Quick Question On Headliner Refurbish

[Spruce500e]

Ok I read a number of the headliner refurbishment threads and had a question. Mine has an underlayment of foam like everyone else and some of foam is on the fiberboard and some remains on the headliner. I presume all this material needs to come off both surfaces for a solid adhesion with the new glue? Is the headliner actually reusable thinking to remove the foam left will be tedious if not impossible to remove all of the foam is that why some are recommending alcantara instead? Thinking may defer to upholstery shop as my patience for this is low.

Thoughts and thanks in advance.

 

[gerryvz]

This is a job that is best left to professionals. I considered alcantara last year when I redid my headliner but instead had the shop go with a more traditional MB headliner material.


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[Hollybrook]

If you find a good shop, please let me know. I am nearby and also need to have my headliner redone. I will be waiting for spring to do this work.

 

[Trae]

Looking for a headliner shop in/near Hickory/Charlotte, NC.

 

[Spruce500e]

This is a job that is best left to professionals. I considered alcantara last year when I redid my headliner but instead had the shop go with a more traditional MB headliner material.


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I am VERY quickly coming to this same conclusion

If you find a good shop, please let me know. I am nearby and also need to have my headliner redone. I will be waiting for spring to do this work.

I have one place was supposed to go see today but couldnt make it there in chantilly. Will go by next week as my B pillers also need help too.

 

[Hollybrook]

My brother in law had the headliner in his Volvo replaced about 10 years ago by a shop near Fairfax Circle. It was a nice job and held up until the car was sold outside our family a few months ago. I think the shop is still there and can find out more if your shop in Chantilly falls through.

 

[Spruce500e]

My brother in law had the headliner in his Volvo replaced about 10 years ago by a shop near Fairfax Circle. It was a nice job and held up until the car was sold outside our family a few months ago. I think the shop is still there and can find out more if your shop in Chantilly falls through.

Thanks man

 

[gerryvz]

If in Houston, West Side Upholstery is the best in town. I paid $600 each for my E500 and my 560SEC, but it's been 100% worth it and they a stellar job on both cars. Other shops charge in the $300-400 range, but I went with the best and shop with the highest recommendations.

Cheers,
Gerry

 

[8899]

My brother in law had the headliner in his Volvo replaced about 10 years ago by a shop near Fairfax Circle. It was a nice job and held up until the car was sold outside our family a few months ago. I think the shop is still there and can find out more if your shop in Chantilly falls through.

I've heard positive things about this upholstery shop:

Pollet's Auto upholstery
3131 Draper Dr Bay F
Fairfax, VA 22031
703-278-9436
​

 

[Spruce500e]

I've heard positive things about this upholstery shop:

Pollet's Auto upholstery
3131 Draper Dr Bay F
Fairfax, VA 22031
703-278-9436
​

Thanks for the referrel. Address is near FFX circle wonder same that Hollybrook was thinking of

EDIT: just called and spoke with shop phone quote wasnt bad at all so Ill make my rounds to them next week.

 

[Spruce500e]

If in Houston, West Side Upholstery is the best in town. I paid $600 each for my E500 and my 560SEC, but it's been 100% worth it and they a stellar job on both cars. Other shops charge in the $300-400 range, but I went with the best and shop with the highest recommendations.

Cheers,
Gerry

So you had the material replaced? I am being told they will not reuse the old material.

 

[gerryvz]

My shop said they would NOT re-use the old material. I had plenty of choice of replacements and went with a fabric of similar shade to the original grayish color.

Tried alcantara but in the end just couldn't pull the pin & do it. It just didn't feel right for the character & generation of the car.

Personal taste.


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[Spruce500e]

My shop said they would NOT re-use the old material. I had plenty of choice of replacements and went with a fabric of similar shade to the original grayish color.

Tried alcantara but in the end just couldn't pull the pin & do it. It just didn't feel right for the character & generation of the car.

Personal taste.


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thank you

my b pillers are also separating those can be reglued though right? I thought I saw a post as a DIY to do that and reuse the existing material successfully I believe they said tey wouldn't reuse that either but think I read is a fairly easy DIY

 

[vatc5637]

thank you

my b pillers are also separating those can be reglued though right? I thought I saw a post as a DIY to do that and reuse the existing material successfully I believe they said tey wouldn't reuse that either but think I read is a fairly easy DIY

The re-glue is not difficult. The issue you need to be mindful of is snapping off the clips that hold the upper part of the pillar cover to the doorframe. The clips are metal but they are attached to the cover by a small bit of plastic that snaps off easily when you attempt to remove the cover from the car frame. Der Furor has a good DIY on repairing the covers, and the factory manual also has a section on a similar repair. Mine were broken when I had the headliner replaced. The shop did a good job on the headliner itself, but snapped the clips off both door pillars.

My re-glue is holding up well thus far, but they've only been through a single summer heat/humidity cycle. BTW, I used the 3M upholstery glue discussed in the door pocket vinyl re-glue thread.

 

[vatc5637]

My shop said they would NOT re-use the old material . . .

+1, I ended choosing a black woven polyester fabric the shop had in stock. I liked it because it had some extra thickness to it, not quite like the foam backed OE material (when new), but more so than the alcantara they showed me. I also wanted a black headliner (personal taste, don't know why they put a gray headliner in the otherwise black interior). Painted the grab handles black to match.

 

[jhodg5ck]

I have a shop here that does Alcantera (the REAL deal) for rather reasonable IMHO... I especially like them as they know how to trim the material so that it lays properly/is not under and undue stress from being fittied/conformed to the curves etc..

If you are doing the headliner/sunroof..I would also strongly consider doing the A, B and C pillars.

jono

 

[Raffaelli]

If in Houston, West Side Upholstery is the best in town. I paid $600 each for my E500 and my 560SEC, but it's been 100% worth it and they a stellar job on both cars. Other shops charge in the $300-400 range, but I went with the best and shop with the highest recommendations.

Cheers,
Gerry

Was that the total job, or did you pull the headliner?

I need to redo it in my car, and don't mind pulling it myself. I'm in Houston as well...

 

[Ron500E]

If in Houston, West Side Upholstery is the best in town. I paid $600 each for my E500 and my 560SEC, but it's been 100% worth it and they a stellar job on both cars. Other shops charge in the $300-400 range, but I went with the best and shop with the highest recommendations.

Cheers,
Gerry

That's pretty much the same price I got at the best shop in Chicago for a 560 SEC headliner.

Ron

 

[gerryvz]

No, the $600 was West Side Upholstery doing all the work, labor and all materials included. I just dropped off the car and picked it up a couple of days later. They really did a nice job on both of my cars.

 

[Spruce500e]

Met with local shop think I'm gonna change up a bit and not use vinyl spent long time looking at options at shop and the GAHH materials are accurate but no foam backing and I'm not crazy bout putting vinyl back in the car. Gonna make decision and order tomorrow and have work done next week if weather holds out. Was gonna wait til spring but shop says this is their slow time and they can take their time plus it's an early bday present to me.

Happy new year folks I'll report back next week once completed

 

[s4cruiser]

+1, I ended choosing a black woven polyester fabric the shop had in stock. I liked it because it had some extra thickness to it, not quite like the foam backed OE material (when new), but more so than the alcantara they showed me. I also wanted a black headliner (personal taste, don't know why they put a gray headliner in the otherwise black interior). Painted the grab handles black to match.

Curious to what was used to paint the grab handles? I've got a fresh black alcantera headliner but still light gray grab handles.

 

[vatc5637]

Curious to what was used to paint the grab handles? I've got a fresh black alcantera headliner but still light gray grab handles.

IIRC, I used Krylon rattle can semi-gloss black from Advanced A/P. Nothing special as I was in a hurry to get them painted before the Atlanta GTG. If I were to do it now, I think I'd try to order from one of the internet auto paint websites using the MB factory color code (though not matching my exterior paint code [199]) which I think would have differed from the headliner material color I used (more of an 040), plus I'd see if I could get them to add a little plasticizer to make the paint more flexible. I wasn't overly concerned about the paint flaking off since I figured: a) the handles basically are out of sight, out of mind (mostly); and b) I rarely have passengers so they never get used. Frankly, even if the shade of the handles was slightly off its really hard to tell in anything but mid-summer direct sunlight.

 

[makemann]

Curious to what was used to paint the grab handles? I've got a fresh black alcantera headliner but still light gray grab handles.

A friend tried SEM interior paint (no affiliation) with good results: http://www.semproducts.com/automotive-trim-paints

Prepping is key though.

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[s4cruiser]

Much appreciated. I've used SEM exterior products in the past and have been happy. Ordered their Classic Coat and Vinyl Prep products...will report back once my handles have been painted.

 

[Spruce500e]

Met with local shop think I'm gonna change up a bit and not use vinyl spent long time looking at options at shop and the GAHH materials are accurate but no foam backing and I'm not crazy bout putting vinyl back in the car. Gonna make decision and order tomorrow and have work done next week if weather holds out. Was gonna wait til spring but shop says this is their slow time and they can take their time plus it's an early bday present to me.

Happy new year folks I'll report back next week once completed

Had headliner and B pillers done for a few weeks now and very pleased wasnt worth hassle me to reglue the B pillers. Also decided to bump up to alcantara for few $ more so glad I did

 

[makemann]

Had headliner and B pillers done for a few weeks now and very pleased wasnt worth hassle me to reglue the B pillers. Also decided to bump up to alcantara for few $ more so glad I did

Photos of the alcantara installed?


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[Spruce500e]

Photos of the alcantara installed?


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Ill try and snap some over next weekend. On travel this week so cant shoot anything right now.

 

[jaymanek]

Ive had alcantara installed on many of my cars. You have to be careful they use the correct thin material on the sunroof liner as otherwise its sure to jam up.... Been there, done it!

 

[Spruce500e]

Here is a shot I saved on my iPhone it was the best I could do at the time and the car is in the garage and will be for some time until all other work is completed. Sorry its upside down but you all get the idea.

 

[Spruce500e]

Ive had alcantara installed on many of my cars. You have to be careful they use the correct thin material on the sunroof liner as otherwise its sure to jam up.... Been there, done it!

Yup I have it on most of my other cars as well. Seems fine to me and I dont open it much anyway and have a very lengthy warranty on it as well so Im good

 

[janos_z]

It's time for me to tackle this on my car as well. When I was getting my estimate at a high-rated upholstery shop here in SF, the owner told me that he's not super familiar with MB sunroofs, so if I want to change out the headliner over the sunroof panel (given that the replacement headliner isn't OEM, I don't see any other option but to replace the entire surface, sunroof included), I might want to have my mechanic remove the panel and then drive the car over. He said he could try to remove it himself, but he cannot accept responsibility for anything that breaks as a result.

Is this typical? Or should I look for another shop? If yes, anyone in the Bay Area have any recommendations for a good upholstery shop for headliner replacement?

 

[janos_z]

Ok, I just called another shop (Metzel's) and they said the rear window needs to be removed as well, and quoted $1500-$2000 for the job.

 

[gerryvz]

The rear window DOES NOT need to be removed to re-do the headliner. It will cost $350-600 for a quality job. I paid $600 apiece for my 560SEC and E500 a while back to replace the headliners with the materials of my choice and have been extremely happy with the work. Probably a bit toward the high end, but I chose the best and most highly recommended interior shop in Houston. Other places I looked at were charging in the $350-450 range.

Geez, redoing the sunroof is the easiest part of the job. The interior fabric/headliner panel just snaps right off the bottom of the sunroof and is then recovered. MUCH easier than the rest of the headliner. You can remove the sunroof headliner panel yourself, in about 45 seconds.

If a shop admits to you they are not familiar with MBs, you MUST take it somewhere that is. Trust me, you don't want a shop "learning" on your car.

Cheers,
Gerry

 

[Spruce500e]

I had same experience with a high end body shop telling me I either had to remove front windshield or rear window and told me likely one will break upon removal.

I promptly walked away concerned and decided to confirmed in factory manual and it plainly shows it comes out through the front passenger door. That confirmed my gut the body shop was even more of a bunch of morons than I thought and found my guy in Chantilly. Oh and they are same folks that quoted me $4000 to paint all the lowers and front and rear bumpers.

 

[jhodg5ck]

Just pull the bits yourself...the C pillars are the trickiest part... Anyone have a pic of the back side? Seeing it before hand helps a Lot!

I pull my own bits and bring them in. No shop is going to be uber familiar with a 124 these days

Jono

 

[janos_z]

Thanks for the input! I found a shop that looks good and says they're comfortable doing this: Val's Auto Upholstery in the Mission. I chose a woven fabric instead of a fuzzy one, to more closely approximate the OEM vinyl's appearance. Dropped the car off this morning; I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

Oh, and yes, pulling the bits myself would have been the "proper" way to do it, but I've never done this before so the chances of me breaking something were too high for my comfort...

Here are some before photos -- sorry for the poor quality, but I think you get the idea.

 

[janos_z]

Here are the "after" pictures. I'm pleased with the results overall. I think the color and fabric weave are a good replacement for the OEM stuff.

The streaks along the sunroof panel are not noticeable in person. Given that this is a light-colored fabric, I hope that soiling/staining won't be a big problem as time goes on and I use the sunroof... Time will tell.

 

[Glen]

That came out very nice, Janos. What was the total cost?

 

[david hendy]

If anyone is considering the headliner repair, I have a stack of old sagging headliners that could be re-covered.

This would decrease downtime, take out the old one and replace with the recovered one on the same day.

They are FREE to anyone who wants to come and COLLECT one.

 

[janos_z]

That came out very nice, Janos. What was the total cost?

Thanks, Glen. Cost was $600 and it took a day and a half in the shop.

 

[gerryvz]

Thanks, Glen. Cost was $600 and it took a day and a half in the shop.

Exactly what it took/cost me at the best interior shop in the Houston area.

 

[Zuffenhausen]

Here is a shot I saved on my iPhone it was the best I could do at the time and the car is in the garage and will be for some time until all other work is completed. Sorry its upside down but you all get the idea.

What was the total cost of the Alcantara job?

 

[JSUNDARAM]

Any idea what adding Dynamat add to the $600? A south Bay shop quoted $1000 for Alcantara + Dynamat.

 

[Stevester 500E]

Does anyone know if they redo headliners in alcantara down in Mexico?

 

[8899]

Any idea what adding Dynamat add to the $600? A south Bay shop quoted $1000 for Alcantara + Dynamat.

Good question. I can say with certainty that my W210 is more quiet than my E500. With that said, I'm not sure if adding Dynamat to the cabin ceiling/roof is the first place I would go to reduce wind/road noise.

 

[jhodg5ck]

If anyone is considering the headliner repair, I have a stack of old sagging headliners that could be re-covered.

This would decrease downtime, take out the old one and replace with the recovered one on the same day.

They are FREE to anyone who wants to come and COLLECT one.

Wish you were closer...I'd grab a few!

 

[Spruce500e]

What was the total cost of the Alcantara job?

Somewhere around $520 including B Pillers

 

[nocfn]

Any idea what adding Dynamat add to the $600? A south Bay shop quoted $1000 for Alcantara + Dynamat.

On my 91 SEC, I did the dynamat on my floor plan because I steam cleaned and dyed - refreshed my carpet. It is a lot of work to do with seats, console and duct work and demo old soundproof. The work is tedious but just labor, not a difficult DIY. So being that the seats are coming out and duct work, console etc you best be sure they are experienced with your car. Many chances to hide problems of novice mb installers. It is a fair price IMO if you are comfortable with the shop, high end demanding clientele etc.


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