ceiling liner loose at back window

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pasadena_commut

New member
Hopefully this falls under "detailing".



The ceiling liner on my 2003 Civic hybrid has peeled off for about an inch at the back edge where it meets the top of the back window. It does this only at the center of the car for about two feet total in width, not extending to the pillars. In the rear view mirror it looks a bit like somebody's shirt is untucked and hanging over the back of their pants. It flaps a bit in the breeze, which is kind of annoying since the motion in the mirror catches my eye.



Looking up at the part of the liner that is now exposed all I see is some crumbly old foam rubber. (Some of which dropped in my eye when I foolishly ran a finger over it.) The fabric possibly wrapped around the edge and over the top originally, but it is hard to tell, it may have just been glued flush to the edge. I am not confident that spray adhesive is going to work, given the crumbly state of the "foundation".



Any suggestions on how to fix this, or at least stop the problem from spreading? Preferably in situ, since I would prefer not to have to pull all the pillar covers to remove the whole liner.



Thank you.
 
Pasadena, IME, a complete repair is the only true solution. Spot repairs don't last. You can find these little retaining pins on eBay:



Upholstery Twist Pins Bedruffle Bedskirt Craft Drapery Headliner 15 Pcs | eBay



They don't look so great but do prevent the damage from spreading.



If you can remove the "shell", which sometimes is a huge deal requiring the removal of glass, you can take it to a local shop and have it stripped and re-covered for a couple hundred. The cars I've dealt with in the past use a shell that is covered and installed in one piece. Don't know if that's the case with most modern cars.



Can you post this on your Civic forum to see what's involved with the R/R? I'm sure someone will have experience with it.
 
I can testify trying to do a spot repair wont last. I had the headliner replaced in two vehicles last year. It was several hundred dollars. The foam just disintegrates more and more. They have to rip off the old headliner, scrape the backing free of the disintegrating foam and replace it with a whole new headliner.



You know me, being Autopian, watched every step of the process and befriended the upholsterer
 
Found a good link describing the process here:



DIY Headliner replacement - Honda Civic Forum



It does not look difficult or expensive, but it does look time consuming. I'm not really up for spending that much time on a repair for this car. It needs CVT repairs ($$$) and the (2nd) IMA battery is starting to go. IMA batteries are also $$$. Given its other issues, which would be $4k-$6k to "fix", except neither will actually stay fixed because they are caused by design problems, spending a day fixing the headliner would feel like putting lipstick on a pig. On the flip side, I do want to drive it until it dies, and that is going to be hard to do with the headliner hanging down like a curtain!
 
Quick fix? Pull loose what comes easy. Remove the upper window molding. Clean off the bad foam from the fabric and the metal roof. Get it clean of that stuff.

Mask off the window and surrounding areas, spray with a fabric adhesive, on the cloth and the metal of the top.(spray can will have the time allowance needed to use and get adherence before attempting to re-attach) Posistion and then use a quality masking tape to attach to the top to the window to hold the fabric to the metal, allow cure time.

It will probably not look "perfect", since the foam is gone, but will hold.

Re-attach the window molding.

Total cost, using 3M spray adhesive, masking tape, some paper, oh, maybe $12.00
 
You can find matching colored Pine Tree clips and place then throughout the headliner in specific areas to help prevent any further falling.



2177dnew.jpg
 
Question? Greg, what are you going to drill into so they attach?

The "roof metal"?

Don't think that would be so good.
 
Ron, they go into the backing material for the headliner. Not a perfect fix, but I have seen an improvement using them.
 
Backing material? The backing material on the Honda is the foam that fell apart. That foam, with a fine mesh material that faces the roof panel, is spot glued to the metal, and the "headliner" material is glued to the foam to produce the part of the headliner that is seen when in the vehicle.

I have done dozens of such repairs, starting in the mid 90's on GM and Chrysler products that had the same issue.

Got to remove the dusty old foam, and use adhesive, being careful.

That way it is possible to reduce the wrinkles in the fabric and have a fairly smooth attachment.

The old has to come off, or like attempting to put a "band-aid" on a dirty, dusty finger, it's not going to stay on long.

Have even taken some thin foam and glued it on the metal first, let it set and then glued the headliner material to it so there is a reduced "difference" from where the old foam is gone.

If one is careful and "neat", follows the adhesive directions, don't get in a hurry, it's not a big deal to do.
 
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