How to put home carpet in datsun

['77az280z]

Alright, so i have a '77 280z, but i need new carpet and im on a budget. I went to home depot and they have some pretty cheap carpet and there is a black short fiber carpet i decided i could put in my Z. Any ideas on how to put home carpet into your Z?? There are molded carpet kits out there but im not really looking for something to spend a few hundred on just yet. I just need something that doesnt look like crap for a while until i can afford it. Ideas anyone?

[BrianL1987]

If the vinyl looks good, I would just pull out the factory carpet & use the pieces as templates to cut the new stuff. Since the new carpet is not molded, I wouldn't try to wrap any other then the flat areas on floor wells & back hatch area. Should be able to make it look pretty good.

['77az280z]

Unfortunately i dont have any of the vinyl , there is some really really crappy home carpeting though. Which they glued pretty much everywhere. If i had the factory carpeting i would just use that as a template like you said but unfortunately i dont have that option.

[Bruce Palmer]

You can always buy a roll of kraft paper and make patterns and cut from there..... This is not rocket science. You can even take pieces to an upholstery shop and have visible edges bound.

['77az280z]

Not saying it is rocket science just hoping someone would have some helpful tips for me, the current carpet is useless because it wasnt even done close to what it actually should be. The carpet is missing pieces and ontop of that isnt a material i would use. Thank you anyways Bruce.

[TBone028]

I'm sure if you go to a fabric shop like Jo-anne fabrics or something, you can find something close to the original diamond vinyl or just something that will look ok. Cut a pattern and put it over your trans tunnel. If you want, try to find some thin foam backing. Use 3M spray adhesive to secure...you can find it at any autostore.

For the floor-mat carpets, just make a pattern you can live with out of cardboard or something, and then transfer it to your carpet material. You can try to take it somewhere to get the edges bound, or, if you know someone with a heavy duty sewing machine, just sew on a border out of the scrap material that you used to cover the trans tunnel.

I actually did not want to permanently adhere my floor mat carpets to my floors, so I went to the autostore, and purchased hook and velcro 3M tape. I used 4 1"x1'' squares per side. Worked really well, and I just made sure to clean the area of dirt/dust before I applied the tape. That way, I can take my carpets out to clean them whenever I like. They barely move and dont slide around when I'm getting in and out of the car.

[sblake01]

If the vinyl looks good,......

Unfortunately i dont have any of the vinyl .......

I'm sure if you go to a fabric shop like Jo-anne fabrics or something' date=' you can find something close to the original diamond vinyl or just something that will look ok.[/quote']From my recollection, threre isn't any vinyl on the trans tunnel in a 280Z. I can speak from experience for a 78 but I'm sure that would also apply to 77.

[mgood]

Here a few pictures from the inside of mine, the 280z's did not have diamond pattern vinyl, and the carpet was not on the shock towers. The vinyl was like the back of the seats.

As you can see there is carpet on the trany tunnel.

[kjphilippona]

This is correct, my 77' has carpet on transmission tunnel.

[Davis]

I am doing a budget replacement as well and I am just about done. Here is what I did - I spent alot time making and remaking patterns for all the various areas needing carpet. I bought about $60 on cheap (thin) auto carpet with the thought that some day soon I will reuse the patterns and buy the correct nylon loop material. I also used the patterns to insulate the floors with sound mat from a used van. (got that free) I used 3M high bond 90 spray to glue everything down ($16 per cn x 3) The trunk carpet was velcroed down.

After that I sprayed the diamond vinyl with SEMS Color Coat Satin Black (I used about 3 cans or $45 worth. A perfect match.

it looks way better than the old interior but not sure how it will stand up (cheap carpet)

All this took about 3 months of on and off time - any surface rust I came across was

removed and repainted as I went along

For the entire interior I think the cost will end up around $170 when done.

Davus

['77az280z]

Thanks alot guys!! That is more like what i was looking for, and i appreciate the info about not having any vinyl on my tranny tunnel, i was thinking of forgoing it anyways just because i didn't really like it all that much , but now that i know you don't i wont put it on. Also thanks so much for the pics!!

[TomoHawk]

How do you think a 78 would look with some kind of vinyl on the transmission tunnel? Maybe even the hatch area? I like the idea of being able to clean it with a wet rag instead of a vacuum cleaner. I'd still use carpet for the floors in front of the seats.

thxZ