Made My Carpet Look New Again!!

[95CarbonEclipse]

Thanks for the compliment. When I first got this car, the interior was in similar condition to yours. My airbag was peeling off, the carpet was soaked in oil, it had those ugly, cheap yellow seats from a few posts back, all the interior panels were stained. It looked really bad and I've worked really hard on it, so the fact that you think it looks nice and clean now, makes me feel pretty damn good.

Everything you see that is black, I painted. Yes, the center console sides; the glovebox along with the latch; underneath the steering colomn; the center vents; the lower door panels, and the center console itself including the cup holder, ashtray, and armrest; were all painted black (even the perforated sections of the rear leather seats). The center console I taped off so that I could leave the trim around the shifter itself gray.

The seats are Megan Racing.

 

[matthewdesigns]

This is a great thread. Thanks for posting all this info, and all the photos, Boosted. Also for your efforts, too, 95Carbon, and how this ties in nicely with your sound-deadening work. I'm interested in how that works out, too.

95Carbon - What seats are those? Are they a bolt in, or did you have to fab a track adapter?

EDIT - Beat me to the seat question

 

[95CarbonEclipse]

Yea, Megan racing seats (I really like them, now lets see how they hold up). They came with the sliders, but I had to buy the brackets. After doing a quick bit of research I decided to go with the Weapon R brackets ($75 for the pair compared to $150 for the Wedge). I'm pretty happy with the brackets, fitment was a struggle but I ended up only needing to Drill out the back-left hole on the passenger side bracket (the drivers side went in without any modification, just blood, sweat, and curse words). These brackets make the seat sit pretty much at stock height but they are very tall.

Just to reiterate. After letting my carpets soak, I again re-pressure washed them to get more of the stains out. Unlike Boosted, I didn't really do any hand scrubbing, only pressure washing. After that, I used a little hand carpet shampoo'r just to suck up as much water as possible (I didn't use any soap in it) and then just let the carpet lay out in my garage until the next day.

The next morning the carpet was dry but left a lot of sandy material in the carpet. I don't live anywhere near a beach so I'm not sure how that happened. So, I vacuumed it out real good and then started painting.

I used about 3 cans and would stop every so often to brush the carpet, making sure that the fibers were evenly coated from all angles. Then, I let it dry and re-installed.

 

[BoostedinSoFla]

Yeah, the seats are are nice, subtle and not too ricey. Oops...Did I just use the "R" word? A lot of people get ancy nowadays when that word is used. Anyway it brings the entire interior together well and keeps that "stock" look. Did you happen to use the same paint I used on the carpet to paint the trims/panels?

 

[95CarbonEclipse]

Yeah, the seats are are nice, subtle and not to ricey. Oops...Did I just use the "R" word? A lot of people get ancy nowadays when that word is used. Anyway it brings the entire interior together well and keeps that "stock" look. Did you happen to use the same paint I used on the carpet to paint the trims/panels?

... Yea, I was reading that thread where everyone jumped your case about the "R" word. I personally don't give a flying f*ck if people think my car is ricey... because you know what, it is a little ricey and that's how I like it.

I like aggresive bodylines, but that doesn't mean that my interior has to look like a rainbow puked all over it.

I actually used Krylon Fusion Satin Black for the hard plastic peices, but did use the Duplicolor Vinyl & Fabric paint for the airbag cover, center console armrest and rear seats.

 

[EDM95]

I just picked me up a carpet down a junk yard, but it is off a chrysler i hope it will fit.
I will post before & after pics later.

I washed it with some simple green and then i let it dry over night.
After it was dry i painted it with some flat black paint and that is all.

Before

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

After

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

 

[twoTSis]

Anyone know a way to dye the carpet rather then paint it?

The after picture looks like the color is a purple-ish color.

 

[btak]

WoW! that looks really nice. im gonna have to do that to my car when i get home. looks like the previous owner of my car had a party inside the car

 

[EDM95]

Anyone know a way to dye the carpet rather then paint it?

The after picture looks like the color is a purple-ish color.

It looks like that because the pics are from a camera phone, but in person it looks black.

 

[TjPhillips36]

Anyone know a way to dye the carpet rather then paint it?

The after picture looks like the color is a purple-ish color.

The dupli-color vinyl/fabric paint is more of a dye rather than a paint. It's hard to describe, but I would recommend picking up a can. It's well worth the money. They come in all sorts of colors also. Including black, and a factoryish gray.

 

[EDM95]

This carpet is a pia to lay down, ahhhhh i am ready to just give up.
Any one ever did this to a seat? I am about to paint my back seats black they are old and faded.

 

[arturo74r]

Hey guys, I followed this thread and did it to my carpet this is how it was:

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

The guy that owned this car lived in a dirt road and had no floor mats on the car so you get an idea. By the way this picture is after a long vacuum and some carpet cleaner that didn't help.

Another pic

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You can tell how dirty it was.

Look close on this pic there is a stain where the passenger puts his or her feet down. I think that was either dog poop or cat poop, still smelled a little bit but it was hard as a rock

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

So after taking the carpet out I took it to the car wash and pressure washed it with soap. It helped a lot, but it still was dirty so I let it soak overnight with some armor all car wash and simple green and water. When I took it out I threw it in the washer with regular washer soap. Even though it didn't help much it was smelling great. But since it was still dirty I borrowed a professional vacuum, one that sprays soap and then sucks it up. After a lot of scrubbing and vacuuming I took it to the car wash again but this time I didn't use soap. I let it dry overnight and next day I noticed there was still sand on it so I dry vacuumed it for a while with some scrubbing (dry). Then I painted it with the carpet spray paint and this is what it looks like now

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

Not only it looks great but it smells great. I took the time to wipe and clean every piece I had to take out and know my car smells great.

This is the passenger side (no dog poop stain! yes!!!)

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

And this is the rear seats area

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

By the way this pictures were taken after a month and a half of doing it and I still haven't vacuumed it so it's not crisp clean but you get the idea. Thanks for reading

 

[SwitchSkier]

Anyone know a way to dye the carpet rather then paint it?

The after picture looks like the color is a purple-ish color.

I did a combo on my carpet. I used a bunch of RIT clothing dye and put the carpet in a big bucket. One of my friends did the same thing with his Integra carpet too. His came out a lot better than mine though. I don't know why, but mine came out slightly purple from the dye. I did forget to add the salt like it says in the directions, and he remembered. But it could just be the material our carpets are made out of. I don't know. Then after it was dry I put on a light coat with the Duplicolor spray to even it out. I didn't want to use a lot of the spray and risk making the carpet crusty.

I think maybe this summer I might take it out and do the dye job again, but this time mix the salt in like it says to and see if I can get the purple out. You can't really tell, but when the sun shines on the carpet you can still see the purple/redish a little bit.

 

[arturo74r]

I used a lot of paint on my carpet (about 4 cans) and it is not crusty at all. The texture did change a little bit, but when it was completely dry I used a dry scrub and the texture is very similar to the original.

 

[lazyazzdaddy]

just thought i would throw this in for all you guys... I reciently did my carpet as well " no paint just a real good wash" after i did it i noticed my seats still looked like crap so.... I used a couple of those Mr clean sponges on them and man what a diferance it made.. like night and day! now if i can only figure out how to fix the small wear marks on the tops of the seat from slideing my ass in and out of the seat.

 

[EDM95]

The seat was looking old and dirty, so i painted it with some fabric spray.
Dont mind the seat belt pads

Before

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

After

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

 

[95CarbonEclipse]

Howd you fix the airbag peeling problem?

Sorry man, it's been a while since I've been on here.

I just bought a used airbag and installed that instead of attempting to fix the old one. I picked up the used airbag off of ebay for like $25 shipped and it worked out great except for the fact that it was listed as grey, but was actually slate blue (that's why it's painted black now).

 

[SnprSlick]

Thanks for the tutorial!




Here's my result: (The flash shows the uneven coat that isnt actually visible)

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

 

[squirley8888]

Nice! I've had my headliner out since last fall when I needed to do some repair work to the sunroof. I haven't installed it yet because I can't decide whether to stick with gray, or to switch to black. I've got a 2 tone grey/black interior theme going on.

My plan was to go with that same type of microsuade material and do the door inserts with it also.

Here's my old gray carpet painted black along with my new seats installed. The pictures were taken in low light and don't do the over all look and feel of the interior much justice. Also, like an idiot, I didn't take any pictures with my floormats NOT in there. Maybe later this weekend I will. All I can say is that it looks identical to factory black carpet.

Drivers Side

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

Passengers Side

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

Where did you get those floor mats?

 

[95CarbonEclipse]

Where did you get those floor mats?

Good Ol' Ebay. Unfortunately the seller is no longer listed on ebay, but I'm sure that you can find similar ones on there. The seller that I purchased them from was out of Brazil. It's possible that he's going by another ebay name.

You're the first one to notice them... well, you're the first one to mention it at least.

 

[Jeff99GS]

That paint looks great...FOR about 6 months...then the color will start to wear off. I used it a LONG time ago and NOW my carpet looks worse cause its faded black with grey showing through.

If you're going to paint the carpet its best to use a similar color like th OP that way when it wears off its NOT as obvious as Black with Gray showing through.

 

[95CarbonEclipse]

It's been almost a year (including an entire summer) and my interior still looks the same as the pics in this thread.

But, I am pretty leary of leaving my car out in the sun for long periods of time. Mainly this is because I'd like to keep my black seats "black." I don't care how high quality of a fabric or seat you have, the sun WILL damage it over time.

 

[99 GST-R]

95RedCarbonEclipse, what seats and bracket combo do you have? Ive been trying to pick out some new seats because mine are worn out from 10 years of short, often trips. Lots of gettin in and out so the sides are trashed. New seats would be nice. Do they sit as low as the stockers? Are they good enough for long drives (like 8 hours +)? Thanks. BTW the carpet looks great. I wish I had just done that instead of replacing it with new black carpet. Oh well it looks so nice now that its in.

 

[Jeff99GS]

95RedCarbonEclipse, what seats and bracket combo do you have? Ive been trying to pick out some new seats because mine are worn out from 10 years of short, often trips. Lots of gettin in and out so the sides are trashed. New seats would be nice. Do they sit as low as the stockers? Are they good enough for long drives (like 8 hours +)? Thanks. BTW the carpet looks great. I wish I had just done that instead of replacing it with new black carpet. Oh well it looks so nice now that its in.

If you can't find new racing seats that you like, you could always have your stock seats re-upholstered. It looks like a new car when it's done. Plus they still feel just as soft and comfy as they always did. I re-did my own seats with Suede + heated seats, which makes them SOO nice and warm in the cooler weather. Even tho I don't really drive it much in the winter haha. Plus then you will have matching front and rear seats too!

 

[95CarbonEclipse]

95RedCarbonEclipse, what seats and bracket combo do you have? Ive been trying to pick out some new seats because mine are worn out from 10 years of short, often trips. Lots of gettin in and out so the sides are trashed. New seats would be nice. Do they sit as low as the stockers? Are they good enough for long drives (like 8 hours +)? Thanks. BTW the carpet looks great. I wish I had just done that instead of replacing it with new black carpet. Oh well it looks so nice now that its in.

The seats are Megan Racing and things that I like the most about them is that they're very comfortable, provide good "grip," are easy to get in and out of, and they don't look super tacky like other seats out there. When I got new seats I too was concerned about the sitting height, especially since the aftermarket seats that my car came with when I bought it had me crouching down just to drive it. I did a lot of research on all the different brackets out there and I decided to go with the Weapon R brackets. I am extremely pleased. I wasn't required to drill any new holes (although it did take some finagling to get them in) and the ride height is perfect. Here's some more pics of the seats that I have (unfortunately I don't have any pics of the brackets on my computer).