Headliner Replacement

[el1121]

I need help replacing my headliner. What type of glue/fabric should I look for?

[Tuckman25]

I replaced mine a few months ago. I used 3m spray adhesive and bought headlined fabric from an upholstery shop. The good news is it only took about 3 hours to replace. The bad news for me is I stretched the fabric too tight and it sags in the middle now. I'm conning to remove mine and take it to a professional shop and have them redo it.

[Heavus]

shag carpet

[Creepy Cruiser]

Originally Posted by Tuckman25

I replaced mine a few months ago. I used 3m spray adhesive and bought headlined fabric from an upholstery shop. The good news is it only took about 3 hours to replace. The bad news for me is I stretched the fabric too tight and it sags in the middle now. I'm conning to remove mine and take it to a professional shop and have them redo it.

Most likely it was the glue you used that released, and not the installation. If you use the right glue you should have no problem.

Originally Posted by el1121

I need help replacing my headliner. What type of glue/fabric should I look for?

You can get real headliner material at most regular fabric stores. There are great "how to" write ups on here for you also.

[ryanh2012]

I just redid mine about 2 weeks ago and it turned out great. I used 3M 90 spray adhesive that i got from menards and I bought 3 yards of Light Graphite headliner material from www.onlinefabricstore.net
I think i ended up using about 3 cans of adhesive and it took me maybe 4 to 5 hours mostly because i had trouble removing the board. All in all it cost me about 60 bucks which was way better than the 200 i was quoted. I'm not gonna lie it was a PIA but for me it was worth it.

Also use Xterra 04's guide it helped me a ton.
http://www.clubxterra.org/forums/showthread.php?t=31335

[njscott]

This is what I did. Holding up strong and looks professional!

Go to walmart and go to the fabric section. Find a fabric you like and buy 8' of it. I am pretty sure all the fabric comes in 6' wide it is just all folded in half. So one 8'x6' section will do. I chose a dark gray felt material. Cost me $13. (measure your headliner just to make sure 8'x6' will cover it.

Go to Autozone type of store and buy the headliner adhesive (could find this at walmart as well) I used 1 full can and was pretty generous with it so 1 can should do .


Remove the headliner. THere is a writeup on here somewhere I think but it really isn't that hard. Get a small socket 8 mm? and a philipshead. I had mine out in less then 10 minutes. Just unbolt/unscrew and take off everything that goes through the headliner. And it helps to take off the top moldings of the seatbelts and rear side panels.

Rip of your old headliner, then use a wire bristle brush to scrape off all the old crappy glue/padding. I went at it back and forth in a saw motion really fast and had all of the old padding/glue off before I could even finish a beer.

Unfold your new fabric and make sure it fits on top of your headliner. Now with it on your headliner, fold half of it over and start from the middle. Spray the glue in like 1'x4' sections and just smooth the fabric right onto it. Do that half from the middle out, then fold the other half over and start at the middle and work your way out again. Dont worry about it being 'tight' just make sure it is wrinkle free.

Let it dry for a few hours. I let mine go over night.

Use scissors to cut off the extra fabric. And a razor blade to cut X slits in all the holes that need to be there.

Throw that sucker back on and your done.

[ResoL101]

Went to a local upholstery shop and the guy wanted $500 to replace my fallen headliner. SO I checked around and another guy wanted $450. So I said bunk that...and did it myself for under $100. Was really tired of the flat grey color and wanted to jazz it up a few notches...so I did.

Disco Tiger.

Things I learned from doing it myself:

* It's not all that complicated to do. Just take your time and be careful.
* I went kinda wild with my new fabric. My GF calls it Disco Tiger. (see image)

* Use Wellwoods "Original" yellow contact cement on the side facing the passenger compartment. Worked from the middle out. Used a dough roller to smooth it out.

* On the other side of the liner I found out the Wellwoods was soaking into the liner (due to the corrugated/waffle texture of that side of it) and not creating a decent bond. So I used 3m's "98" spray contact cement and got the desired results from it. Sprayed and pressed the fabric around the edges for a decent cover.

* I used tiny colored zip ties poked through the fabric ( zip head facing the compartment area) to mark all the attachment holes and handle areas.

* Only minor tough point was getting it back in, so I called my bro and he came over and we got it installed in less than 20 minutes.

*Small pair of manicuring scissors and a small cut here and there to open the fabric...the hardware and handles went in very easily.

All in all it wasn't too difficult and I enjoyed doing it by myself. Plus I saved $400 in the process.

Hope this helps someone else.

v/r
ResoL101


here's the end results. http://imgur.com/a/11Lzx

[dymond]

Oh snap, I think Im going with 3m carbon-like fiber for my liner! how sweet would that be?! Im sure if i clear the adhesive properly it should stick. What say any of you?

[intender]

Its sad that people want almost as much to stick a $20 piece of fabric on your roof as others are charging for Bumpers that have $200 worth of steel and more time involved in building them.

Other than a few holes I have punched in my headliner from trying to cram stuff from my old job in the truck my headliner still looks like new. I wonder what causes so many headliners to fall. Every gm vehicle I have ever seen over 10 years old has a fallen headliner.

[Creepy Cruiser]

It's actually the foam in between the material and the board that deteriorates and falls apart. Then the two separate, and it falls down.