Hi all,
Was searching the forum to try to find out what others have done to repair loose or saggy headliner.
My 05 x-type has some loose headliner around the third brake light in the middle of the upper rear window.
Someone recommended spray adhesive but there are so many brands.
So far it looks like 3M Super 77 might be the best choice.
Has anyone else found a fix for this problem?
Thanks,

 

1gr8lake, the question that you have to ask yourself is how long you want the fix to last. The 3M Super 77 adhesive will work and where you spray it will not come loose again. The problem is, over time, the fabric will come loose in other areas and like in the case of my car, I applied the 3M at the edge where the fabric started coming loose, but then, a year later, I had a 6" wide section just inside the previous area that was now loose. Over time, that got bigger and bigger till the point I finally just bit the bullet and had the whole headliner replaced.

So, if you are only looking at keeping the car another year or so, then the 3M product is probably your best answer. If you plan on keeping it for a lot longer, then eventually you will be replacing the headliner.

 

Thermo, This does sound logical. I guess I will have to fix for now. Maybe in the future I will have the $$$ to replace the whole thing.
The next question is, can a headliner replacement be better than the original?

 

The answer to that deals with the shop that you work with. This is going to be one of those cases that you are going to get what you pay for. You find a shop that will do it for $100, you can plan on having it fall down most likely within a year. You find a shop that charges $800 to do the job, you can probably plan on having it last a long, long time. Either way, if the shop is worth anything, they will gladly warrantee the work for a few years.

A way to save money is to remove the headliner yourself. When I did my car, the price dropped from $800 to $175. Pulling the headliner is not that difficult and takes about an hour or so to do. The hardest part of the whole thing is sliding the headliner out the rear door. You have to carefully arch the headliner to fit out the door. You will also find that you will have to lay both front seats down as far as they will go to give you as much room as possible. Having a second set of hands will help, but I did it by myself.

 

I went to the fabric store and bought these things that are like screw in thumb tacks. They work fine to hold it up for now. As other parts start to sag I will put more in but will make it a design so it looks good, probably lil jaguar shapes and such.

 

Thermo, Did you use the existing fabric or did you buy something new?
Was the headliner held up by clips? How is it attached to the roof?
Probably will have more questions once I get your answers haha.

 

Lake, the headliner is held in place by the surrounding items (A/B/C pillar plastic covers, rubber ring around the sunroof, overhead lights, etc). So, once you remove those, it will pretty much fall right down on you.

As for the fabric, I initially tried to use the old fabric, but the foam backing was crumbling to pieces and making things stick was more trouble than it was worth. So, I took the headliner to a local shop and they put all new fabric on the headliner with the foam backing.

 

Thanks for the information. Doesn't sound too bad.
Did using the spray adhesive initially just make it harder to get the old fabric off?
Thanks again,

 

Mine was sagging where it hits the sun roof. I used some industrial strength Velcro. Stuck in across the sag and it's stayed put for four years so far.

 

Lake, it didn't make things any more difficult really. Sure, it was stuck there pretty good. But, a good tug and off it came.

 

Thermo, Good deal. Thanks for all your help.
Will probably give the 3M Super 77 a shot for now and wait for the inevitable.
Love this car and hope to keep it for years to come.
All the best,

 

Just remember that if you should need to have the windscreen changed for any reason, THAT is the time to do the headliner!

 

As Thermo stated, the Super 77 will work. I had/have several places where the headlining is coming down. I sprayed the adhesive and it held, however, every place the adhesive was applied, now has a dark spot where it soaked through the material. My problem is the foam backing was separating from the material. I have had my car since new, 2005, and just turned 100k miles. I would like to keep it another year or two, then sell it. I will probably bite the bullet and replace the headlining prior to selling.