Replacing roof lining

[Brett1066]

The lining in the roof of my defender was looking a little ragged - sagging, a few mould spots etc, so I decided to rip it all out last night so I could find any leaks and then replace all the lining. Found two small leaks, patched them up, and now I have to start thinking about replacing the lining.

I've seen a few comments on this on the forum, just wondering what people's suggestions are as to what is best to use as a replacement. Foam insulation, followed by MDF and then marine carpet perhaps?
Any tips or tricks would be appreciated. For those that have already done this, how is the replacement holding up after a period of time, and what would you have done different?

This will be an ongoing job over several weeks (or longer:() I expect, as, like a lot of us in the current economic climate, money is tight. Will try and post some photo's as I go.

Cheers

[tonic]

MDF??? Did you keep the lining boards or tear them up??

Mostly you take out the three pieces and them pull off the old material, re-glue some new material and put the three pieces back in, replacing any plugs as you go.

Takes hardly any time but you have to be carefull not to brake the backing boards. Fibreglass is the best repair product for the boards if you crack or brake one.

[Didge]

I just ripped off the old lining and repainted the backing board with hammered metal paint finish - shiny ceiling, no more sagging :)

[redrovertdi]

mines marine carpet glued directly onto the roof[inside of course]

[jimr1]

Hi Brett , like yours mine was starting to sag a bit , so pulled all the plastic pins out , took the 3 sections out . I was lucky I got some polyester fillter given to me it had been used , so gave it a wash glued it to inside roof with liquid nails . Just that made a big differance to sound proofing , also temperature . I then reglued the linning give it a good cleen and put it back , up till now realy pleased , hope this helps , cheers jimr1:)

[Brett1066]

The original backing boards are unusable, the centre one isn't too bad, but the front and back sections are crumbling in places, cracked in the middle and have mould spots on them, and the front was pretty damp also. :mad: Picked up some foam sheeting from Clark rubber yesterday, so will probably glue that to the roof, and then put up some 3mm MDF board to replace the original backing boards. I'm thinking of putting in an overhead console for the CB radio and some gauges, not sure yet on how I will build it or a final design, work that out when I get to it:D At this stage I will probably finish the whole thing off with marine carpet.
Now I just have to convince the missus that the cupboards she bought can wait to be assembled, promise her I'll get round to the gardening, eventually, and persuade the kids that they really do need to give the car a good clean out:cool:

[JayBoRover]

Here's a suggestion if money is tight - actually even if it isn't there's no point in throwing good money away. Don't be too fixated on marine carpet. It's quite expensive and not really necessary in a location not getting regularly drenched.

I got second hand carpet that a carpet layer had pulled out from a house to replace. A house will often get renovated with all new carpet throughout, but there will be rooms with little wear where the old carpet is still good. I used this in a previous vehicle and it was great and cost very little. When I sold it, the carpet had been on the storage lockers for several years with absolutely no deterioration at all, and I had washed it a couple of times.

Cheers

[Bushie]

Years ago when I did my Rangie roof lining I used a product that is used to cover office partitions etc, it's quite thin but pretty hardy.
I gave the backing material a good covering in contact adhesive (don't use spray on) on then applied the material, it came up pretty good and lasted well (well it was still OK when I sold it 10 years later :) )


Martyn

[Flipper]

The lining in the roof of my defender was looking a little ragged - sagging, a few mould spots etc, so I decided to rip it all out last night so I could find any leaks and then replace all the lining. Found two small leaks, patched them up, and now I have to start thinking about replacing the lining.

I've seen a few comments on this on the forum, just wondering what people's suggestions are as to what is best to use as a replacement. Foam insulation, followed by MDF and then marine carpet perhaps?
Any tips or tricks would be appreciated. For those that have already done this, how is the replacement holding up after a period of time, and what would you have done different?

This will be an ongoing job over several weeks (or longer:() I expect, as, like a lot of us in the current economic climate, money is tight. Will try and post some photo's as I go.

Cheers

Hi Brett...
My missus is a licensed motor trimmer so that makes me qualified to answer your questions half professionally. :)

Ok if you have buggered roof boards use a fabric called custom pile.
You need a good glue which can be sprayed in a paint gun where the fabric backing is sprayed first, then you spray the boards. The glue is just like quick grip you can get from the hardware store.
After a few mins flash off time, you carefully work the fabric out from the center of each board with your hands.
Leave a little overhang of fabric around the boards and spray glue with your gun on the underside of the edges and then wrap this around all edges neatly.

For the center console go to town and get stuck into the MDF (12mm or so). Cut the sides for the console to match the shape of the roof, then for the under fascia soak a thin sheet of MDF in water for a couple hours and shape, staple and glue to the side pieces.

After that cover the console in custom pile, or have it covered in thick cow hide like I did and suffer the insults from hippies who drive a Volkswagen.



Regards Phil...
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/07/1328.jpg

[dawsey]

auto roof lining can be bought by the metre .is about 1.8mts wide and can be contacted straight on to the roof .if you're not to worried about the existing roof ribs..measure 3 times and cut once with at least a 100 ml overhang..start at the centre and work out...the lining is pretty forgiving on small imperfections but lumps of crap and dags should be sanded off..give it a go ,,sure you can do it. if not shoot me a pm. and we can see what we can do..for a beer or 2..

[dawsey]

thats a great job flipper..top notch. my way is the easy way no hassles roof liner..defender style..yours is the right way lol

[ev0lution]

i have just ripped out my sagging roof lining as well, the middle was ok, the rear section possibly re-usable but the front was soaked, mouldy and crumbling.

Looks like i will have to just whack some carpet straight to the ceiling. i want to do a bit of soundproofing while im there, like dynamat or similar. Will this be a waste of time if im going to carpet it? Im assuming that by glueing marine or auto carpet to the roof should give it some sound reducing properties?

Any other options worth considering? I might just recover the centre and rear sections, but just glue the carpet straight to the front area...

[Robmacca]

Just bring back to life an old post.....

My Roof Lining requires a freshen up as like most the material has separated from the backing board. I'm yet to remove that Roof Lining but I assume it's an easy job to do?

My question is where can I source that plastic inserts that hold the lining to the roof? I'm sure that they will all need replacing due to age and me probably breaking them as I try to remove the lining?

Not knowing what mine will look like when I remove it (whether the backing board will be serviceable not) any chance of getting some photos of what people have used to redo their hood lining so I can get an idea of what options I have??

[Didge]

Just painted (sprayed) mine with hammered metal paint. Easy to remove and most car parts jounts will have the plastic plugs. I can email you some pics but they're too large to post on this site

[Robmacca]

Just painted (sprayed) mine with hammered metal paint. Easy to remove and most car parts jounts will have the plastic plugs. I can email you some pics but they're too large to post on this site

pm sent

[gromit]

Just bring back to life an old post.....

My Roof Lining requires a freshen up as like most the material has separated from the backing board. I'm yet to remove that Roof Lining but I assume it's an easy job to do?

My question is where can I source that plastic inserts that hold the lining to the roof? I'm sure that they will all need replacing due to age and me probably breaking them as I try to remove the lining?

Not knowing what mine will look like when I remove it (whether the backing board will be serviceable not) any chance of getting some photos of what people have used to redo their hood lining so I can get an idea of what options I have??

The plastic clips are often termed Christmas Tree clips, Supercheap have them as will most automotive suppliers.
The roof boards come out in 3 parts, I had to repair mine where it was sagging (I'll see if I have any photos).

The foam backing on the lining breaks down so the lining sags. Strip off all the old lining and then you need to rub off all the crusty old foam. A trimmer told me to use an old piece of carpet rubbed all over the board.

Any trimmer will carry a range of headlining material, you won't get the vinyl type that was originally fitted (well it was on my 300Tdi). I paid the trimmer to do mine but apparently it's fairly simple just don't press the headlining too hard or the glue forces through the pores of the foam and you end up with a 'dent' in the finished product.

If you strip out and remove the old foam it's not too expensive to use a trimmer to apply the headlining material, mine was done over 10 years ago and is still OK.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/11/348.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/21roCVX)DSCF1112 (https://flic.kr/p/21roCVX) by Colin Radley (https://www.flickr.com/photos/152321353@N07/), on Flickr

Repair to stop sagging over the Alpine windows
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/11/349.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/21oEkfU)DSCF1110 (https://flic.kr/p/21oEkfU) by Colin Radley (https://www.flickr.com/photos/152321353@N07/), on Flickr

Another repair
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2017/11/350.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/21roBot)DSCF1111 (https://flic.kr/p/21roBot) by Colin Radley (https://www.flickr.com/photos/152321353@N07/), on Flickr


Colin

[Ranga]

My headlining died some time back - the whole thing was sagged, not just the fabric layer. In my disgust I through it out, but sort of regret it now.

I'd love some of this gear - http://www.lasalle-trim.co.uk/product/double-cab-std-headlining-rear-window-trim-set-above-4-doors-trim/, but too expensive for me to justify, especially once shipping is factored in. I'd be interested to see if anyone familiar with fiber glassing would be able to make a mold out of a genuine headlining. Not sure if it's possible, but something more robust the an original would be nice. Either that, or importing one of the La Salle jobs, and somehow using it as a mold.

Anyone care to comment?

[gromit]

My headlining died some time back - the whole thing was sagged, not just the fabric layer. In my disgust I through it out, but sort of regret it now.

I'd love some of this gear - DEFENDER 110, 130 Double Cab – Standard Headlining + Rear Window Trim Set + Above 4 Door Trims | LaSalle Interior Trim (http://www.lasalle-trim.co.uk/product/double-cab-std-headlining-rear-window-trim-set-above-4-doors-trim/), but too expensive for me to justify, especially once shipping is factored in. I'd be interested to see if anyone familiar with fiber glassing would be able to make a mold out of a genuine headlining. Not sure if it's possible, but something more robust the an original would be nice. Either that, or importing one of the La Salle jobs, and somehow using it as a mold.

Anyone care to comment?

I think making a mould would be an expensive option and you'd need a few guaranteed sales to justify it.
I remember phoning Land Rover locally and getting a price years back, roughly $1K per section so about $3K for the genuine article !!

Put a few wanted adverts up, there will be someone parting a vehicle out or stripping out their original headlining at some point. Hopefully the boards will be worth re-covering.


Colin

[Ranga]

Finished my custom job - Roof Lining Custom Refurb (https://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130-defender-county/260146-roof-lining-custom-refurb.html)

[101 Ron]

My headlining died some time back - the whole thing was sagged, not just the fabric layer. In my disgust I through it out, but sort of regret it now.

I'd love some of this gear - DEFENDER 110, 130 Double Cab – Standard Headlining + Rear Window Trim Set + Above 4 Door Trims | LaSalle Interior Trim (http://www.lasalle-trim.co.uk/product/double-cab-std-headlining-rear-window-trim-set-above-4-doors-trim/), but too expensive for me to justify, especially once shipping is factored in. I'd be interested to see if anyone familiar with fiber glassing would be able to make a mold out of a genuine headlining. Not sure if it's possible, but something more robust the an original would be nice. Either that, or importing one of the La Salle jobs, and somehow using it as a mold.



Anyone care to comment?


The head lining on that 130 was done once in my ownership.
The material started to seperate from the backing.
I took it to a motor trimmer who found near as possible material to the original and glued it to the old lining and all was good again until now.
Ron