How do you reattach part of a headliner board?

Answer 1

Here are 4 basic suggestions, some more detailed or difficult than others. 1. Use Permatex "Heavey Duty Headliner & Carpet Adhesive." I found it in a 16.75 oz spray can at an auto parts store for about 8 dollars. You can also buy it on Amazon, for about 11 dollars. (Higher price on Amazon surprised me.) 2. Or: This method might sound silly, but it works if the fabric is sagging in the middle and not on the edges. In my car, I basically just tacked it up with some finesse. Buy some 'decorative nails' at a fabric store - they are about 1/2 inch long (actually 7/16"), with a wide,round head (about 1/3 inch head) - the head is not completely flat, sort of shaped like a plate. Then buy a "Permatex Fabric Repair Kit" - I think I bought this at an Auto parts store, but I can't remember. The fabric repair kit allows you to color mix tiny fabric particles to achieve any color you desire. If you work at it long enough, you can definitely match your interior (these are also great for repairing cigarette burns). Take the 'air dry adhesive' that comes with the kit, and spread it all over the head of the decorative nails. Then spread the color-matched fabric particles on the glue on the nail head. What you end up with is a little tack with a head that matches your headliner. Make a bunch of these, and then start tacking them into the headliner, sticking them right into the foam. You can get away with just using a few (probably 6-10) stuch at critical pressure points (use finger to find these points). When completed, there is no sag, and the fabric color-matched nail heads almost (and I repeat almost) look like they were meant to be there. They certainly don't stand out if the fabric particles were properly color matched. It might look stupid if you just start sticking them up there randomly - instead, make it symmetrical, and take your time finding the right points to stick them. Several months after doing this, none of the nails have come out, and the heads of the nails still have the fabric on them. Basically, this method is dirt cheap, and looks a lot better than it sounds like it would, so I thought I would share it. This costs less than $15, took about 1 hour, and actually looks good. 3. Or: For a complete headliner fabric do-over, go and buy the new headliner material either from an upolstery shop, or some fabric stores carry it. Be sure to take in some of your old headliner material to get as close a match as you can. This material is relatively inexpensive, the adhesive is not. I use the Permatex spray adheasive mentioned above or 3M's Spray Adhesive #08090. Buy three cans. Once you have these things go on and take your headliner shell out of the car. You've got to take out trim,sunvisors and dome lights to get at it. You will probably think the shell was the first thing on the assembly line and the car was built around it but it will come out. Once out of the car, lay it down and remove all the old cloth and foam. The old foam always seems to be a pain to get off the shell but keep at it, it's got to go. A stiff brush and a shop vac pay for themselves now. Do not tear up your shell. I don't know what it's made of but it's not too awfully strong. If I find a tear, say where the sunvisors fit through, I use Duct Tape (on the backside of the shell) to hold it together. After your shell is prepped up roll your new material over it to double check that you have plenty, with some extra, all the way around. Now, it's a good idea, I think, that while you're gluing wear old clothes, a long sleeved shirt and a comfort (dust) mask. The adhesive sprays out stringy like and it would no doubt be a good thing to not to breathe in any of it. It smells bad too. Roll up your new material foam side out. Starting at the front edge, spray across the shell and the foam a band of adhesive about six inches wide. Roll out the material (that with adhesive on only) and press/smooth it on the shell. Spray another six inch band on the shell and foam unroll and press/smooth. Keep on until you're done. While you are pressing and smoothing use only enough pressure to do it. Don't MASH the cloth into the adhesive. Let the adhesive dry at least over night before installation. All you do now is trim off the excess and put it back up. It does take some time to do it, but it's not difficult. The odor of the adhesive will go away in a month or so. 4. Or: I've done this twice, with stellar results both times, and for only about $30 for everything. What you need to do is go into a decent fabric store (like a Jo-Ann or Northwest, or Hancock or something) and ask for headliner material. It's fabric bonded to foam in a roll, available in most interior colors (black, grey, tan, blue, red...folks w/ green are kinda on their own). Get enough to cover the roof of your car. Second, glue, and this is important, HAS to be 3M brand Foam Adhesive. This stuff is amazing. Comes out of the can very thick. Nothing else works as good as the 3M stuff, which is why a can costs $15. We tried a different brand and it fell down in a week. Both 3M jobs are still as good as when I did 'em, and the redo in the Crown Victoria is going on two, almost three years. Next, remove all the interior pieces that hold the headliner in place. There should be a cardboard or fiberglass backing to it. Wrestle that out of the car (4-doors are a real pain here...slight bending may be required...) and strip off the old fabric, foam, and adhesive. This gets messy. Real messy. I recommend doing this outside, rubbing with a rag towel. Once you've got it as clean and flat as possible, match the material to the headliner, then fold it over in the middle, spray both cardboard and foam, adhere the first half of the headliner, then repeat w/ the other side. Now, take a scissors or X-Acto knife and trim the headliner to fit the backing, leaving holes for visors, dome light, etc. Get it back into the car, reinstall the plastic, and you're set. Takes a few hours, depending on how much plastic you've got to remove in the car. That's all I know.