86LT1

iTrader: (1)

I'm finally at the finishing stages of my ltx swap and all thats left to do is get it dyno tuned... my next step is to replace all the carpeting in the car and weather stripping. Just curious if anyone has done the carpet replacement, did you run into any problems I should look out for or any tips would be a great help. Also where did you guys that did this decide to get your new carpet? I've seen the replacements on ebay and stuff but i have no idea what kind of quality those are and I'd like to get nice stuff. Also my head liner is now at the point where it is starting to become unrolled from the T-top bar and looks kinda trashy when the t-tops are off. any info on how to replace the head liner would be a lot of help. this will be the first time doing any of this stuff so be as detailed as you would like haha. Any links for forums with people who have done this would be nice also! Thanks for the help guys.

Bobby_80s

iTrader: (2)

try yearone or hawksthirdgen parts

or go to a local auto interior restoration shop

whatever gives you the better deal

getting the old carpet out will be kind of a pain because in certain spots its bonded to the floor pan, just gota cut/rip it off


this is also where you may find rust or holes in the floor.

putting in carpet is easy its two pieces front and trunk pieces

headliner is now made out of abs plastic and can be made with a number of colored fabric of your choice.

its a nice easy project you can install at home

have fun

86LT1

iTrader: (1)

thanks, ya i'm gonna start looking around for the carpet peices with those people, can you also get the headliner and material from hawks and yearone too?

Bobby_80s

iTrader: (2)

yes but i got my carpet from a auto interior shop in my town and headliner set from ebay im happy with both

Bobby_80s

iTrader: (2)

only problem with some headliner kits tehy either dont fit perfectly but good enough or like in my case the holes for the sun visers r backwards and i had to do some quick cutting for everything to fit

86LT1

iTrader: (1)

where i decide to purchase things from I would like them to fit perfectly, even tho i know that is very rarely the case for a lot of things haha. But It's good to find out about the headliner from ebay. I'd like to install my carpeting myself only because i like to do my own projects. I'll keep looking around and any more suggestions would be a great help! thanks

sadler

Can you install carpet with bonding spray?

FormulaL98

You could use that to glue it to the floor but there isnt really much need to if you are using carpet that was pre formed (like the kits from Hawk's etc.) I did the passenger area carpet in my car and simply dropped it in, trimed a little around the edges and put all the trim back in place.

gotabekidding

Unless you intend to be upside down most of the time

Glue really isn't necesary for carpet

Gravity seems to work best!

Once you put the console and seats in it should be put in place

Wool carpet being the best with the poly loop style being the lowest grade out there

The heavier the ounce the thicker the carpet

tony_cogliandro

iTrader: (3)

here are a few tips. have a digital camera with you and as you take parts off snap a picture, take the screws, and there are a lot of them, put them into a baggie, and put a note inside saying where they came from. is takes some time but believe me it will make it a lot easier to put it together.
take the front seats out first then the rear seats and backs. you will have a lot more room. just unscrew the seatbelt guides from the headrests to get them out. put those screws back into the headrests for use later. put the nuts back onto the floor with the bolts for the seats. the nuts are not as hard on your butt as the bolts are.
and have some thick blankets - you will be sitting in the car and there are bolts and when you take the plastic rocker plate covers off, you will have sharp edges there. cover them with lots of terrycloth towels.
before you take off the plastic rocker covers, take off the seat belts from the floor. that way you will not break the plastic rocker covers when you take them off. if they are broken, order some good used one before you start the project.
take off both lower dash covers and put the original screws back where they go and they will be out of the way but handy for when you put them back. on the drivers side there is also a screw down by the fuses. i like to take the entire lower cover off instead of spliting the drivers side.
you need to take the lower drivers side dash cover off to get to the upper left hand screw on the face plate of the console. also remember to take pics so that you remember that the radio and the air conditioner screw into both the face plate and the brackets under the face plate. you will know what i mean after you start. remember pics and baggies with notes.
next take off the side kick panels. there is a screw right in the middle so i suggest that you pull the carpet back, carefully, you can always get some spray glue from pepboys and glue it back.
AGAIN REMEMBER THE SCREWS AND BAGGIES, there are over 100 and they are all different sizes.
take off the front seat belts from the center.
HERE IS A HINT. BEFORE YOU LAY THE NEW CARPET, BUT ALL THE BIG SCREWS IN, SO THAT YOU CAN FEEL THE BOLTS AND MAKE AN X CUT THERE AND IT WILL BE IN EXACTLY THE CORRECT POSITION.
to take the console off you will need to get the hand breat verticle to the floor, so that the you can lift the console off easily. remember to take off the screws inside of the console box, there are two in the bottom.
the back seats are bolted in the center. take out the one screw for each seat.
now if you are not going to go to leather single back seat rests, you will have an very ugly bar in the center console. that bar there for the split seats. if you are going to put in a single seat, the bar will have to be ground off, otherwise you will have to cut the carpet to accomodate them.
take off the split seat backs.
now you need to take off the plastic rear side panels. remember the screw in the upper door jam.
now you will need to take off all of the rear plastics on the passenter side. the come off easy. the drivers side can be unscrewed but you have one heck of a time taking it off. i left it on. there is a screw about mid way on the glove bos, at the top. there is also one about 4 or 5 inches behind the rear seat belt on the drivers side.
you will also need to take off the rear plastic. there are 2 screws holding it. you have some wires inside so move carefully and disconnect them. one is for the light, and it is a pain to take off but not as big a pain as the touch pad that connects to the hatch and completes the circuit. careful is the word.
take the carpet out of the box the minute you get it. it is flat in the factory and it is folded to send. take it out and spread it out. my wife hated it but i used the front room and laid weights on the edges to bend them flat. as the carpet was new and never saw a shoe print she did not object too much. took about 48 hours to get it right.
i installed the front carpet first. i folded it in half left to right, put it into the car and figured out how far up it went. then i made a small cut in the center where the console goes - just a slit big enough for the break and shifter to go through. slid it through and make the cut a little larger. slowly and very carefully cut more and more until it fits and at the same time gives you access to each place where you have to bolt the console down. this take a lot of time and you have to keep pushing and shifting the carpet until you get the best possible fit. this will take a lot of time. there will be bumps in the carpet, etc, so when you finally get it right and AFTER you cut holes for all the screws, then start using the glue.
remember you will need to cut the sides. cut little pieces and start in the middle and cut the outsides last.
the back is different. the front of the back piece has a sewn border, so place that first and then move back, cutting only after you have a good fit.
DONT GLUE THE PART THAT GOES UNDER THE BACK SEAT REST! you will need to keep that available for moving out of the way, in case you want to take out the rear struts.
get the best possible carpet, and get the rubber backing, it will keep it quiet.
good luck.

neeb_usmc

iTrader: (2)

hey Tony Great how to.. I am doing this today and am using your advice. thanks

MI ROC-Z

Good luck with your install... I am thinking about replacing the carpeting in my IROC so this is a useful thread to come across.

Have you taken pics during the process, if so please post so we can see!

neeb_usmc

iTrader: (2)

I'll post pictures

mantaguy

iTrader: (5)

I got mine from 1A,both the carpet and the headliner,you have to take in mind the shipping charges,those items are considered over sized for shipping,see what they charge for that.1A has free shipping and they all sell the same ACC carpet.I'd recommend the carpet with the mass backing it forms better and it still has the insulation connected to it.
Good Luck with your project
Correction!!head liner from Classic.

ZZ3 Z28

I've replaced the carpet in my '86 within the past couple months with a front/rear set from 1A that went in real nice. I laid in some heat/insulation matting first from Thermo Guard. The headliner is removed right now so I can replace that as well. I have the material but am waiting on the sail panels and sun visors to show up. Don't forget the front clips for the headliner; I broke two of them removing the headliner. I got new ones from Classic Industries.

As for the headliner board, I repaired a couple problem areas with cardboard and glue to help strengthen it up a little. I plan on using the original from the car. It wasn't in that bad of shape. But be careful when you take it out. It can be fragile.

1Aauto

Looks really good. Thanks for checking us out.

Tony

neeb_usmc

iTrader: (2)

Before you start make sure you have at least 4-6 hours if your doing this alone and have never done it before

Start with the kick panels, then the seat belt guides, then the front seats. then seat belts(place screws in separate bags, and if you can screw them back in do that just so you don't forget where things go)

Then take out center council which involves removing 2 bolts in the council itself and a bolt under your shifter boot.(take the two screws out on top of the council and the one under your ash tray) then you can get to the 3rd bolt under your shifter boot. then you have to take your radio/heater piece out completely and just let your heater sit(don't unplug any of it)

back seats are next(easy part) each bottom has one bolt then your backrest has 2 bolts. take the center seat belts out, and the two back seat arm rests will need to be removed also

start pulling your carpet front to back

now you need to start with the front first and make holes in the carpeting for your center council, seat belts etc. (this part is stressful but your past the half way point so be patient.)

I started with the back seats first, then you need to put back your center council which takes a little bit of time plugging in things if your have auto windows


put the kick panels back then the seat belts, then I put the passenger seat in
then the driver seat DONE! Hope this helps guys

rushtk

Sweet write up.... now can you show me again using mine...grin..