So, I've been getting more and more depressed about my GP purchase (2002 GT) lately. Now that I've spent a lot of time reading up on my car and seeing literally hundreds of these on the road... I can't help but feel I ended up with a gimp of a car.
Every damned car I see looks sweet compared to mine. Hell, I even saw four of them parked at a Tim Hortons in Newcastle and they looked like some of the nicest ones I've seen, even on these forums. They're everywhere here... and I have been comparing some things (obviously not the SD hoods and other mods, but standard stuff).

Yes, I know my car needs to be washed... it's on my agenda for today.

First off is the antenna that I posted about a few weeks ago... I haven't seen another GP on the road YET that has one. Every car I've seen has the built in one in the windshield (as does mine I think, but I can't figure out where to hook it back up, nor am I ready to deal with the damned hole that'll be left in my quarter panel).



Then there is my steering wheel. Maybe I'm wrong, but I didn't think GT's came with a steering wheel of this type:



This has got to be the most austere steering wheel I've ever seen. Every other one I've looked into has had a more squarish airbag area, different spoke pattern and controls on the wheel (I thought audio controls were standard in GT's).

Anyway... this leads to my drivers seat:



Again, I may be wrong, but I thought that power seat adjustments were standard equipment on GT's of this year? I can see a plug underneath just hanging around - I assume for the power seat connection.
Again, every other GT I've seen the inside of has had these controls...

This got me thinking that maybe my car had been in an accident and had the front seats and steering wheel replaced? I haven't purchased a report on it up to this point (and besides, what would be the point now that I have it? Except to piss me off of course )
This train of thought was spurred on by my examining the passenger side airbag cover... It's not what I'd say is exactly fitting. The cover is a bit warped at the edges and the back area (towards the windshield) is raised enough for me to be able to fit my finger tips into.
I've looked specifically at this point on other GT's I've come across and they look as tight as possible.
When I was getting my recalled retainer fixed yesterday there were three others waiting to be picked up and I checked all of these things.





And last but not least...
I was going over my car checking out the paint condition, getting ready to fix some chips and such. I notice that my left rear quarter panel has been repainted. It doesn't look like very high up (as in still below the gas cover). It looks like there was some rust at the top of the wheel well that was bondo'd or something.
There is a lot of overspray on my drivers door and even on the roof that needs to come off. It's not the kind of thing you notice until you're about ready to claybar the surface.
There is also a great line inside the drivers side, rear door frame, next to the quarter panel latch. It goes down the entire thing and the paint ridge is large enough to feel (poor masking job). There are also some clear coat drips near the seams here and there. I suspect a Maaco job - which reinforces the whole accident thing too...

So, when I'm looking at my paint, I notice my front bumper, passenger side, is all spiderwebbed. There is no paint chipping, but I'm not sure I can fix it with a polisher or if it needs to be totally repainted.
Perhaps someone with greater painting knowledge would care to chime in...




So... yeah... that's my rant for today.
I know with a bunch of money and a hella lot more TLC I can get this thing back up and in non-embarassing condition.
Can someone please put my fears to rest regarding the seat and steering wheel at least? If they were at least options when the car was new, it would put me at ease about the rear left repaint... hoping it was only a bit of rust.

Cheers All,
Chris