best fitting headliner with sunroof
- Thread starter stcos85
- Start date
Hi, I'm on the same quest right now.
A company in the UK (where I'm based), on eBay, sell a ready made replacement for non sunroof cars. It's not identical fabric, but the perforations aren't far off, and probably close enough. I've heard on the forum that SMS Auto Fabrics in the US have a better match, and I'm awaiting a response from them on that. They only sell the material though, you would ideally have your old headliner. I've bought fabric previously for another project from SMS and I can recommend them.
Both options below...
smsautofabrics.com
A company in the UK (where I'm based), on eBay, sell a ready made replacement for non sunroof cars. It's not identical fabric, but the perforations aren't far off, and probably close enough. I've heard on the forum that SMS Auto Fabrics in the US have a better match, and I'm awaiting a response from them on that. They only sell the material though, you would ideally have your old headliner. I've bought fabric previously for another project from SMS and I can recommend them.
Both options below...
Headliners
SMS manufactures the largest selection of classic car headliners in the business, making over 1,000 unique patterns of pre-sewn headliners. And of course, we have the headliners that others don't have. Simply tell us what car you have, and we can do the rest. There's usually no need to send us a...
smsautofabrics.com
BMW 2500/2800/3000 CS Headlining 1968-75 E9 | eBay
Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for BMW 2500/2800/3000 CS Headlining 1968-75 E9 at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products.
www.ebay.co.uk
I used SMS and overall happy with iit but it is thicker than stock, making it hard to get all trim and front cowl to fit over it. For sunroofs, I found that it's thickness raised the polished alum tracks enough that the sunroof would scrape slightly when retracted. I put a bunch of towels over the sunroof, then a piece of plywood and them about 30 pounds of free weights and let it sit for a few weeks.
I got the headliner for my E3 from World Upholstery (US company). The fabric match was perfect and the installer had no problems installing it. They make for E9s also.
worlduph.com
Headliners for BMW New Six Sedans (E3) from World Upholstery & Trim
Headliners for BMW CS Coupes (New Class, E9). World Upholstery & Trim manufactures authentic reproductions of the original headliner as the best replacement for your old or damaged headliner. Models include 2000C, 2000CS, 2800CS, 3.0CS, 3.0CSi, 3.0CSL and 2.5CS.
Do e3 headliners have a different pattern than e9? The World one for e9 looks nothing like the original which is not available anywhere.
Yes. From the link I provided...
"The BMW "New Class" and E9 coupes used a type of headliner that is no longer produced nor available. We instead use a comparable vinyl with similar embossing."
It would be best to request a sample from those companies being considered.
It’s the words similar embossing that has me confused.
Dick, my E3 has no perforations, it looks like random tiny strands superimposed over a flat , solid surface, not even close to the E9. The SMS is very close to my original E9 but the perforatios are a bit smaller and the thickness a bit greater. I got samples from a bunch of places and the SMS was the closest.
can you puT IT in yourself
if sdo i can help ouT A LOT
HEREAS MY INSTALL iTS REALLY EASY TO DO
I GOT MY MATERIAL FROM SMS IN OREGON
ITS A GREAT MATCH YOU CANT EVEN TELL THE DIIFF
AND WHO REALLY LOOKS AT THE HEADLINER THAT OFTEN
NOONE
if sdo i can help ouT A LOT
HEREAS MY INSTALL iTS REALLY EASY TO DO
I GOT MY MATERIAL FROM SMS IN OREGON
ITS A GREAT MATCH YOU CANT EVEN TELL THE DIIFF
AND WHO REALLY LOOKS AT THE HEADLINER THAT OFTEN
NOONE
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yes, but does it match the sunvisors?
No and yes, unless you are looking closely, you cannot tell.
Thanks for the comment on the thickness of the SMS stuff Bob, yet another complication.
They just sent me a sample photo in black, very similar but just the inverse almost of the embossed pattern - below is my existing trashed headliner and the SMS version for comparison. I think most other available headliners I've seen have a kind of leather grain type embossing which is different, but would anyone notice ?
They just sent me a sample photo in black, very similar but just the inverse almost of the embossed pattern - below is my existing trashed headliner and the SMS version for comparison. I think most other available headliners I've seen have a kind of leather grain type embossing which is different, but would anyone notice ?
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I took the SMS material to my local auto paint supply place and he made SEM paint to match which I then used on the front cowl and visors.
Here are images of the cowl (bottom in first image) with orig material and SMS (top of first image) and one with SMS alone (second image). Last image is from my E3 and is the original headliner. Looks like world may have the E3 but why they have such small images is beyond me.
Here are images of the cowl (bottom in first image) with orig material and SMS (top of first image) and one with SMS alone (second image). Last image is from my E3 and is the original headliner. Looks like world may have the E3 but why they have such small images is beyond me.
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Yes, nobody seems to have any images large enough to actually look at, I'm also looking at Spradling, same problem.
I'm wondering also what should be stuck to the roof, is it meant to be some kind of sound deadening ? and I'm wondering about some rust preventive product in the cavities around the edges before fitting the headliner. But I'm worried it will dribble out and ruin the fabric.
I'm wondering also what should be stuck to the roof, is it meant to be some kind of sound deadening ? and I'm wondering about some rust preventive product in the cavities around the edges before fitting the headliner. But I'm worried it will dribble out and ruin the fabric.
I agree that the SMS product is 90% similar, you won’t find anything closer.
The original stuff under the headline was some kind of thick cardboard thing with a waxy coating. Mine was trash. I fit a piece of MDF using the old one as a template and put some foam insulation on it, basically same as aerch in his images above. Was not worried about rust, made sure the drain tubes were wide open. MDF held in place with those tabs you can also see in aerch's images. Scored it in places to achieve the bend.
Sunroof coupes are unique in that regard as non-sunroofs use rods to hold the headliner in place.
Sorry, I should have specified that my car is a non-sunroof car. As the headlining is suspended by rods I think the thick foam is maybe not required. I'm thinking perhaps some sound deadening material then a thin layer of foam. But that could be too heavy. No idea what was there originally.
well some people with disagree with some of this,
before doing mine I got samples from lots of places, none look like the original, except the SMS which is sort of close
if you search on the threads here you will see the SMS was custom made for a member here to replicate the CSL liner, same texture only in black
it looks pretty close, but the features are too soft
I got 2 sets from SMS (anyone what to buy one?) one was a strange color. the other looked OK, but thick
I ended up using material I bought from a member here, he said it was original BMW, it looks right but is thick
jumping ahead a bit, we installed the liner ourselves, I am not sure there would be any big advantage to having it pre-cut
took a while but not hard and came out great
The only problem, the material I used was similar in thickness to the SMS and the sunroof won't close, I think I need to thin it out on the corners of the sunroof panel
I think the 'cardboard' and foam are for sound damping and the liner doesn't attach or touch them
before doing mine I got samples from lots of places, none look like the original, except the SMS which is sort of close
if you search on the threads here you will see the SMS was custom made for a member here to replicate the CSL liner, same texture only in black
it looks pretty close, but the features are too soft
I got 2 sets from SMS (anyone what to buy one?) one was a strange color. the other looked OK, but thick
I ended up using material I bought from a member here, he said it was original BMW, it looks right but is thick
jumping ahead a bit, we installed the liner ourselves, I am not sure there would be any big advantage to having it pre-cut
took a while but not hard and came out great
The only problem, the material I used was similar in thickness to the SMS and the sunroof won't close, I think I need to thin it out on the corners of the sunroof panel
I think the 'cardboard' and foam are for sound damping and the liner doesn't attach or touch them
A trick we used when installing was to put the screws for the dome light and handles in place before headliner placement. It made it easy to "palpate" them through the headliner and gently cut down on them.