Headlining cloth/kit WTB

[Ahmedsinc 414]

Where is the best place to go for new fabric to redo the headlining on my E36? Tried using curtain cloth last time (got it for nix so thought it worth a try) and unsurprisingly the fabric was too thick and the thermal lining disintegrated care of the glue

I've been through spotlight a couple times but don't really know the first thing about material so am a bit lost. Alternatively, does anyone have a black headliner kit for sale? Will need to include pillar trims. Ta!

[Mr2low 57]

Lol i f**king hate spotlight but I did my rear parcel tray in a really short velvet lol the had no suede but micro suede would be ideal the velvet i got actually looks mint

[MLM 57]

Just did mine using a grey knit from spotlight which matches very well. Nice grey knit on one side and a white/grey fleece on the other. Its in the fleece section on card bails.

A tip to remove the oem glue is to sprinkle some baking flour on it before brushing off. Takes the stick out of it and stops it clogging your brush and smears. Just dust it all off then seal with one coat of spray glue before final glue and fabric

[Ahmedsinc 414]

Mine was that f***ed the glue and foam backing came away with a hearth brush

[MLM 57]

Sounds about right. I did my compact the same way before i sold it and ended up clogging the brush and smearing brown gluey foam crap across the head lining backing which took ages to clean all the little bits up so it was good to go. The next time i tried a bit of flour which meant it all balled off nicely, no smearing, streaks or little bits hanging on. 3 minutes to clean off the glue instead of 30 minutes. Home baker BMW mod haha

[Ahmedsinc 414]

Sounds about right. I did my compact the same way before i sold it and ended up clogging the brush and smearing brown gluey foam crap across the head lining backing which took ages to clean all the little bits up so it was good to go. The next time i tried a bit of flour which meant it all balled off nicely, no smearing, streaks or little bits hanging on. 3 minutes to clean off the glue instead of 30 minutes. Home baker BMW mod haha

Haha, nice Was really surprised how little effort it took to remove all the gunge, virtually fell off by itself. What glue did you use? Last time I used a Bostik aerosol product, supposedly good for fabrics but I'm not overly convinced. Wasn't particularly cheap either

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2122]

Sounds about right. I did my compact the same way before i sold it and ended up clogging the brush and smearing brown gluey foam crap across the head lining backing which took ages to clean all the little bits up so it was good to go. The next time i tried a bit of flour which meant it all balled off nicely, no smearing, streaks or little bits hanging on. 3 minutes to clean off the glue instead of 30 minutes. Home baker BMW mod haha

ha, having just done an E34 touring, yep know exactly what you mean. was a pretty sh*t job, but better than it was. i reused the old fabric. next time, going to face up and pay the OEM price i think.

[MLM 57]

Used a ados f2 high strength spray. About one and a half cans including pillars and a sealing coat on the head liner. Sill not cheap i think its £25 a can. Used the same on my parents one about 6 years ago and its still holding well

[MLM 57]

Mine cost about $120 DIY equal cost glue and fabric. Its in my E36 project car so im not trying to achieve 100% OEM look but you would need to be a BMW geek to notice as its looks like it was a factory installation. I prefer the sloghtly darker grey as its a closer match to the dash than the factory grey anyway.

[jom 96]

Try Le Mans Auto Fabrics, 8 Martin Square Wellington 04 384 8616, email Kosta@lemans.co.nz

[Ahmedsinc 414]

Try Le Mans Auto Fabrics, 8 Martin Square Wellington 04 384 8616, email Kosta@lemans.co.nz

Will do, thanks for the tip

[Ahmedsinc 414]

I was quoted $400 today for headliner and all six pillars in foam (or whatever) backed fabric.

The one that looked totally OEM was on display but apparently no longer available. I'm not convinced so I'm going to look around.

How much would good fabric and glue cost to do all that yourself?

Edit: :$40 for same colour rear shelf, non-foam.

Given I need to use my available funds for the upcoming engine swap I think it'll be another DIY job. I used black fabric spraypaint to extremely good effect, I'm definitely wanting black as I keep rubbing my head on the liner as I get in and out. The old grey one looked pretty nasty by the time it finally fell off

Mine cost about $120 DIY equal cost glue and fabric. Its in my E36 project car so im not trying to achieve 100% OEM look but you would need to be a BMW geek to notice as its looks like it was a factory installation. I prefer the sloghtly darker grey as its a closer match to the dash than the factory grey anyway.

Whats better to use? A lighter or a heavier fabric? Am really annoyed the first attempt was a total fail, mind you it serves me right for using curtain cloth

[MLM 57]

Fabric weight is not important, stretch is what you after to allow you to get arround the corners without wrinkles. A bit of thickness dosnt hurt to cover any blemishes but a dense material wont help. Hope that makes sense.

i think the description of mine was a knit like sweatshirt fabric. Sounds unapealing but worked well.

if you want black the fabric i used comes in black too.

[vtgts300kw 90]

If you want Black Macrosuede, a good place to get it from is a trade ( interiors/ upholstery etc ) fabric supplier. I'm actually using some for a job at the moment and I think it's about $17 a square meter wholesale. I know a couple of weeks ago they were out of stock but had more arriving from Australia. Spotlight etc don't usually carry Macrosuede. The suede I'm using is as black as you can get and a lot of others I've seen ( looked at pretty much all the commercially available suedes ) look black in isolation, but aren't truly black.

If you want I can find out tomorrow how much it is, and whether or not their stock has come in. If it hasn't it would be 7 days away.

[Ahmedsinc 414]

Fabric weight is not important, stretch is what you after to allow you to get arround the corners without wrinkles. A bit of thickness dosnt hurt to cover any blemishes but a dense material wont help. Hope that makes sense.

i think the description of mine was a knit like sweatshirt fabric. Sounds unapealing but worked well.

if you want black the fabric i used comes in black too.

Perfect sense - ta!

If you want Black Macrosuede, a good place to get it from is a trade ( interiors/ upholstery etc ) fabric supplier. I'm actually using some for a job at the moment and I think it's about $17 a square meter wholesale. I know a couple of weeks ago they were out of stock but had more arriving from Australia. Spotlight etc don't usually carry Macrosuede. The suede I'm using is as black as you can get and a lot of others I've seen ( looked at pretty much all the commercially available suedes ) look black in isolation, but aren't truly black.

If you want I can find out tomorrow how much it is, and whether or not their stock has come in. If it hasn't it would be 7 days away.

$17/m2 sounds reasonable, would guess about 5m would comfortably do an E36. I'm not in a massive hurry so another week ain't gonna kill me Probably need to get it sorted before the end of this month for the WoF, I have a funny feeling they'll fail it without the headliner & pillar trims! Much obliged

[vtgts300kw 90]

I'll check pricing and stock tomorrow. Can grab a few samples ( 150x100mm ish ) of various darker colors if you like. Send me a PM if you want me to grab some.