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I just wanted to document this. Hopefully this will help someone else out when they go to do this.
I spent the last couple evenings replacing the headliner in my convertible, and thought I'd share my experience. It wasn't that bad, but it did take some time and patience. The instructions were pretty good for the most part, but it left some things out. I made yellow sticky notes on the attached instructions, and also have some photos to share. There was one screw for the end of the shorter string that was a bit of a pain to access (marked by red arrow in photo), but the rest of it went pretty smoothly.
It did take me a couple tries to get the strings routed on the proper sides of the counterbalance arm. If you do this, make sure to pay attention not only to how the strings are routed, but on which side of the arms they go on, and where they cross other strings.
I took a photo off another post where someone replaced their top and I colored in the strings on it to help show where they go when the top is down. The red string is the long one, with three D rings. The blue string is the short one with one P clip in the middle, (you have to transfer the P clip over from your old headliner because for some reason it doesn't come with the new one) and the green string is for the glare shield, which is not part of the headliner.
The only part that confused me a little was the step about removing the "spring clips" to release the counterbalance arms (step 8 in instructions). I couldn't located any clips so I simply unscrewed the ball sockets from the #5 bow to release it. They may have been referring to the other end of the counterbalance arms, but I already had them unscrewed so I never looked at the other ends.
You have to drill out one rivet. I simply replaced it with a small machine screw, lock-washer, and nut.
Make sure to have a magnetic pick up tool handy to help you hang onto the screws. Also, pay attention to what screws go where, because they aren't all the same size/type. It also is a good idea to stuff a rag into the abyss that the hole for the seat belt cavity creates, because if you drop something in there, it isn't much fun to try to retrieve it (don't ask).
I spent about 4 hours each evening after work doing this, but I was really taking my time and taking breaks. Now that I have done one and learned the tricks, I could probably do the whole job in 4 hours start to finish if I ever did it again. Several hours were spent just making sure I had the strings all routed right.
Now that I have done the headliner, I really have no fear if I ever want to replace the outer top covering, because it looks to be easier. All in all, I'd rate this job as an 7 or maybe an 8 on a scale of 10. It wasn't really difficult, but it did take time and patience. Like most things, the key was not to get in a hurry. Also, plan to have to unhook strings and reroute them a second time, because chances are good you won't get them right the first time around. Don't let that get you frustrated, I had to do them twice myself to get all the little twists out and get them on the correct path.
Total cost for the new headliner was $243 delivered. Part Number is 19207984
This photo may also be helpful. It shows the same color codes for the strings that I used in the first photo, but this is with the top partially up with bow #5 up, as you will have it positioned when you work on it. This is looking forward from the back of the car.
Make note that the red (long) string goes in front of the counterbalance arm, but the green string for the glare shield goes behind the bar.
Also notice that where the red and green string cross, the green string is in front of the red string.
Getting this correct is 80% of the battle with the strings.
By the way, just want to point out that these instructions are no where to be found in the service manual. The PDF I posted are the only ones I know of.
There is also a good thread on how to replace the outer top here:
Glad to do it, just hope it helps someone else along the way.
In this photo, I've numbered the 3 D rings on the long (red) string locations, and the P clip that goes on the short (blue) string. I've also marked the END of the long (red) string. It doubles back upon itself after going through the third D ring.
There is also a small metal RING that looks like a key chain ring that the red and green strings both pass through. It shows up as sort of a gold color on this image.
Oh, one more thing. If you wonder what the blue elastic strap is in some of my photos, it is because I replaced those cheap elastic straps with stronger ones. See this thread for reference.
Here is a photo showing how I replaced the rivet I drilled out that holds the D ring and P clip onto the support bracket. I simply used a machine screw, lockwasher, and nut. I put it on with the nut facing up just to make sure there weren't any sharp edges pointing down that could snag anything, but I don't think it would have mattered.
Good afternoon!
Sorry for replying to this old thread—I tried to DM you but being a newbie to the forum I’m not sure how to do that.
Can you confirm the headliner pulls the bows into position when the top is up? I have an ‘07 that bow 3 recently stopped returning to the upright position when the top is up—as a result, the top sags. It looks like the only thing that would pull the bows into place is the connection to the headliner.
I appreciate any help you can provide. I posted a question to the forum a few weeks ago but didn’t get any responses.
Thank you!
Thank you! I submitted a new thread in Feb, but didn’t receive any responses. Link to that thread is below. I will also add a couple pics.
It is definitely attached to the frame, but I don’t see a link that pulls it into place other than the fabric on both the headliner and top.
11-23-2016, 06:04 PM
Convertible Headliner Replacement Instructions
