Got in the car this morning and thought I mast be getting taller, but no, it was the headlining coming down to meet me!

I have looked in the stickies, but can't see any fixes, but am sure it must have been addressed on here before. Is there a simple means of re-glueing it and should I wait until we get some warmer weather, as it is currently permanently cold and damp?

 

For the most part re-gluing doesn't work for very long. The foam backer breaks down and crumbles with age.

Best fix is to remove the headliner board, sand it to get the foam off and recover it entirely. There have been a few that have done it with passion suede (Alcantera alternative) for a more upscale look.

Hardest part of a coupe is finding the right position to get the board out and back in through the door.

 

You could go on ebay and get a new one.


New Headliner for Jaguar XK8 / XKR 1996-2005 | eBay


or do what I did and got some new headliner fabric and re done my old one but to be honest it was a bit of a job, I did mine during the summer but I also wanted to recover the rear shelf and A pillars as well so that it all matched. It took me about 4 hours from start to finish, that's removing the headliner and rear shelf, replacing the fabric on everything and refitting everything.


Good luck its not that bad to do.

 

+1 on the above suggestions to do it yourself with fabric store material. I did a headliner (not the Jag) and it was not difficult. Just a little tedious as you really have to get the headliner board very clean and the old glue can be stubborn.

As Nick71 suggested, it's a good time to do the A-pillars and shelf. Here's a Rev. Sam video on the A-pillar replacement. Concept is the same for the headliner.

 

These people are also very good:
Jaguar Headlinings

Very helpful and good to know.

Best wishes, Colin

 

Thank you for the replies. It is good to know that a complete replacement that won't break the bank is available should I mess up completely. However, I would rather have a go myself. Will I be able to reuse my original headlining, or will I have to buy new cloth? If it is the latter, does anyone know of a decent supplier in the UK (I need the beige cloth)?

 

You wont be able to use the original cloth as the foam backing has deteriorated you must remove all the old foam from the board and sand it smooth. I just did an ebay search for headlining fabric and went for the best colour match I could and they also supplied a high temperature resistant glue to stick it with. You must use a high temperature resistant glue as car's interior's can get very hot when we do get those illusive hot days.


I have noticed that Colin's suggested website does a diy kit.
Jaguar Headlining DIY Kits - Jaguar Headlinings


Hope this helps


Nick

 

Here's a good tip for you. Don't stretch the material as you glue it on, just pat it down with a flat hand. stretching it sometimes causes creases when you get near the edges and the marerial is more likely to come away from the biscuit if you do.
I do custom car interiors for a living. :-)

 

+1 on all the comments above.

I will add my 2c. Try to spread/spray the glue evenly. If you have too much glue in one spot and you pat it down as above, it will soak through the material, and will always be visible.

More hands will also help.

 

I got a local car upholstery company to do mine for AU$400 (USD$360 / £220). They did a prefect job and had nearly identical fabric in stock already. They did the roof lining and the A pillars. The visors didn't need doing.

I was really happy with the outcome.

 

Just finished re-covering the A-pillars to match the new headliner (well, the better half just did):



Bought a spray-can glue from Amazon for not much money (£7 ~ $10 for 2 cans). It's awesome stuff: comes out like fake cobweb but sticks to everything.


Best wishes, Colin

 

I redid my headliner last summer, it looked perfect and saved a lot of money. In three weeks, the glue started letting go. I had a pro do it then, worth every cent...no more problems. The problem is that you cannot get the good glue, the pros save that for themselves. No matter what the can says, it will not hold up in the heat.

 

That is a complete nonsense that you can not get the right glue.

Try the 3M tackweld 78 and you are sorted.
That is also what the pros are using.

You can also do a search on banoterm As UN 1133 kleber. That will also hold forever

 

Got my glue from the company that supplied the material and it has not dropped yet especially through the hot days we had last year. Thats hot for the UK not in America lol

 

I'm not used to having my suggestions called nonsense. What is the truth is that 3M Tackweld 78 is an industrial materal not available for retail sale that comes in a 5 lb cylinder that costs $1900 US each. Before you berate anyone, do your homework.

 

the 3M scotch weld 78 also comes in 24oz spray cans so you are wrong again.

You did not suggest that good glue is not available. You made statement that the good glue is only available to the pros. that is simply not true.

They don't come cheap. I paid some 30USD a can but I only needed 3 of them.