Internal roof fabric coming loose

Morning all,

Here’s my thoughts on a sagging headlining fabric, this is from reupholstering many a Jag XJS and Classic Saab 900 (2 models I used to spend a lot of time on as a hobby a many years ago).

The culprit for this (in our Audi’s) has been covered above and I can confirm that the adhesive used to adhere the headlining fabric to the biscuit (moulded board) has probably not failed. I can speak from experience as it took me some time to correctly remove all the factory adhesive from the headlining biscuit last week. This is something that has always been an easier task in the 2 non Audi models I mention above as the adhesive has broken down at the same time as the fabric starts to sag. The contact adhesive that Audi used in our aluminium friends is still sticky on the 2 biscuits I’ve recently cleaned down. A very messy job!

So we know why it is sagging but what has actually happened? You need to understand the components involved if you’re ever going to make it look beautiful again.

The headlining fabric is made up of 2 parts, the textured fabric (mainly Paltinum but other colours do exist) which you can see and feel along with a 3mm foam backing. The fabric arrives at the reupholstering location, factory adhered together, this is the adhesive which breaks down over time and this process is sped up by moisture.

To achieve a perfectly looking headlining, there is no simple repair, although trying to reattach the sagging fabric to the biscuit can be done, it will look awful as there is no foam and if it does last a few years, I can guarantee that the rest of the material will start to sag and you’ll be back to square on.

Prevention of the cause is what needs to happen first. Either seal the air vents behind the rear bumper or clear the OSS drainage channels.

Once the water/moisture ingress has be solved it is time to get your headlining biscuit reupholstered. There are quite a few trimmers that will do this for you, the costs can be in excess of £200, even higher but shop around. I don’t have any recommendations as I do this task myself.

An option is to use one of the many online guides which is pretty much how I started doing this some 15 years ago (PDF document with pictures).

I’ve recently reupholstered @simufly headlining which will be collected this weekend. I didn’t take any pictures of the process as I wanted to get it done without interruptions. When I start my Twist headlining, once home this weekend, I will take pictures to try to create a ‘how to’ so you can all have a go.

Once you’ve looked through the how to and if you feel it’s just not for you then I can help out.

What I’m planning on offering in the near future is a replacement service, so all you would need to do is turn up on my drive and I will remove your horrible looking saggy headlining and fit and reupholstered one for you. It’ll be a few hours on my drive. Beverages and general A2 chat supplied FOC.

The cost of this service will be cheap as I’m not here to make a profit but I do need to take my time into consideration. To correctly clean the biscuit takes 2 hours. Adhering the new fabric takes 1-2 hours, depending on what I’m actually doing for you (A&C Pillars and sun visors). So before you turn up I’m already upto 4 hours into the job. Headlining removal is about an hour followed by the following hour to fit the reupholstered headlining. 6 hours away from quality family time and home improvements is something difficult to put a price to as I generally only work on my own car as a hobby. I’ll probably only charge £150 which will include the cost of the fabric and contact adhesive (£40-50 for Platinum, more for different colours) along with my 6 hours labour.

Before I can offer this service to make your cabin space look stunning, I need to obtain a few OSS and Non OSS biscuits so I can do most of the work before you arrive. Trying to find a block of 6 hours to do this when you arrive is very difficult with 2 young boys, family commitments and continuous home renovations, I’m sure many of you can appreciate this.

If anyone has any breakers in who are reasonably local, please do let me know as I’d like the headlining so it can be given a new life inside another A2.

Hope this was helpful and you have a go at it yourself (get in YouTube). Those of you who aren’t up for taking this job on, I’ll see you on my driveway once things calm down and I can clamber over your A2s interior.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Tom that sounds like a very good price considering the time and materials going into the job.

I have a continuous supply of head-linings for you, but obviously distance and inability to bulk store theM for you is an issue.
 
Morning all,

Here’s my thoughts on a sagging headlining fabric, this is from reupholstering many a Jag XJS and Classic Saab 900 (2 models I used to spend a lot of time on as a hobby a many years ago).

The culprit for this (in our Audi’s) has been covered above and I can confirm that the adhesive used to adhere the headlining fabric to the biscuit (moulded board) has probably not failed. I can speak from experience as it took me some time to correctly remove all the factory adhesive from the headlining biscuit last week. This is something that has always been an easier task in the 2 non Audi models I mention above as the adhesive has broken down at the same time as the fabric starts to sag. The contact adhesive that Audi used in our aluminium friends is still sticky on the 2 biscuits I’ve recently cleaned down. A very messy job!

So we know why it is sagging but what has actually happened? You need to understand the components involved if you’re ever going to make it look beautiful again.

The headlining fabric is made up of 2 parts, the textured fabric (mainly Paltinum but other colours do exist) which you can see and feel along with a 3mm foam backing. The fabric arrives at the reupholstering location, factory adhered together, this is the adhesive which breaks down over time and this process is sped up by moisture.

To achieve a perfectly looking headlining, there is no simple repair, although trying to reattach the sagging fabric to the biscuit can be done, it will look awful as there is no foam and if it does last a few years, I can guarantee that the rest of the material will start to sag and you’ll be back to square on.

Prevention of the cause is what needs to happen first. Either seal the air vents behind the rear bumper or clear the OSS drainage channels.

Once the water/moisture ingress has be solved it is time to get your headlining biscuit reupholstered. There are quite a few trimmers that will do this for you, the costs can be in excess of £200, even higher but shop around. I don’t have any recommendations as I do this task myself.

An option is to use one of the many online guides which is pretty much how I started doing this some 15 years ago (PDF document with pictures).

I’ve recently reupholstered @simufly headlining which will be collected this weekend. I didn’t take any pictures of the process as I wanted to get it done without interruptions. When I start my Twist headlining, once home this weekend, I will take pictures to try to create a ‘how to’ so you can all have a go.

Once you’ve looked through the how to and if you feel it’s just not for you then I can help out.

What I’m planning on offering in the near future is a replacement service, so all you would need to do is turn up on my drive and I will remove your horrible looking saggy headlining and fit and reupholstered one for you. It’ll be a few hours on my drive. Beverages and general A2 chat supplied FOC.

The cost of this service will be cheap as I’m not here to make a profit but I do need to take my time into consideration. To correctly clean the biscuit takes 2 hours. Adhering the new fabric takes 1-2 hours, depending on what I’m actually doing for you (A&C Pillars and sun visors). So before you turn up I’m already upto 4 hours into the job. Headlining removal is about an hour followed by the following hour to fit the reupholstered headlining. 6 hours away from quality family time and home improvements is something difficult to put a price to as I generally only work on my own car as a hobby. I’ll probably only charge £150 which will include the cost of the fabric and contact adhesive (£40-50 for Platinum, more for different colours) along with my 6 hours labour.

Before I can offer this service to make your cabin space look stunning, I need to obtain a few OSS and Non OSS biscuits so I can do most of the work before you arrive. Trying to find a block of 6 hours to do this when you arrive is very difficult with 2 young boys, family commitments and continuous home renovations, I’m sure many of you can appreciate this.

If anyone has any breakers in who are reasonably local, please do let me know as I’d like the headlining so it can be given a new life inside another A2.

Hope this was helpful and you have a go at it yourself (get in YouTube). Those of you who aren’t up for taking this job on, I’ll see you on my driveway once things calm down and I can clamber over your A2s interior.

Kind regards,

Tom

Have you found a really good platinum match now? If so I have one for you ;)


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Dear all,

I can confirm Tom is, like me, a gin lover. I know this because I insisted on buying him a bottle of Hendrick's (his favourite brand) in exchange for:

a) him kindly agreeing to do the bluetooth headlamp switch upgrade for me (including his offer of painting the panel if needed!); and
b) not accepting much in the way of meaningful payment (in my opinion).

Therefore, given the above man-hours calculation, if like me you think £150 is indecently cheap for what you'd be getting, you now have an idea of what else to bring with you other than that in cash!

Thanks.
 
Have you found a really good platinum match now? If so I have one for you ;)


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Morning Ed,

Yes a good Paltinum match has been found. Simon @simufly found it after obtaining many samples. I’m not home right now to show how good a match it is against sun visors etcetera. Can add pictures Saturday evening (or probably Sunday morning) when I’m home.

Reupholstering these additional items isn’t too much hassle though.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Tom that sounds like a very good price considering the time and materials going into the job.

I have a continuous supply of head-linings for you, but obviously distance and inability to bulk store theM for you is an issue.

Afternoon Steve,

Thank you for the offer sir. It seems like a visit could be in order.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Morning Ed,

Yes a good Paltinum match has been found. Simon @simufly found it after obtaining many samples. I’m not home right now to show how good a match it is against sun visors etcetera. Can add pictures Saturday evening (or probably Sunday morning) when I’m home.

Reupholstering these additional items isn’t too much hassle though.

Kind regards,

Tom

As soon as you have a picture would love to see it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
As soon as you have a picture would love to see it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Afternoon Ed,

I will add pictures to this thread Saturday evening/Sunday morning for comparison. The fabric arrived after I removed the old headlining so cannot show you like for like on top of each other. It’s a little lighter and looks a lot nicer IMO. The pictures I’ll add will be of a mid job (half factory platinum and half new platinum fabric) sun visor for the next customer as @simufly wanted to keep his original sun visors.

I have a spare OSS Biscuit which is prepared for new fabric, it is the one from my breaker which I sold to Simon but he came back wanting his original headlining reupholstered. So guess that is up for grabs in a very short time.

Some shots of the process it went through recently.

Headlining from my breaker ready for surgery:
5EF5CDFD-B325-4E73-B6E9-2345050113D3.jpeg

5 minutes later the textured fabric removed, leaving behind most if not all of the foam which should be attached to the removed fabric:
4B4A6ADD-8642-49EC-800D-01710B60A947.jpeg

A couple of hours later and minus a few pints of sweat on the floor, all the foam was removed:
9BAE1BD3-B67B-499C-A30A-6C73C318563A.jpeg

I still need to finish it off (rub down with alcohol) and remove the metal surrounds for the Illuminated Vanity Mirror Lights.

Once I have time this could be reupholstered to any colour in a couple of hours but will probably go for Platinum as I already have Platinum sun visors (from the breaker) that can all go together.

When I’m ready to go I will start a new thread insead if hijacking someone elses, which I
often seem to do, Sorry.

Quick edit here: For anyone wishing to do this please do not use a standard contact adhesive as it may not stand up to the temperatures the roof of your A2 is put to. Please use High Temperature Contact Adhesive. Ive always used Trim-Fix and never had any problems.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Last edited:
Afternoon Ed,

I will add pictures to this thread Saturday evening/Sunday morning for comparison. The fabric arrived after I removed the old headlining so cannot show you like for like on top of each other. It’s a little lighter and looks a lot nicer IMO. The pictures I’ll add will be of a mid job (half factory platinum and half new platinum fabric) sun visor for the next customer as @simufly wanted to keep his original sun visors.

I have a spare OSS Biscuit which is prepared for new fabric, it is the one from my breaker which I sold to Simon but he came back wanting his original headlining reupholstered. So guess that is up for grabs in a very short time.

Some shots of the process it went through recently.

Headlining from my breaker ready for surgery:
View attachment 68304
5 minutes later the textured fabric removed, leaving behind most if not all of the foam which should be attached to the removed fabric:
View attachment 68305
A couple of hours later and minus a few pints of sweat on the floor, all the foam was removed:
View attachment 68306
I still need to finish it off (rub down with alcohol) and remove the metal surrounds for the Illuminated Vanity Mirror Lights.

Once I have time this could be reupholstered to any colour in a couple of hours but will probably go for Platinum as I already have Platinum sun visors (from the breaker) that can all go together.

When I’m ready to go I will start a new thread insead if hijacking someone elses, which I
often seem to do, Sorry.

Quick edit here: For anyone wishing to do this please do not use a standard contact adhesive as it may not stand up to the temperatures the roof of your A2 is put to. Please use High Temperature Contact Adhesive. Ive always used Trim-Fix and never had any problems.

Kind regards,

Tom

So when am I coming round :p


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I’ve not got OSS but my rear NS corner is water stained (sure the patch has got bigger this week) and it looks as if there has been some water pooled on the fabric parcel tray.
Where could it be coming in from?
In the deep hinge looks a bit dirty. Do I need to take that plastic moulding off by the gas strut and give it a clean?
Phil
 
Afternoon Ed,

I will add pictures to this thread Saturday evening/Sunday morning for comparison. The fabric arrived after I removed the old headlining so cannot show you like for like on top of each other. It’s a little lighter and looks a lot nicer IMO. The pictures I’ll add will be of a mid job (half factory platinum and half new platinum fabric) sun visor for the next customer as @simufly wanted to keep his original sun visors.

I have a spare OSS Biscuit which is prepared for new fabric, it is the one from my breaker which I sold to Simon but he came back wanting his original headlining reupholstered. So guess that is up for grabs in a very short time.

Some shots of the process it went through recently.

Headlining from my breaker ready for surgery:
View attachment 68304
5 minutes later the textured fabric removed, leaving behind most if not all of the foam which should be attached to the removed fabric:
View attachment 68305
A couple of hours later and minus a few pints of sweat on the floor, all the foam was removed:
View attachment 68306
I still need to finish it off (rub down with alcohol) and remove the metal surrounds for the Illuminated Vanity Mirror Lights.

Once I have time this could be reupholstered to any colour in a couple of hours but will probably go for Platinum as I already have Platinum sun visors (from the breaker) that can all go together.

When I’m ready to go I will start a new thread insead if hijacking someone elses, which I
often seem to do, Sorry.

Quick edit here: For anyone wishing to do this please do not use a standard contact adhesive as it may not stand up to the temperatures the roof of your A2 is put to. Please use High Temperature Contact Adhesive. Ive always used Trim-Fix and never had any problems.

Kind regards,

Tom
Hi Tom,
I have a a sagging headliner too, same corner as the others. You mention Trim Fix so thanks for the advice on that. We did try some other automotive spray glue that has failed (heat I guess) but it has also stained the fabric, gutted. I'm guessing there is no way of getting the glue stain off now. With the trim fix - you spray the headliner and not the fabric I guess? Ideally I'd get it replaced but need to find someone a bit closer to home - Surrey/Hampshire ideally.
Thank you.
 
Hi Tom,
I have a a sagging headliner too, same corner as the others. You mention Trim Fix so thanks for the advice on that. We did try some other automotive spray glue that has failed (heat I guess) but it has also stained the fabric, gutted. I'm guessing there is no way of getting the glue stain off now. With the trim fix - you spray the headliner and not the fabric I guess? Ideally I'd get it replaced but need to find someone a bit closer to home - Surrey/Hampshire ideally.
Thank you.
Afternoon Fiona,

A sagging headlining fabric is rather unsightly and not always and easy task to make it look nice with a quick repair, the only, and of course best way is to reupholster the headlining biscuit.

Trim Fix High Temperature Spray Adhesive will stand up to the temperatures for many years verses the spray adhesive you may have already used. I really do recommend it, I occasionally see a Jaguar XJS TWR (my old car) that still has a perfect headlining after some 15 years after I reupholstered it with Trim Fix HT Spray Adhesive.

The problem you’re up against for a repair is when spraying either the headlining biscuit or fabric (which has lost its factory adhered foam backing); the adhesive will seep through the fabric and leave a crusty snail trail type mark, which it sounds like you have already observed.

For best and lasting results, your headlining biscuit will need to be removed, fully cleaned (remove all the foam back) And reupholstered.

If you’re up for having a go yourself, have a look on YouTube or similar to see what sort of work is involved. It’s actually not that difficult and encourage you to have a go. I’m here to assist over PM, Phone call or email to provide support.

If you was closer I would of course help out and do it for you but geography doesn’t help us here, moving around in an A2 with a spare headlining biscuit is difficult as the reupholstered item could easily get damaged in transit.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Afternoon Fiona,

A sagging headlining fabric is rather unsightly and not always and easy task to make it look nice with a quick repair, the only, and of course best way is to reupholster the headlining biscuit.

Trim Fix High Temperature Spray Adhesive will stand up to the temperatures for many years verses the spray adhesive you may have already used. I really do recommend it, I occasionally see a Jaguar XJS TWR (my old car) that still has a perfect headlining after some 15 years after I reupholstered it with Trim Fix HT Spray Adhesive.

The problem you’re up against for a repair is when spraying either the headlining biscuit or fabric (which has lost its factory adhered foam backing); the adhesive will seep through the fabric and leave a crusty snail trail type mark, which it sounds like you have already observed.

For best and lasting results, your headlining biscuit will need to be removed, fully cleaned (remove all the foam back) And reupholstered.

If you’re up for having a go yourself, have a look on YouTube or similar to see what sort of work is involved. It’s actually not that difficult and encourage you to have a go. I’m here to assist over PM, Phone call or email to provide support.

If you was closer I would of course help out and do it for you but geography doesn’t help us here, moving around in an A2 with a spare headlining biscuit is difficult as the reupholstered item could easily get damaged in transit.

Kind regards,

Tom
Thanks for your quick reply, very much appreciated.

I think I will have a go at replacing it, I will have a search on You Tube as you suggest. This really was just a quick fix, I had thought that it would not be a long term fix. Any advice as to the best place for replacement fabric please?

Fiona.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for your quick reply, very much appreciated.

I think I will have a go at replacing it, I will have a search on You Tube as you suggest. This really was just a quick fix, I had thought that it would not be a long term fix. Any advice as to the best place for replacement fabric please?

Fiona.
Morning Fiona,

Conduct a video search for ‘reupholster headlining’ and it should give you similar results to this.

Set aside an hour and have a watch as many clips as possible to understand what’s involved. Even the bad one are worth watching to understand exactly what not to do.

Once you’re ready to tackle this yourself I’ll be here to assist you along the process (over the phone or PM) of removing the necessary parts along with pointing you at the eBay sellers that I have used in the past for good quality fabric.

It really is a DIY task, the most important part is preparation; ensuring the headlining biscuit is immaculately clean of any old adhesive that’s gone greasy and of course all the backing from is removed. Failure to get it immaculate will of course will result your new fabric sagging in a few years.

Remember that the Trim Fix product is Contact Adhesive. If you misplace the new fabric down and then subsequently lift it to correct it, you stand the possibility of the backing foam coming away from the fabric and remaining on the biscuit.

Hope this helps you out. I’m only a Pm away for assistance and to guide you through this task.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Morning Fiona,

Conduct a video search for ‘reupholster headlining’ and it should give you similar results to this.

Set aside an hour and have a watch as many clips as possible to understand what’s involved. Even the bad one are worth watching to understand exactly what not to do.

Once you’re ready to tackle this yourself I’ll be here to assist you along the process (over the phone or PM) of removing the necessary parts along with pointing you at the eBay sellers that I have used in the past for good quality fabric.

It really is a DIY task, the most important part is preparation; ensuring the headlining biscuit is immaculately clean of any old adhesive that’s gone greasy and of course all the backing from is removed. Failure to get it immaculate will of course will result your new fabric sagging in a few years.

Remember that the Trim Fix product is Contact Adhesive. If you misplace the new fabric down and then subsequently lift it to correct it, you stand the possibility of the backing foam coming away from the fabric and remaining on the biscuit.

Hope this helps you out. I’m only a Pm away for assistance and to guide you through this task.

Kind regards,

Tom
Thank you Tom.

I have watched a few videos already and as you say some of them are rather strange! It's good to know that you would be on hand should I need any help. I would be really interested in finding out who you would recommend for new fabric. That way I can ensure I can get the best for the job.

Fiona.
 
[mention]2work [/mention] are you still offering this Tom?

I would actually like to look at a darker headlining and pillars but need to consider how the other trims who round the OSS and sun visors/lights would look

Thanks


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Morning Steve,

I’m a bit tied up this weekend for time on here but will come back to you early next week. I can assist with reupholstering the whole lot if you want a colour change.

Yes you’ll need to recolour your roof furniture as Bob @Jellybean recently had great results with.

I’ll fully reply late Sunday or early Monday Sir.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Must admit I am pleased how the headlining in Jelly worked out. Smurf, my blue FSI has a saggy rear headlining, so mulling over a revitalised colour scheme for that and the pillars. This will be an OSS, currently a BSS headlining, so will fit in recovering with a trip to Kleynie Towers in due course.

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Last edited:
Must admit I am pleased how the headlining in Jelly worked out. Smurf, by blue FSI has a saggy rear headlining, so mulling over a revitalised colour scheme for that and the pillars. This will be an OSS, currently a BSS headlining, so will fit in recovering with a trip to Kleynie Towers in due course.

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

I’d be very interested to understand how you coloured the roof furniture ??
 
I’d be very interested to understand how you coloured the roof furniture
I cheated! The housings were sprayed with matt black plasticote, and the switches were taken from black A4 light panels. The downlighters from the A4 panels were also glued over holes drilled in the front light panel. Finished off with red led's front & rear, to match the red leather seats and headlining centre panel.

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