I have an original 65K mi 5-spd IROC-Z convertible. I'm looking to replace the interior carpeting. There are plenty of aftermarket magazines offering what I need. Is there a better aftermarket supplier than another? Any experience with these suppliers? Thanks everyone.

After having done this at least once I'm going to say avoid ACC like the plague. The crap lacks the OEM rubber backing and could have been formed better. Beyond that the carpet will turn green if left in the sunlight at all. Within six months my super clean grey carpet was super clean green carpet.

I'd very much like to know this also, as my car is needing new carpets, and don't want to spend $400-600 dollars for some carpet that won't match the quality of the carpet in my SAAB.

There's so many places out there it's hard to choose just who to go with, and what material to look for.

I was out of the third generation game for a few years and recently got back into them. Back then there were basically two choices for replacement carpet for these cars; ACC and Car Motorsports carpets. The latter was vastly superior to the ACC stuff.

ACC is basically the only player in the carpet world. ACC IS available with the factory-style mass backing if you ask for it. 99% of buyers don't want it because it adds weight and cost with very little additional benefit.

ACC offers their carpet in 2 different cut-pile densities, the "standard" which is 800 threads per inch, and the premium pile which is 1000 threads per inch, and is a taller pile. The premium adds 40% more fiber per square inch, plus it's taller, so you get better uniformity through the different contours of the floor. Neither is the same as the nappy OEM stuff, nor is it the same as the ultra premium stuff that you see in high-end luxury cars. I'd say it's somewhere inbetween.

Since you're more or less buying the same carpet no matter who you're buying from, your best bet in avoiding disappointment or confusion is to buy from somebody that knows the product he's selling and also knows the car you're trying to put it into. Hint: I own 2 thirdgens.

PM me for more information.

Holy Cow, Thats good information. I will be buying soon after my roll bar is put in.

So...are you speaking for the ACC carpet? How much does the better stuff usually run? Got a link? I was concerned that I was gonna end up with some off brand color of grey that wouldn't match anything. I was also wondering how to get it without that extra 75lbs rubber mat attached to it.

The ACC carpet matches the OEM coloring perfectly. Unfortunately with even moderate amounts of sun exposure, it won't for very long. If they make a better quality version of the carpet, this is the first I'm hearing of it. Not that it means much to say that. From what I understand, the Car Motorsports stuff is vastly superior. The ACC stuff is priced right, but given my previous experience, I'm not impressed with it and wouldn't buy it again.

I've had ACC carpet in my Formula since 1999. It hasn't been exposed to UV all that much, but I see no indication that the carpet is turning green. It was an exact color match when I put it in. Fit was ok for something that came out of a box and went into the car in an afternoon. Not that any of this applies, since it's been a decade since then, but I'm plenty happy with it. It looks a million times better then the yellow stained carpet it replaced.

Well these days I keep my cars in the garage. So sunlight exposure would be at a minimum for sure. With that said I'd rather buy a better product to begin with. For those people who are happy with their ACC carpet, that's great. I wish I could have counted myself among you, but I can't.

I believe in giving positive feedback where positive feedback is due. Otherwise every vendor or product out there would only have negative feedback. That said, if I were in the market for replacement carpet, I'd research a bit before I bought ACC again. As many complaints as I've read about green carpet, I would have to think ACC would have taken some action to correct the problem by now.

This is true. I installed carpet in my 1987 Trans Am sometime in 2003 or 2004. I sold the car late 2004. I've got two more third generation cars now, and both will need carpet. So if ACC has improved, I'd think about trying it in at least one of the two cars.

I'd wonder what ACC has to say about the green carpet problem.

I don't know. I recall several other people having the same problem on the forums, but I don't know what ever came from our complaints if anything.

ACC's fading carpet was a very well known issue. That's why initially I chose ACS carpet to sell instead of the ACC... it was just flat out better carpet. ACC bought ACS a couple years ago, and now uses the same Dorset carpet material that ACS used. Since ACC switched to Dorset carpet, I haven't had any issues with fading. Granted, I don't sell a ton of carpet, but I haven't had a single customer complain that his carpet was fading.

As for exact color matches... maybe. ACC has a LOT of color options, but they aren't necessarily exactly the same as the OEM colors. The best bet is to buy from somebody who can send you some color samples so that you can decide for yourself. Most places pick what they think is the closest match, and when you order for your interior color, that's what you get. Everybody's tastes are a little different, and what that person picked out as the "closest" may not be what you like best, especially considering that other materials in your car have probably faded over the years too.

Fast 383, as a rough estimate, the premium carpet tends to run approximately 50% higher in cost than the standard stuff, though it varies by application.
--Jim

Jim's said it best and definitely knows what he's talking about.
The rubberized backing is available as an optional upgrade but most people don't go for it because it raises the price and makes things a bit less flexible during installation. Colors are something we like to leave to the customer as well; what I think is correct may not be what you think, especially when you've gotten used to the 15+ yr old carpet you have. But that's why we offer the samples if people are unsure about what they want. Heck, I'm going to be taking a few swatches home when I go to change mine in the TA; I gotta live with it, I want it to be exactly what I want.
As for the fading, I think I've come across that issue once in the 3 years I've been personally working with ACC; pretty sure its a non-issue with their current process.

The initial colors match the OEM carpet (in new condition) perfectly. That was never a problem that I had with the ACC carpet. The main issue I had was the carpet turning green just from being exposed to sunlight. Granted this was a problem 6+ years ago. For all I know this is no longer a problem on the newer carpets.

Well I priced out the carpet for my car from ACC choosing the Essex material which is the premium carpet, with a massback padding option and the grand total for 1991 CHEVROLET CAMARO CARPET COMPLETE WITH CONSOLE CUT OUT, 1097A CHARCOAL ESSEX is $786.10. That's over half of what I payed for the car! Ouch.

So then I looked at the Car Motorsports carpet selection and their 82-92 F-Body INTERIOR & CARGO Compartment Set in Charcoal W/OEM Rubber Backing on Both Interior and Cargo/OEM Plus Ultra Premium Carpet only comes to $439.95! That's a huge difference in price.

I really would love to get some samples from each to compare the quality of the products, but Car Motorsports seams the way to go based on price alone.

Check with a reseller.. thats their MSRP, like most products you can find it for a lot less than that.

I think Hawks Third gen sells it for $250.

http://www.hawksthirdgenparts.com/carpet.aspx

I spoke with a rep from ACC last year. I challenged her on the carpet color change issue and her response was that they knew about the issue and it was resolved. The problem was when the carpet was dyed, it wasn't sealed correctly or wasn't dyed correctly or something to that effect. She said that they were warrantying the carpets if you bought your carpet during that problem time. If you have carpet fade issues, try calling them and see what they'll do about it.

Here's a post I made about this before:
http://www.thirdgen.org/techboard/in...t-quality.html (ACC Carpet Quality)

I have found that the parts i have been getting through J C Witney have been pretty darn good. worth taking a look at. john

I have an ACC Titanium gray one in my 92 Mustang,It fits awesome and has not faded at all or even a hint of changing color.I'd be the first one to complain...believe me.

We also sell the mass backed ones.Just PM Dan or I and we can help with any questions or concerns that you may have.

Free colors samples are also available upon request.