I am stripping down a 96 xj6 and trying to remove a headliner that had already been recovered. I have removed all the trim and screws holding it in place as well as the welting around the sunroof but what I ran into is that it looks like it is glued around the opening for the sunroof, is this the way it is supposed to be?

I did not know there was any glue involved in installing a headliner. Also how do I remove the fabric cover on the sunroof itself. This is my first headliner adventure so any suggestions are appreciated.

 

G'day Scotlad,

If you tilt the sunroof open then the upholstered part of the sunroof pulls straight rearwards from the sunroof through the opening. Give it a fairly solid pull straight backwards and it should come away from the sunroof.

My main roof lining wasn't glued but did have a 'U' shaped retaining channel, is this what you called the welting, right around the sunroof opening which was fairly easy to remove. I can only suggest that you slide a thin blade between the lining and the metal to get it to separate.

Regards,
Jeff.

 

Board shouldn't be glued to the sun roof opening...but all things are possible. Watto's suggestion is what I'd try.

As to removing the fabric from the board....is it sagging? What happens is the foam that the fabric is glued to breaks down...so just grasp and pull...then you'll have to take a stiff brush to the board to get the rest of the foam off the board. Some foam will remain adhered to the fabric, some will remain adhered to the board, and all the rest will rain down all over you if you are removing the fabric in-situ, so I recommend saving that step til you have it out of the car.

I'm interested in how you get on, particularly if it is not sagging or breaking down. I bunged mine up...when I did the replacement, I mistakenly cut right round the sunroof opening instead of leaving an inch or two border for the pinch-welt to grab...so I need to re-do it, but haven't been keen to start due to dreading the removal step with "good foam!"

 

When I redid mine in suede, my headliner was also glued around the sunroof opening. It was previously reupholstered as well. Needless to say it got glued back in place going back on. Thought that's the way it was. Finding out differently now.

 

The headliner I am removing was redone a few years ago by a shop for the previous owner. He also had both visors and the sunroof panel redone at the same time. The reason I am removing the headliner is that the car was totaled a year ago and I bought it back from the insurance co. I am presently removing any trim, electrical and engine parts that I might need in the future and then the car goes to the scrapper.

I was surprised that the headliner was glued around the sunroof, hope I can get it off without damaging it. The shop that redid the headliner probably thought it would never come off again because of the age of the vehicle.

 

Well I got the headliner out today, I did have to cut around the sunroof opening as it had been wrapped over and glued onto the steel. It looks like I still have enough material that I can reglue it onto the backer board. Since the back window was blown out from the accident, that was how I removed it.

Once the headliner was removed it gave me a good view of the sunroof mechanism and how to remove it completely. I will leave it in place for right now as the vehicle is outside and until I can cover the open hole in the roof with a small piece of tarp.

Stripping down this vehicle has been interesting as it lets me see how it is constructed.

 

Someone else's pic

 

I don't think I will be taking it quite that far!