Our Top 5 interior, refresh, renew and overhaul parts

“It’s what’s on the inside that counts”
said somebody once…

Is your interior looking a bit tired, sad, worn, cracked or split?

Whether you fancy a complete interior overhaul, a total colour change or just a little freshen up, have a look at our Top 5 most popular interior parts to renew, overhaul and refresh your classic Volkswagen interior:

Headliner

Nothing’s worse than a droopy, ripped or stained headliner, flappy bits going all over the shop, they really let an interior down. For the price, headliners are good value to make such a big difference to smarten and brighten up your interior. We sell a massive range of headliners with over 30 different colour options, materials and finishes for earlier models.

Difficulty:

Yes these can be very daunting to fit if you haven’t attempted it before and these get a rarely seen “5 Beetles” on the difficulty scale from us. You need lots and lots of patience, 5 gajillion bulldog clips and many cups of tea for a successful install. As always though, use the interwebs for videos, advice, tips and tricks and it can be a doable job at home, or if you think it’s beyond your skill level, see if you can find a local aircooled specialist or quality trimmer for a quote. Ask Rich about his experience fitting his Early Bay headliner… yeah best not (but to his credit the final result was absolutely top notch, proof that patience does pay off).

Also available to complete the job we sell roof felt and hood padding, headliner bows and bungs if you need to replace them, have a look HERE.

Click on your model below to see the headliner options available:


Seat Covers

To think that even early 70’s Beetles are now 50 years old it’s understandable that a lot of seat covers are sagging, cracked, split and poorly fitting after being subjected to decades of bums, sunlight, temperature fluctuations, daily use and just plain old wear and tear in our Classic Volkswagens.

There are so many options available when it comes to new seat covers, from standard single colour vinyl or basketweave to a multitude of different colours, materials, offset piping, inlay strips, backs, surrounds or even twin tones, the sky is the limit to suit your style, colour scheme, taste and budget.

Don’t forget to check the condition of your seat padding as 9 times out of 10 it may require replacing at the same time as new seat covers on old squashed seat padding will be baggy and a loose fit.

Difficulty:

Seat cover replacement gets a 4 in our eyes as while it’s not overly complex and difficult, it is time consuming and requires Hog Ring Pliers for the best overall finish look, not something everyone has in their toolbox, but good news is we do rent or sell this specialist tool also, click the image below.

When installing seat covers, warm them up first to make them as soft and pliable as possible to stretch over the foam or padding to get a nice tight fit when cooled, a hairdryer works well.

Click on your model below to see the seat cover options available:


Door Cards

The first thing you usually see when you get in your VW is the door card, so you’re probably quite familiar with them by now. The driver’s side tends to take the most beating over time, constantly opening and closing, exposed to the elements when getting in and out, scuffs and scrapes with your shoes and if you have pockets the elastic stretches over time and they look like they’re hungry or yawning. If your protective plastic film is ripped or missing behind the door card and you’ve had water ingress, then your door cards warp and the vinyl can separate from the card giving it a wavy look and if really bad, will pop the panel clips from the door causing it to separate from the door completely.

Replacements come in various qualities, colours and materials, from under £80 for a single colour plain vinyl 4 piece Beetle set, to over £1,800 for OEM material twin tone 11 piece kit for an earlier model Splitscreen Bus.

Difficulty:

Replacing door cards gets a 3 on the difficulty scale, as while they’re not complicated to install, some can take time depending on the vehicle. If you’re just replacing the cards only an a Beetle for example you can do all 4 in under an hour, but a bus kit can take a full weekend if you’re replacing the protective film and adding additional sound deadening for example.

Measure your door panel clips before ordering as there are 2 types on later models, 6mm or 7mm. All panel clips, bungs and protective plastic film are available separately if required.

Click on your model below to see the interior door panels available:


Carpet Kits

A new carpet kit can completely transform your interior and make it feel luxurious and comfortable and breathe new life into your driving experience by massively reducing road and engine noise with the correct sound deadening or underlay. Carpet kits come in a wide colour and material range, Narrow Weave, Nylon, Perlon to the ultra posh OE Squareweave, we can supply a carpet kit to suit all budgets, styles and finishes.

From a single Bus cab carpet to a comprehensive 23 piece Karmann Ghia kit, all our carpets are manufactured using original patterns and we remanufacture original OEM style pedal mats, air vents, gear and handbrake gaiter grommets and they come with a 5 page fitting instructions supplied with handy hints that will help you fit the carpets.

Difficulty:

Carpets can be time consuming and your hands will likely hate you by the time you finish, but be patient, ask a mate round and put plenty of time aside to do it to get the best finish you possibly can. Have a cuppa and read the fitting instructions first to achieve a smooth finish.

Don’t forget to order your sound deadening and installation glue sold separately.

Click on your model below to see the carpets and carpet kits available:


Sunvisors

Over time and being constantly exposed to UV, sunvisors dry out, crack, split, lose their tension and just flap about willy nilly, so recreating the Terminator sunvisor key reveal scene can sadly be a “problemo”(does anyone actually ever, really?…)

Replacing your sunvisors are one of those jobs you only ever think about when you’re in or driving your VW and always say to yourself “must get round to replacing those”. Well forget no longer friends, here’s your reminder for a simple to install and pleasing interior replacement part, order yours now!

Difficulty:

Don’t forget to order clips and screws if required for your model, as they’re sold separately and only included in the late model money saving bundle kits.

Also available are these very good quality reproduction smoked perspex interior sunvisors as originally fitted to pre 1960 Beetles if yours are crazed or cracked:

Click on your model below to see the sunvisors available:


Please note that whilst every attempt is made to ensure that these instructions are as clear and correct as possible, we cannot be held responsible for misinterpretation of these instructions or for any subsequent accident or damage caused through misfitted parts.

My VW