Well, I got a lot done today. I replaced the cowl seal with a new one. Mine was original and was falling apart on the exposed areas. This is what was letting the water in. It wasn't going behind the instrument panel though. It was going over the panel and between the plastic and soaking everything. The panel is in no danger of rusting as I sprayed it with several coats of hammerite. I did find getting everything aligned again was a PITA. Since I have a hardtop I had to readjust that as well as the doors again since the pitch of the windshield changed a bit. I chewed up a torx on the door but I was still able to adjust it without having to touch that hinge. The doors are aligned again.
I also got my adjustable thermostat that I ordered a while back. It's a $29 from Flex-a-lite. It's supposed to have a range of 180-240*. I just cranked the rheostat to on side and then started the engine. Turns out I chose the right direction as the fan turned on at around 210 or 12 o'clock on the gauge. I put the probe right under the inlet and didn't have to screw up any fins and it fit at the very top.
So hopefully, when the next rain comes, I'll be dry.