I have an 88 trans am i just bought with a hideous grey interior. I am converting it to a black interior. I bought new headliner and front carpet. I'm painting the moldings black as well. my rear carpet is in excellent shape. so my question is: can you dye carpet from grey to black?and if so what kind of dye should i use???

 

i believe they sell upholstery and carpet dye at local autoparts stores, probably need a bunch of cans but i've seen it done.

 

yep, works well. clean the carpet really well first, rent a steam cleaner, etc.
spray, brush it into the fibers (says how on the can), and just keep giving it coats until it's the shade to match (or how you'd like it).

 

I tried autozone, pepboys, murrays, napa, and carquest. none of them carry it. i think i just have to order some online

 

I would buy new carpet dyed may look good but, it never will as a new. It also may look bad if you have dirt under the carpet, im not talking the dirt you see, im meaning just a little powder that doesnt want to come up.

 

i only paid $1300 for the car so i'm not looking for a show winner appearance. its my beater trans am. all my money goes into my 79 trans am. as long as the carpet looks good from far away, thats all i'm concerned about.

 

i know for a fact that murray's and pep boys in joliet on jefferson street both sell the upholstery and carpet paint/dye whatever you want to call it by their spray paint cans for body paint.

 

If you dont car that much about it, then i would dye it, but just a few shades darker than the original color.

 

I've done it. It looks better than worn out nasty original carpet, but it doesn't take long for it to wear off and when it does, it looks even worse than it did before you painted it.

 

xpndbl3 - i tried the murrays on collins st in joliet not the one on jefferson. i'll try there tomorrow. and the pep boys was the one in orland. orland said they used to carry it but not anymore. Thanks

 

well if you were in orland park there is an autozone on 159th street in orland near 159th and harlem, a little east of harlem i believe that sells it since i was in there yesterday and some guy was asking for it. Personally I'd just call ahead to stores in the phone book and keep asking employees until you get a manager if the clerks don't know what you're talking about. saves the trip and gas to get it.

 

yea ive just been calling the stores.

 

Why not just have a local parts store order it? Anybody that carries a particular brand of paint can easily order what they don't have in stock.

Plasti-Kote makes a Fabric Color paint, so just go somewhere that's got Plasti-Kote and ask them to order it.

 

I used to work in Hell (AutoZone), they have the fabric spray paint stuff you are lookin for. I used some on some carpet out of my 87 Trans Am and it did a pretty good job, I was happy with it. Just vacuum it up and clean it real well, then spray.

 

thanks guys. when the dye dries, is it gonna make the carpet feel really hard and not like carpet at all? or is this stuff pretty good?

 

No, it will not be hard and stiff. MIGHT feel a tad stiffer, but it'll still feel like carpet, not plywood.

 

In my experiences, if you use a bunch of light coats, it'll feel decent, though maybe a bit more like plastic instead of carpet.

If you lay it on too heavy, it'll turn into a solid pile of crap.