What's the best method? Put the top up and use a drapery steam cleaner? Or some kind of spray-on cleaner and vacuum? I have the seats out so there's room to maneuver.

Ken

 

If its like mine was, it won't come clean and stay that way. There is a brownish foam lining between the two layers of headliner and it has a tendency to go bad on our cars. It looked like brown water stains.
I had it cleaned at a detail shop for 30 bucks and it looked good for about a month then it returned. It's actually the broken down foam particles working their way through the weave of the fabric.
I finally used black fabric paint and painted my entire headliner! Looks like suede.

 

philhef is right. Once that foam begins to break down, it will always look stained. I vacuumed mine and it freshened up enough I could live with it, but it came back in about a week.

I keep vacuuming it every other week, but it's time to replace or maybe try the spray paint fix. Mine is the beige color, so I worry it might not come out as well as the darker finish did for phil.

 

Jaguar advises to use 'mentholated spirits' to clean the headliner. Here, in the colonies, we refer to that as rubbing alcohol. After trying alcohol in a spray bottle to the detriment of my lungs I tried a small spot with brake parts spray cleaner which will evaporate the stains instantly. Mine only stains in a few areas . . . so far . . . and a quick shot and it is gone.

Anyone that melts their headliner doing this please advise.

 

The liner is a polyester or acrylic velour that when used in other applications such as bath robes is completely machine washable. Now, you're not going to throw the top into the washer, but do not be afraid to brush with soap and water, it will not harm the fabric. I would not completely soak through, only because you do not want to get the interlining foam saturated. If the stains are too difficult to get out, there are spray dyes for fabric that will work well.

 

I have tried the gray fabric paint and it worked as well but took more coats. I also let it really dry on my brothers mustang headliner between coats and it seamed to cover even better. The fabric had a different look than the original unpainted liner but not bad. Much better than stains. And MUCh cheaper than replacing. It could be a good fix until really necessary to replace.

 

Appreciate the tips on painting it. Mine looks ok (so far!), but I'm filing this technique away for future reference.

Thanks,
Steve

 

Is it possible to spray some kind of water proofing products like those spray on stuff for camp and boots to prevent the stain to seep thru before painting or after cleaning? Sort of like using the water proofing liquid to plug up the pores of the lining to prevent the stain to seep thru?

 

Had Jaguar switched to better foam and glue underneath the headliner for their final production run? My wife's 2006 XK8's ragtop headliner (the car was built in May 2005) still looks pristine. Perhaps that will unfortunately change as the years continue to roll by....