Somehow (thanks, kids) the upholstery on the ceiling of my car around the light switches has come loose. It's sort of a mesh-y material. No functional problems but it definitely looks bad. Is there a way to fix this myself?
Also, the front of my car (VW Rabbit) has two grill-like inserts on the left and right sides. Pardon the amateurish description. I park the car on city streets and one of these just mysteriously disappeared one day. I think it was probably the result of someone's parking accident bc there was also a yellow streak on the front bumper. Is this something I can reinstall on my own? I read about rockauto for parts on another thread and am interested in trying to source it myself from there.
I just remembered a hubcap is also missing from one of my tires. Tips?
This is a pretty embarrassing post I realize. Oh well. DH doesn't see the need to do anything at all and my mechanic will happily take my money but I'd like to try something new.
How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
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Riggerjack
- Posts: 3191
- Joined: Thu Jul 14, 2011 3:09 am
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
YouTube headliner for how to videos, but from your description, it sounds like a can of spray adhesive should be the fix.
Go to a VW forum and look for the how to on your specific model for badge replacement. eBay for a used badge and hubcap.
And then come back and write about the experience!
Go to a VW forum and look for the how to on your specific model for badge replacement. eBay for a used badge and hubcap.
And then come back and write about the experience!
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
You can buy the grills here.
https://parts.vw.com/Volkswagen_2009_Ra ... /Body.html
They very possibly snap in...given how easily they were lost. You’ll have a better idea when you see the part. Try looking at the existing one and see how it attaches.
As for the headliner, I’d pull the headliner out and repair it with contact cement and reinstall it. That can be tricky in some cars. A friend of mine used a syringe and needle to inject glue into her headliner then pressed it back. It looked a little polka dotted but it was good for somebody who didn’t want to remove the headliner. Since it is near the light I would disassemble the light and see if I could get access to the separation from under the fixture.
Good luck.
Edit - I was really shocked how much the real VW part costs for this. eBay has a ton of custom aftermarket grill inserts that are far cheaper. I suspect this is due to vw’s popularity in China. They’re bling if that bothers you, but they are cheap.
https://parts.vw.com/Volkswagen_2009_Ra ... /Body.html
They very possibly snap in...given how easily they were lost. You’ll have a better idea when you see the part. Try looking at the existing one and see how it attaches.
As for the headliner, I’d pull the headliner out and repair it with contact cement and reinstall it. That can be tricky in some cars. A friend of mine used a syringe and needle to inject glue into her headliner then pressed it back. It looked a little polka dotted but it was good for somebody who didn’t want to remove the headliner. Since it is near the light I would disassemble the light and see if I could get access to the separation from under the fixture.
Good luck.
Edit - I was really shocked how much the real VW part costs for this. eBay has a ton of custom aftermarket grill inserts that are far cheaper. I suspect this is due to vw’s popularity in China. They’re bling if that bothers you, but they are cheap.
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Gilberto de Piento
- Posts: 1949
- Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2013 10:23 pm
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
Often times headliner fabric will fall down because the foam between the backer and the fabric has deteriorated. If you scrape off the remaining foam and reglue the fabric to the backer it will probably stick but the glue will soak through the fabric and leave stains. If you don't remove the old foam it may stick temporarily but the problem will probably return, in the original spot or nearby.
If you want to fix it correctly you should remove the headliner from the car and either replace with an entirely new headliner (look online for replacements) or:
1. Remove the headliner
2. Scrape off the old fabric and foam
3. Apply contact cement
4. Apply new fabric/foam (it comes all as one piece). If you are in the US you can get generic fabric/foam material at fabric stores, though it may not match the existing color/texture in your car.
5. Trim the excess fabric/foam
6. Reinstall headliner in car
Look on youtube for videos of how to do this. The hardest part is removing and reinstalling the headliner in the car.
If you want to fix it correctly you should remove the headliner from the car and either replace with an entirely new headliner (look online for replacements) or:
1. Remove the headliner
2. Scrape off the old fabric and foam
3. Apply contact cement
4. Apply new fabric/foam (it comes all as one piece). If you are in the US you can get generic fabric/foam material at fabric stores, though it may not match the existing color/texture in your car.
5. Trim the excess fabric/foam
6. Reinstall headliner in car
Look on youtube for videos of how to do this. The hardest part is removing and reinstalling the headliner in the car.
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
You’re right. If you just brush on something like Bards it’ll soak through and look ugly. I use this stuff to glue fabric to foam. It’s probably more appropriate for tacking on headliner cloth. Didn’t mention it because you really need to disassemble everything.
Funny how some many VWs have this issue. I had an old rabbit in the 80s with this issue. My friends had this in the late 90s on newish jettas. I cannot believe it is still an issue.
Funny how some many VWs have this issue. I had an old rabbit in the 80s with this issue. My friends had this in the late 90s on newish jettas. I cannot believe it is still an issue.
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SavingWithBabies
- Posts: 882
- Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2015 2:50 pm
- Location: Midwest, USA
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
VWVortex can be pretty good for VWs and photos are good/helpful -- you'll probably get more responses with them. There should be a forum for your specific model here:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/forumdisplay ... fic-Forums
http://forums.vwvortex.com/forumdisplay ... fic-Forums
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
Thank you for all the suggestions, gentlemen!
I took another look at the headliner and it's worse than I thought. The foam is crumbling underneath per GdP's guess; it's all coming out from under the light fixture which I would have no idea how to dismantle as there are no visible screws, and it seems like there isn't really enough material to fill in the gaps even. Also, it's also coming undone above one of the backseat windows. I'm probably going to attempt some kind of glue fix but it's pretty clear it isn't going to look so hot.
@Sclass: Interesting this is a perennial problem for VW. Can't even trust German companies, what's the world coming to?
On the jacked-up prices of replacement parts: I wanted to get some OEM floor mats for my car bc I bought it used and it never had the original mats with the bunny logo. Insane prices! I finally went with a used set off ebay.
I also inspected the exterior of my car today and the plot thickens! I was shocked to discover that only one hubcap is actually all there. One is missing, which I knew about. And two are missing the VW center cap logos! I had not noticed that before and who knows when that happened. It's possible I scraped the curb and they fell off, but I'm really not that bad of a driver and I doubt it would have happened twice so I'm wondering if they were stolen. (I always assumed the missing hubcap was stolen.) Replacement hubcaps also look stupid expensive so I will probably get something garish no one would want to take.
I'm optimistic about the grill, at least.
I took another look at the headliner and it's worse than I thought. The foam is crumbling underneath per GdP's guess; it's all coming out from under the light fixture which I would have no idea how to dismantle as there are no visible screws, and it seems like there isn't really enough material to fill in the gaps even. Also, it's also coming undone above one of the backseat windows. I'm probably going to attempt some kind of glue fix but it's pretty clear it isn't going to look so hot.
@Sclass: Interesting this is a perennial problem for VW. Can't even trust German companies, what's the world coming to?
On the jacked-up prices of replacement parts: I wanted to get some OEM floor mats for my car bc I bought it used and it never had the original mats with the bunny logo. Insane prices! I finally went with a used set off ebay.
I also inspected the exterior of my car today and the plot thickens! I was shocked to discover that only one hubcap is actually all there. One is missing, which I knew about. And two are missing the VW center cap logos! I had not noticed that before and who knows when that happened. It's possible I scraped the curb and they fell off, but I'm really not that bad of a driver and I doubt it would have happened twice so I'm wondering if they were stolen. (I always assumed the missing hubcap was stolen.) Replacement hubcaps also look stupid expensive so I will probably get something garish no one would want to take.
I'm optimistic about the grill, at least.
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
Luckily all these issues are not show stoppers. Your center caps were likely stolen. Lazy people don’t want to take the time to go out and buy some so they visit your part store on wheels. Mercedes wheels have this problem.
Vwvortex is probably a great place to learn all the quick fixes for your car. My gut feel is that removing the headliner is pretty easy. Check YouTube. Then do as Gilberto says. Recover with your favorite fabric.
German cars are just cars at the end of the day. If you want a car that doesn’t fall apart, buy a low mile model of an older car you still see on the road a lot.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5BDjPr1K1gw
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
OMG the video! You see a clear-cut half-hour job. Me, I'm looking at scary loose wires, tools I can't identify, and no place to messily de-foam the headliner, just for starters. I'm going all in on the bad glue job. Although if I replaced the fabric with the Star Wars character print the guy in the sequel used I'd probably forever be a hero to my 5 year-old son and his friends!Sclass wrote: ↑Wed Jun 20, 2018 11:13 am
Vwvortex is probably a great place to learn all the quick fixes for your car. My gut feel is that removing the headliner is pretty easy. Check YouTube. Then do as Gilberto says. Recover with your favorite fabric.
German cars are just cars at the end of the day. If you want a car that doesn’t fall apart, buy a low mile model of an older car you still see on the road a lot.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5BDjPr1K1gw
I know you did NOT just suggest that I resign myself to a Honda civic
That bunny logo and secret trunk-opener are everything. And actually, cosmetic issues aside, the Rabbit has performed great for us over the first ten years. Tho I suppose it's the second decade that will really tell the tale.Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
I guess I was implicitly suggesting a Honda. I happen to own a Civic and an Accord. Soulless cars. I guess I was personally thinking about my 80s Mercedes cars...often still seen on the road.
Hey glad to see you’re adventurous enough to tackle this. Life is all about risk and recovery.
My Rabbit costed me $100. I spent a lot of time repairing it. Everything seemed broken...but really the fundamental stuff like the drivetrain and chassis were fine. Just the upholstery, locks, instruments, hoses, belts, lights, door latches, trunk latches, seals, hoses, belts, etc. were broken. The engine and trans were solid and it had 200,000 miles on it.
Hey glad to see you’re adventurous enough to tackle this. Life is all about risk and recovery.
My Rabbit costed me $100. I spent a lot of time repairing it. Everything seemed broken...but really the fundamental stuff like the drivetrain and chassis were fine. Just the upholstery, locks, instruments, hoses, belts, lights, door latches, trunk latches, seals, hoses, belts, etc. were broken. The engine and trans were solid and it had 200,000 miles on it.
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
Thought I'd update in case anyone was interested and because I'm not good at that when starting threads which seems like bad practice. Well, it's been a very mixed bag so far. The headliner was a total fail. I got the spray glue but when I went to reattach the headliner I realized more had fallen down around the middle light fixtures and it was too heavy to stay up in some places unless I went crazy with the glue. Even then, too heavy. I did the best I could especially over my baby's carseat. Some places have stayed up for a while, but some are slowly coming back down. I really want to replace it all professionally now but haven't called yet to find out the no doubt high price. Blah. Next: I haven't found the grille part yet but haven't spent a lot of time on that yet.
Also, just last week someone sideswiped my parked car I guess because the side mirror is now messed up. There is a separation on part of it that looks terrible. It works okay right now but may come apart more. There is also a streak on the side of the car which almost looks like a keying. I'm not sure if it is or is related to the side mirror thing. Hopefully when I get the car washed that streak will go away. Ugh.
The good news is the hubcaps. When I took a look at the remaining hubcaps and logo caps I realized the hubcap is lightweight and the caps are not the OEM style with rubber plug inserts but the cheap adhesive type. Literally like a tin sticker. I bought the car used and so they were all already there then. I just never knew they were fakes, haha. And nobody stole the caps, they just fell off.
To end on a high note: so I got a new cheap hubcap and replaced the missing logo caps with the same adhesive type.
When I did this I brought my 5 year-old son down to help take off the old glue, etc. He was very excited to help. Meanwhile DH was holding our baby and observing ironically or something. When we were finished an old man on a bicycle whizzed past and called out, "Beautiful!" My son turns to me and asks why he said that and I proudly tell him, "He was talking about what an excellent job we did on the hubcaps!" Then my DH interjects, "Um, I think he was talking about the baby..."
Also, just last week someone sideswiped my parked car I guess because the side mirror is now messed up. There is a separation on part of it that looks terrible. It works okay right now but may come apart more. There is also a streak on the side of the car which almost looks like a keying. I'm not sure if it is or is related to the side mirror thing. Hopefully when I get the car washed that streak will go away. Ugh.
The good news is the hubcaps. When I took a look at the remaining hubcaps and logo caps I realized the hubcap is lightweight and the caps are not the OEM style with rubber plug inserts but the cheap adhesive type. Literally like a tin sticker. I bought the car used and so they were all already there then. I just never knew they were fakes, haha. And nobody stole the caps, they just fell off.
To end on a high note: so I got a new cheap hubcap and replaced the missing logo caps with the same adhesive type.
When I did this I brought my 5 year-old son down to help take off the old glue, etc. He was very excited to help. Meanwhile DH was holding our baby and observing ironically or something. When we were finished an old man on a bicycle whizzed past and called out, "Beautiful!" My son turns to me and asks why he said that and I proudly tell him, "He was talking about what an excellent job we did on the hubcaps!" Then my DH interjects, "Um, I think he was talking about the baby..."
Re: How do I fix the upholstery in my car? and replace the grill?
Well, you can always rip the headliner out and leave the grill off. Drive it till it’s worn out. It’s only cosmetic. At the end of the day it’s still a good car.