Replacing headliner with vinyl...
Replacing headliner with vinyl... Anyone have some pictures of a vinyl headliner? Mine is sagging and I want to replace it with some vinyl. I might also wrap some interior pieces as well later on down the road.
Depends on what kind of vinyl. I rewrapped my T-top headliner with a thick cotton and worked out great. I ended up with some free black vinyl and I was going to cover my fwd dash pad and didn't work well. It didn't want to stick to the plastic panel at all. As long as its got some stretch to it and will adhere to the foam, you shouldn't have any worries. If all works out well, your looking at about 2-3 hours total and back in your car. Good luck!
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 24,241
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From: Turnin' Wrenches Infractions: 005
an interior guy once told me when i inquired about the same thing.....vinyl is heavier then headliner foam...that presents problems getting it to stick up with just glue. i personally never tried it but i always remembered his advise.
you will have to find the lightest vinyl avaliable, it is do-able but you will not be able to use standard adhesive spray that comes in aerosol cans (not supposed to anyway). You will have to get a spray gun and use a product made by 3m it is made to adhure vinyl/landau tops. Good luck with the project if you decide to go ahead with it.
I was planning on taking off the old material, yes. I'll have to find some of that high strength bonding stuff....I've seen it in other threads, I think it's blue?
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I've had bad experiences with spray adhesive on some things, I've actually starting using something different on parts like this and having good results.
Buy 1 minute epoxy, its like $1.30 or something for a tube, and once mixed you have about 1-2 minutes before it sets, and it'll never let go. Its spreads fairly far too.
In the end it actually doesn't cost any more than a can of 3M spray adhesive, which is about $10 or so.
The epoxy adheres much better to the fwd dash pad than the spray adhesive, I've been there.
-Rick
Buy 1 minute epoxy, its like $1.30 or something for a tube, and once mixed you have about 1-2 minutes before it sets, and it'll never let go. Its spreads fairly far too.
In the end it actually doesn't cost any more than a can of 3M spray adhesive, which is about $10 or so.
The epoxy adheres much better to the fwd dash pad than the spray adhesive, I've been there.
-Rick
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ALSO... I'm still doing research to figure it which or what it is...
I covered my dash pad with vinyle awhile back, and everyday this nasty oily haze appears on my windsheild, I clean it off, it comes back, seems to happen worse if it sits in the sun...
I think the spray adhesive is breaking down in the heat and releasing gases. Either that or the vinyle is... but its nasty which ever it is...
-Rick
I covered my dash pad with vinyle awhile back, and everyday this nasty oily haze appears on my windsheild, I clean it off, it comes back, seems to happen worse if it sits in the sun...
I think the spray adhesive is breaking down in the heat and releasing gases. Either that or the vinyle is... but its nasty which ever it is...
-Rick
spray adhesive that you get in cans is pretty much worthless for stuff like this. Trust me, you need 3M landau & trim adhesive and a spray gun, coat both the headliner and the vinyl wait a few minutes and stick em together. Weldwood also makes a similar adhesive.
On The Tree
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 111
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From: Hampton, VA
this thread might help out with the dash question.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/showthrea...light=interior
vikingramair vinyl wrapped pretty much his entire interior. only thing he didn't do was the headliner, though i imagine the principles would be the same.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/showthrea...light=interior
vikingramair vinyl wrapped pretty much his entire interior. only thing he didn't do was the headliner, though i imagine the principles would be the same.
this thread might help out with the dash question.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/showthrea...light=interior
vikingramair vinyl wrapped pretty much his entire interior. only thing he didn't do was the headliner, though i imagine the principles would be the same.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/showthrea...light=interior
vikingramair vinyl wrapped pretty much his entire interior. only thing he didn't do was the headliner, though i imagine the principles would be the same.
Having tried to do the headliner in cloth on my t-roof car, if the vinyl you choose doesn't stretch, it will be difficult, if not impossible to do, because it will need a little "give" to neatly go around the bends. On a hardtop car, it may work because it looks like the headliner is basically flat. Also, the typical headliner glue found in auto parts stores barely held the cloth on, so I assume you'll need something better.
I have done this myself. And I do not recommend it.
The biggest problem is, I don't think they make a vinyl thin enough to comfortably stretch, which means you have to cut all the angles for the t-tops, which causes tears after a while. The other problem like other people mentioned was the glue. I ended up having to use staples to hold it on better. Then once you get it to actually stay on, after a while (especially in the heat) the vinyl is so heavy it weighs the cardboard down and the whole thing sags.
I guess all in all... The biggest advice I can give you is:
1. Remove the old fabric
2. Find an extremely sticky adhesive
3. Use the most flexible vinyl you can find
4. Make sure that you do not make any bends in the carboard (just creates spots it wants to sag)
I will say tho that it does look extremely good, IF you do it right. I wish I had pictures of the one I did. My interior was blue and black with a white headliner.
Oh and when I was buying the fabric, I went to a fabric store and they actually carried headliner material. It was the grey cloth with foam already on it
The biggest problem is, I don't think they make a vinyl thin enough to comfortably stretch, which means you have to cut all the angles for the t-tops, which causes tears after a while. The other problem like other people mentioned was the glue. I ended up having to use staples to hold it on better. Then once you get it to actually stay on, after a while (especially in the heat) the vinyl is so heavy it weighs the cardboard down and the whole thing sags.
I guess all in all... The biggest advice I can give you is:
1. Remove the old fabric
2. Find an extremely sticky adhesive
3. Use the most flexible vinyl you can find
4. Make sure that you do not make any bends in the carboard (just creates spots it wants to sag)
I will say tho that it does look extremely good, IF you do it right. I wish I had pictures of the one I did. My interior was blue and black with a white headliner.
Oh and when I was buying the fabric, I went to a fabric store and they actually carried headliner material. It was the grey cloth with foam already on it
