12-14-2009, 02:38 PM
I've fixed a couple of headliners, so I'll chime in.
Short story - take out the headliner yourself take it to an upholstery shop and have them redo it, then reinstall it yourself. Save you a lot of labor cost but still get a pro quality result. Be sure your hands are clean for the reinstall :-).
DIY is doable, but the surface prep is really, really important. When you tear off the old headliner, you are left with a surface of fuzzy rotten foam that laughs at glue. In the 325 that I got (and should never had sold), Alison and I redid the headliner. I got the material online somewhere, $20-$30 I think, and the 3M spray glue. It was a mess and honestly, it never quite stuck correctly. The auto upholstery shops have glue in auto-spray-type cans, as in, hooked to a compressor, that they can really lay on. The 3M stuff isn't cheap either, over $10 a can if I remember, and I used at least two cans to get it on thick enough.
You can do it yourself -> Use a lot of spay and a lot of material overlap. Or, you can do the removal and install yourself, and save the time and mess of the glue. The auto shops will really make it follow all the little contours too, and it will look just like new.
G/L!
Peter
Short story - take out the headliner yourself take it to an upholstery shop and have them redo it, then reinstall it yourself. Save you a lot of labor cost but still get a pro quality result. Be sure your hands are clean for the reinstall :-).
DIY is doable, but the surface prep is really, really important. When you tear off the old headliner, you are left with a surface of fuzzy rotten foam that laughs at glue. In the 325 that I got (and should never had sold), Alison and I redid the headliner. I got the material online somewhere, $20-$30 I think, and the 3M spray glue. It was a mess and honestly, it never quite stuck correctly. The auto upholstery shops have glue in auto-spray-type cans, as in, hooked to a compressor, that they can really lay on. The 3M stuff isn't cheap either, over $10 a can if I remember, and I used at least two cans to get it on thick enough.
You can do it yourself -> Use a lot of spay and a lot of material overlap. Or, you can do the removal and install yourself, and save the time and mess of the glue. The auto shops will really make it follow all the little contours too, and it will look just like new.
G/L!
Peter
http://www.85xr.com
1985 Merkur XR4Ti Track Car
2013 Ford F-150 FX4 Ecoboost
E46 BMW 330Ci Sport 5spd
1973 Honda CL125S
1985 Honda CX500
2013 Arctic Cat 700 ATV
2017 Onewheel +
1985 Merkur XR4Ti Track Car
2013 Ford F-150 FX4 Ecoboost
E46 BMW 330Ci Sport 5spd
1973 Honda CL125S
1985 Honda CX500
2013 Arctic Cat 700 ATV
2017 Onewheel +