceptional amount of work, I'll have to build in a panel that opens for access to the e-brake.(pain in the ****)

Q#2: How much should I expect to pay to have a full bodykit (fab more than likely) painted TCM? (or another metallic color).. Just an estimate, an average price, whatever.. I know every shop is different, but I'm just curious what others paid.

Thanks in advance!

 

If you bagged your rig, you could go hydrolic piston e-brake. Then all you'd have exposed is a button on your dash.

If you take that cover off, you'll see there's all the room in the world down there for mounting something like this. A short 3 inch HD piston doesn't take up that much room along with a small regulator to adjust the amount of pressure needed to adequatley set the break. You'd probably end up taking up less space down there then the current manual brake.

And since you are custom fab'n an interior you could close off the e-brake area with a friggin usable cup holder

singleshot

 

I'm dying to throw on some bags, but with this being my daily driver, I just can't bring myself to get them.. I'm completely in-experienced on air suspension and hear that it's constant maintenance. I hear crap freezes up in winter.. etc etc..

Since I assume that I'll need to bag my ride, or add a compressor and tank just for the piston brake, it doesn't look like an option for me .. Thank you much for the suggestion though..

And yes, useable cupholders will be a feature of the custom console ;) lol