I don't think there is anything needed but a very simple explanation on this car.    Note I have NOTHING to do with ownership or sale of this car - just commenting.

The "red engine":  Look carefully and what do you see that is red?   Intake manif, heads and valve covers.   Almost certainly the car had a valve job and whoever did it hot tanked those parts and had the decency to put some paint back on them and he had red on the shelf.  There wouldn' have been any silver left after tanking.  He didn't know.

The dash pad:  Its a padded dash that was in the CA sun and heat.  The foam went bad and the vinyl shrunk and there you have the totally classic result of wrinkled vinyl.  Same old same old.

The paint and a few rust chips showing.  So the car got driven 44K OR 144K it really makes not a lot of difference in CA.  What you see is what you get fifty years later.   I STILL see a darn original car and I'd much rather be looking at THAT than something with a coat of recent paint hiding those years and miles.

Upholstery:  Absolutely whether the mileage is 44K or 144K the car is STILL fifty years old and you BET the upholstery cloth is gone by now.  Part of the reason is the foam underneath got hard and went away a decades ago in the CA sun and heat.   Once the foam died the cloth got stretched and pulled to shreds on the front seat lower.

You guys look at far too many restored cars.  This looks like a rare SURVIVOR to me and an IDEAL candidate for restoration.   The seller lacks knowledge of what to say about this car;  about as lacking as the buyers are that are considering it.    This is the type of car y'all should be seeking out and paying good money to get instead of fixing someone else's screwed over restoration of a rust bucket.