Roof Lining becoming loose

S

sergio2305

New Member
Hi everyone! I’m new in this site so I don’t really know how things work here, anyway, I have an A2 with a loose roof lining, does anyone have a guide to how take apart the roof or the textile used so I can replace it. Hope I made clear what I’m asking! (I’m from Italy and english isn’t my native language, hope I didn’t made any mistakes about any technical terms! I’m gonna attach some photos so you all understand what I mean, thanks in advance!)
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    2 MB · Views: 215
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    1.8 MB · Views: 231
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    2 MB · Views: 213
Benvenuto sul sito e nella comunita' :)

@2work will be able to answer your questions. I myself (and many other members) have the same problem. There are a few threads on here with more information. I will attempt to fix my headliner myself in the near future and will document it in my Project Sicily thread. If all goes well and you are still in need of help, I can always come to your place on my way to Sicily :)
 
sergio2305 said:
Hi everyone! I’m new in this site so I don’t really know how things work here, anyway, I have an A2 with a loose roof lining, does anyone have a guide to how take apart the roof or the textile used so I can replace it. Hope I made clear what I’m asking! (I’m from Italy and english isn’t my native language, hope I didn’t made any mistakes about any technical terms! I’m gonna attach some photos so you all understand what I mean, thanks in advance!)
Click to expand...

This is not seen as often on non oss cars. I would source a used headliner and replace.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Morning Sergio,

Welcome to the Club where you'll find us a friendly bunch who will always try to go the extra mile to assist. You've already seen this by Thomas @gangitano85 and Ed @Edwrai jumping in offering advice.

The actual cause of the headlining dropping is due to the factory bonded foam to there fabric itself failing and there is no real tidy and permanent workaround. the reason this fails is due to age along with moisture content and the temperatures the roof of any vehicle is subjected to. You may have water ingress which will need resolving soonest otherwise you run the risk of a freshly reupholstered headlong dropping on a few years. The reason could also be the climate you live in but if the headlining has been fine for almost 20 years then there is no reason that it'll last and 20 if reup[holdstered correctly.

The adhesive used to adhere the foam backed headlining fabric doesn't fail and can be a pain to remove at the same time as being a very messy process.

Not that it'll help you but I was planning to offer headlining reupholstery as a member service to our wonderful community but have since decided against it, mainly due to having to correctly set up the service offering as a business. With my rock bottom pricing that I'd have to pay tax on as it'll of course be another income source which then wouldn't leave anything as pocket money which I could treat my family for all the time Ive spent in the garage away from them working on members headlining. After paying said taxes I would be left with nothing to show for the hours spent cleaning and preparing the headlining biscuit followed by the removal of the old and reinstallation of the new item. Raising pricing to account for this was absolutely out of the question.

That said I truly feel that this really is a DIY task. Many members have reupholstered their own headlining with spectacular results. Over PM I think I have also given Thomas @gangitano85 plenty of pointers and should well be able to tackle his own headlining along with yours if you're able to organise a meet up on his way to Sicily.

If you're feeling confident to proceed by yourself then have a look online to understand whats involved and for inspiration. This link, although isn't a perfect 'how to', will give you an idea of what is involved in the reupholstery process. Spend some time watching many YouTube clips as there are loads of them. Some of the clips you'll view are awful but they're worth the watch to it ensure you don't cut the corners like others have done before you.

For perfect results you must ensure that the headlining biscuit (compressed backing board) is immaculate before considering to add new adhesive. The adhesive used must be a High Temperature variant, if not then it will fail very quickly after a summer or 2.

I'm here to remotely assist when the time comes as I have done countless Saab 900 and Jaguar XJS headlining in the past. Ive also reupholstered 6 A2 headliners this past 18 months so quite seasoned in the process now.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Ami said:
@2work just watched the video link on the subject, He makes it look very easy, Thanks for this.
Cheers
Ami
Click to expand...
Morning Ami,

Once you’ve done it a few times it really does become easy. If you’re considering doing this then I highly recommend you watch as many YouTube clips as possible and take it from there. I’ll be here in the background to remotely assist if or when needed.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ami
2work said:
Morning Sergio,

Welcome to the Club where you'll find us a friendly bunch who will always try to go the extra mile to assist. You've already seen this by Thomas @gangitano85 and Ed @Edwrai jumping in offering advice.

The actual cause of the headlining dropping is due to the factory bonded foam to there fabric itself failing and there is no real tidy and permanent workaround. the reason this fails is due to age along with moisture content and the temperatures the roof of any vehicle is subjected to. You may have water ingress which will need resolving soonest otherwise you run the risk of a freshly reupholstered headlong dropping on a few years. The reason could also be the climate you live in but if the headlining has been fine for almost 20 years then there is no reason that it'll last and 20 if reup[holdstered correctly.

The adhesive used to adhere the foam backed headlining fabric doesn't fail and can be a pain to remove at the same time as being a very messy process.

Not that it'll help you but I was planning to offer headlining reupholstery as a member service to our wonderful community but have since decided against it, mainly due to having to correctly set up the service offering as a business. With my rock bottom pricing that I'd have to pay tax on as it'll of course be another income source which then wouldn't leave anything as pocket money which I could treat my family for all the time Ive spent in the garage away from them working on members headlining. After paying said taxes I would be left with nothing to show for the hours spent cleaning and preparing the headlining biscuit followed by the removal of the old and reinstallation of the new item. Raising pricing to account for this was absolutely out of the question.

That said I truly feel that this really is a DIY task. Many members have reupholstered their own headlining with spectacular results. Over PM I think I have also given Thomas @gangitano85 plenty of pointers and should well be able to tackle his own headlining along with yours if you're able to organise a meet up on his way to Sicily.

If you're feeling confident to proceed by yourself then have a look online to understand whats involved and for inspiration. This link, although isn't a perfect 'how to', will give you an idea of what is involved in the reupholstery process. Spend some time watching many YouTube clips as there are loads of them. Some of the clips you'll view are awful but they're worth the watch to it ensure you don't cut the corners like others have done before you.

For perfect results you must ensure that the headlining biscuit (compressed backing board) is immaculate before considering to add new adhesive. The adhesive used must be a High Temperature variant, if not then it will fail very quickly after a summer or 2.

I'm here to remotely assist when the time comes as I have done countless Saab 900 and Jaguar XJS headlining in the past. Ive also reupholstered 6 A2 headliners this past 18 months so quite seasoned in the process now.

Kind regards,

Tom
Click to expand...
Hello Tom,
My lining has come away above the rear window. The centre section is alright.
I live near the specialist in Manston, Kent that make replacements for Jaguars etc.
Car SOS went to him.
He told me it needs to be removed to clean off the sticky mess.
Does acetone remove this?
How do I remove this panel; as I'm always afraid of breaking clips when the fixing isn't obvious?
I've bought high temperature spray adhesive.
I waited for the MOT to be done before attempting it.
It's held up with masking tape temporarily.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks, Keith.
 
GMH499 said:
Hello Tom,
My lining has come away above the rear window. The centre section is alright.
I live near the specialist in Manston, Kent that make replacements for Jaguars etc.
Car SOS went to him.
He told me it needs to be removed to clean off the sticky mess.
Does acetone remove this?
How do I remove this panel; as I'm always afraid of breaking clips when the fixing isn't obvious?
I've bought high temperature spray adhesive.
I waited for the MOT to be done before attempting it.
It's held up with masking tape temporarily.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Many thanks, Keith.
Click to expand...
Afternoon Keith,

Good luck on reupholstering your headlining. It’s a very satisfying task and of course looks superb once complete.

If you’re doing it by yourself then be careful when placing the as the HT spray adhesive is quite unforgiving and if incorrectly placed you can easily remove the foam backing.

The process I use to remove the whole headlining panel is as follows:

It’s been a while since I last performed this surgery so this is from memory

1. Remove rear seats
2. Remove interior rear door sill trim panels
3. Remove luggage space panels
4. Remove Rear pillar panels
5. Remove roof furniture (sun visors, grab handle & light switch packs)
6. Remove sun blind if you have OSS
7. Remove 2x torx screws from the forward light switch pack aperture, they will be in the black plastic bracket
8. Remove the torx screws (1 either side) from the black plastic bracket which is now on show after removing the rear pillar panels
10. The headlining is now only held in place by the 4 door seals and the boot seal.
11. Lay the front seat back to 45 degrees so provide more spare to manoeuvre the headlining out
12. Carefully remove the rubber seals around the doors and tailgate and the whole panel will be ready to be withdrawn from the vehicle via the open tailgate.
13. It’s more than achievable to remove it by your but a second pair of hands is welcome. Slowly withdraw the headlining biscuit making sure it’s doesn’t catch on anything on the way out. It is quite fragile so just be careful.

Once out of the vehicle it’s then time to start the cleaning process, perfect results and a job that’s going to last really does depend on it’s preparation.

First off though is to remove the old fabric, if you have illuminated vanity then safely remove the metal light surrounds, just unfold the tabs and they’ll easily come out.

What’s left should be plenty of old foam and the factory adhesive. The old foam can be scraped off with a plastic scraping implement. The old adhesive is the messy part and take time. Any product will work, personally I use a cheap Screwfix degreaser or elbow grease. Once all adhesive residue is remove I then wash the panel with soapy water and allow to dry over night. It’s probably an unnecessary step but I put a lot of effort in the preparation.

Hope this helps and answers your questions.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Thank you Tom.
I was hoping only the perimeter panel would have to come out, as the centre is fine.
Looks like a lot of possible clip breakages.
The specialist said the material wasn't available.
I wasn't intending to reupholster, as you are appear to say.
I have to re-use the original.
I have the perennial problem of one rear seat jammed down.
Cheers; I'll give it a go.
Keith.
 
GMH499 said:
Thank you Tom.
I was hoping only the perimeter panel would have to come out, as the centre is fine.
Looks like a lot of possible clip breakages.
The specialist said the material wasn't available.
I wasn't intending to reupholster, as you are appear to say.
I have to re-use the original.
I have the perennial problem of one rear seat jammed down.
Cheers; I'll give it a go.
Keith.
Click to expand...
Hi Keith,

As you don't have OSS then yes you can just reupholster the exterior of the panel but you'll have to dremel out the centre section first for perfect results.

A repair of sagging fabric will never last and has potential to look rather untidy at the same time. The reason the fabric is hanging down is due to the foam coming away from the foam backed headlining fabric. Ive yet to see the actual adhesive used to adhere the foam backed fabric to the biscuit fail, its really good and the issue is the foam coming away from the fabric. Any attempt to adhere the fabric to the biscuit with no foam between them can result in the adhesive soaking through the thin fabric and leaving you with a dark crusty textured eyesore.

If your foam is already coming away from the fabric then its only a matter of time before the remainder of the fabric also lets go. The only real solution is a fresh application of new foam backed headlining fabric. Your trimmer is correct in stating that the Audi specific fabric is unavailable but there are a few very close matches. That said I did find a supplier for Audi Platinum fabric in Lithuania but it was over priced and delivery was extortionate, also the age of the fabric didn't fill me full of confidnence as it'll be long past its shelf life and would possibly fail quickly.

Removing the various panels can be a challenge to remove without causing damage to the clips/fixings but it is achievable, that said Ive seen the very best of members accidentally break some clips.

You're not that far from family (Dover) who I'm visiting in a few weeks. there is a possibility that I could help remove it for you but I'll be on a tight timeline with a rather full itinerary.

I feel your pain regards stuck rear seats, Im still yet to remove the rear right seat from Project RN53. You can remove the rear pillar panel with the rear seats in, just remove the torx screw on each luggage space panel and gently pull on it enough to remove the panels above each of them.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
Thanks Tom.
I really appreciate your help.
I'm retired and live in Ramsgate.
The constant things that crop up like this headlining and probable cambelt replacement makes me wonder whether it's worth going on with the car. 166,885 miles after all.
This happened the same day after I'd spent ages sorting the rear passenger door locking with new door pillar plugs and terminals.
I was feeling good, and then the sagging trim!!!!
Good money after bad etc.
It's twist colour trim.
Cheers, Keith.
 
Last edited:
GMH499 said:
Thanks Tom.
I really appreciate your help.
I'm retired and live in Ramsgate.
The constant things that crop up like this headlining and probable cambelt replacement makes me wonder whether it's worth going on with the car. 166,885 miles after all.
Good money after bad etc.
Cheers, Keith.
Click to expand...
Hi Keith,

I wouldn’t say the replacement of the cam belt is a reason to part A2 ownership. You’ll have to do this routine maintenance on all vehicles to avoid catastrophic engine failure.

The headlining, done yourself can be completed for well under £100 with a few hours dedicated to it.

I’ll get in touch neater the time of my pending visit Sir. I’ll remove your number from the above post just to avoid any unwanted calls.

Kind regards,

Tom
 
GMH499 said:
Thanks Tom.
I really appreciate your help.
I'm retired and live in Ramsgate.
The constant things that crop up like this headlining and probable cambelt replacement makes me wonder whether it's worth going on with the car. 166,885 miles after all.
Good money after bad etc.
It's twist colour trim.
Cheers, Keith.
Click to expand...

GMH499 said:
Thanks Tom.
I really appreciate your help.
I'm retired and live in Ramsgate.
The constant things that crop up like this headlining and probable cambelt replacement makes me wonder whether it's worth going on with the car. 166,885 miles after all.
This happened the same day after I'd spent ages sorting the rear passenger door locking with new door pillar plugs and terminals.
I was feeling good, and then the sagging trim!!!!
Good money after bad etc.
It's twist colour trim.
Cheers, Keith.
Click to expand...
2work said:
Hi Keith,

I wouldn’t say the replacement of the cam belt is a reason to part A2 ownership. You’ll have to do this routine maintenance on all vehicles to avoid catastrophic engine failure.

The headlining, done yourself can be completed for well under £100 with a few hours dedicated to it.

I’ll get in touch neater the time of my pending visit Sir. I’ll remove your number from the above post just to avoid any unwanted calls.

Kind regards,

Tom
Click to expand...
I've removed the number.
 
I have a roof lining in very good condition if required ( Collection from Horsham ).
Cheers
Ami
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top