Headliner Replacement- Any Online Sources?

[Don McAdams]

My headliner in the Touring has started the infamous SAG. Was wondering if there was anywhere online you guys have ordered headliner material from that would be of help. I was thinking (instead) of replacing it w/ the 3mm foam padded OEM quality headliner, with something on the order of an Alcantara but in a sand or beige color (I have Pergament interior).... Ordering enough material to do all the trim pillars as well....

Any ideas, YAY or NAY? Any help/info/ input appreciated-

PS- While the headliner would be out, that would be the ideal time to run wire for rear fogs as well, right? :D

http://members.aol.com/e30m3therealm3/e34park.jpg

[shogun]

buy wherever you get the right thickness. This is important, especially when you have a sunroof. If the material is too thick, you will have probs with the sunroof closing and also at the edges.
I have heard that the WLS headliner material is too thick. But check once more with them.
You MUST use 1/8 inch headliner material and NOT 1/4 inch. WLS sells 1/4 inch for E32. 1/4 inch material will not fit contours of roof grab handles, and other recessed areas of Headliner, and the sunroof panel will bind and stick with 1/4 inch material because there is not enough clearance. Most European cars use 1/8 inch.
But there must be other suppliers which can deliver this too.

Just did that some months ago. Pics are on my website.
You can even use fake snake or austrich
http://www.garysupholstery.com/ostrich.html

[KingSix]

Check these guys out.. the step by step even includes an E34
http://headlinerkit.com/index.shtml

[atomicDog]

My headliner in the Touring has started the infamous SAG. Was wondering if there was anywhere online you guys have ordered headliner material from that would be of help. I was thinking (instead) of replacing it w/ the 3mm foam padded OEM quality headliner, with something on the order of an Alcantara but in a sand or beige color (I have Pergament interior).... Ordering enough material to do all the trim pillars as well....

Any ideas, YAY or NAY? Any help/info/ input appreciated-

PS- While the headliner would be out, that would be the ideal time to run wire for rear fogs as well, right? :D

http://members.aol.com/e30m3therealm3/e34park.jpg

Don, I also have a '95 525iT and I just replaced my headliner in the fall of last year. I ordered my material from WLS Headliners. It was a tad bit thicker that the OEM stuff. Also, matching the color was a pain (my car's interior is a light grey), as it seems finding OEM material is very difficult. I bought the material and had my upholstry guy install it. My car also has the dual sunroof option and the added thickness of the material didn't pose a problem with the operation of the sunroofs. The key was that he used a very strong glue to keep the material in its place. Replacing that headliner is a big job, as the material also runs down the sides in obscure places. I got quotes from several central VA shops and most were in the $550 - $900 range.

[Kalevera]

Can you find out what kind of glue he used? :)

I'm about to embark on this procedure...have considered WLS's stuff and greatly appreciate their prices versus the $tealer's, but I don't want to install that stuff if it's too thick. It's got to last at LEAST another 5 years.

best, whit

[bahnstormer]

Check these guys out.. the step by step even includes an E34
http://headlinerkit.com/index.shtml



i used this and the material is too thick..... =\

[atomicDog]

Can you find out what kind of glue he used? :)

I'm about to embark on this procedure...have considered WLS's stuff and greatly appreciate their prices versus the $tealer's, but I don't want to install that stuff if it's too thick. It's got to last at LEAST another 5 years.

best, whit

Whit, I'll try to catch him tommorrow and find out what type of adhesive he used. I do know that he buys it in a 5 gallon drum and he mixes it in a body-shop style paint gun to apply it. It also has one he!! of a smell that takes a day or so to dissapate. It's some form of strong contact cement. I'll try to get specifics tommorrow.

[shogun]

I bought it from a wholesaler in Munich.
Usually they only sell to upholstery shops, or to endusers which come there with a sample and pick the material up. A friend of mine works in BMW in Munich. He went there with his E32 to show them the correct colour of this light grey.
The article number of the material with 3 mm foam for the headliner is 10 X 440 (140 cm wide), and the one without foam is 10 X 420 (148 cm wide). This is for the side pillars. With foam I ordered 3 Mtr, w/o foam 1 meter, just to be on the save side.
They have a English language homepage too. Maybe you ask them for the address of their sales office or dealer in your country.
This material is especially made for cars, does not burn.
But probably you can get it also in other countries from any car upholstery shop or supplier for ship/boat equipment.
The glue I bought from 3M here in Japan, because it was difficult to send it by air. 3M has developed a special glue for use in countries with high temperatures and high humidity.
link to the supplier I bought from in Germany (http://www.mah.de/en/home.html)
New in progress
http://members.roadfly.org/hairwithit/16%20E32-750iL-ready%20to%20go%20in
and the old messy stuff
http://members.roadfly.org/hairwithit/10%20E32-750iL-real%20messy
more pics (http://bimmer.roadfly.org/bmw/forums/e32/5717037-1.html)

[ScottyWM]

Don - I did my headliner and pillars last summer. The quotes I got were all way too high for me, so i decided to do it myself. Even with me disassembling it all and preparing it for the new fabric, it was close to $500. So went to the local auto upholsterers and choose the fabric in person. Yes, you have to use the 1/8" foam. I choose something more contemporary than the original rat fur- but it wasn't as stretchy. Bought way too much fabric just to be safe, but at ~$18/yd, still paid like $70 for the fabric. Used special spray adhesive, think it was about $12/can from local auto store. It took 3 cans. So total cost was about $100. Really made a big difference - looks great, not perfect (had a couple small wrinkles), but lots better than it was. It was hard, no question. But if you screw it up, you can pull it off and try again or give up and pay to do it. I used the same foam stuff on the pillars and sunroof. But the old stuff on the pillars and sunroof did not have any foam. It doesn't look any different with the foam, actually I like it better. Bill R. shot me a pdf of how to dissassemble it all, still have it if you'd like me to send it to you. You can search my posts for more info too.

Email me if you want any more info, pics, hints... Your car looks so great you should do the headliner up right!

[shogun]

That is about the same I paid for the material. Incl. postage from Germany and the can of glue bought here in Japan it came to about $ 150,-.
Local BMW shop wanted to have for a new headliner $ 700 w/o installation cost.
Redoing the headliner is unusual in Japan, they just install a new one. Only for real vintage cars there are specialized companies. And I asked some of them. ALL said, they have to remove the front window to get the headliner out. Labor cost only $ 1000.
And then shogun showed them that it goes without removing the window, and I even did not remove any seat, just the headrests in the front. Of course it is of advantage in such a case to have an L version, as the rear doors in the L are wider. And that helped. But the headliner can be bended slightly w/o problem.
Then my wife drove to the local BMW dealer and showed it to them. They have never seen that before. All the staff from the workshop came out to see it.
Unfortunately Japan has a culture to buy and replace, if something does not work. Now they understand that I do not want to replace but want to repair, and that I am happy when I am successful with the repair.

[Don McAdams]

Thanks for the help & tips guys. $500 is crazy, $1000 is insane! I have the NON- problematic- dual sunroof car (luckily)....I called the dealer & a new headliner only lists for $625 (complete w/ board, etc. ot including my shop discount......) Book shows 3.5 hours to R&I everything out of the way...... being in the auto collision field I could get it done a little quicker :) We have a trim shop that we deal with, so I might just pull the headliner board out & have them install the material, whichever I decide to use....

Not sure what route I'm going to take (new Vs. re-cover) as I'd really like to find a material that would look nice... Kinda thought the Alcantara the M5's had would be nice, except in a sand color & possibly synthetic!

Thanks guys- I'll be sure to post pics of when/ what I decide.....

[Blitzkrieg Bob]

Is to buy two packs of chrome plated thumb tacks and do a diamond tuck theme.

The Filipino kids in my neighborhood will do a real good job for two 40oz Mickey's.

Just keep an eye on your CDs

[atomicDog]

Whit, I'll try to catch him tommorrow and find out what type of adhesive he used. I do know that he buys it in a 5 gallon drum and he mixes it in a body-shop style paint gun to apply it. It also has one he!! of a smell that takes a day or so to dissapate. It's some form of strong contact cement. I'll try to get specifics tommorrow.


The adhesive the upholstry guy used on my 525iT headliner is made by DAP. It's called wellwood - landau top and trim grade. He buys it in a 5 gallon steel drum and sprays it from a paint gun.