My 1986 Buick Regal headliner has apparently lost whatever adhesive GM used to secure it to the roof. The headliner is a wine/maroon color
and I seek suggestions as to what glue I should use to re-secure it to the roof? Obviously I need something that is going to be color fast and not
bleed through and change the color of the headliner. I have also considered buying a replacement headliner (I understand there are companies that manufacture the whole headliner in one piece) but I haven't investigated that and would be interested if anyone has any suggestions. Thanks.

Find an upholsterer and have them do it. Take the headliner to them. They will have a fabric you can choose. Don't try and attach the one that'* hanging you will not like the outcome.

The foam that is bonded to the headliner fabric breaks down and turns into a darker brown, gooey, stinky mess. This one wasn't very bad, just my amateur attempt from 25 years ago that wasn't bonded to the backer board well, and faded. Salvaging the backer board can be tricky too. My latest attempt turned out nicely, after my second attempt at matching the color.



It'* a hard job that I don't personally recommend.

The last one I did cost $75 but that'* been many years. It'* probably be more like $125 today.

I remember lots of places advertising headliner replacements at good prices when we lived in Florida. They deteriorate so much more slowly in the high desert, I can't even think of a place around here that does them.

What destroys them the most is the heat they get when left in the sun. Cars and trucks that are garaged didn't have the problem.

Thanks for weighing in CARFIXER007 and CORVAIRGEEK. I live in the outback of the tundra of northern Wisconsin and the only upholsterer here does
tents and nothing else. Sigh. CORVAIRGEEK that headliner you re-did is bee-yoo-tee-full! What kind of adhesive did you use to attach the fabric?
Yes the foam is what'* breaking down. Today when I was driving I tried to tuck a piece of the fabric back into the frame and my wife got showered with
its bits; I need not tell you if she appreciated that. My Regal headliner is also somewhat complicated by the fact that I have a sunroof so I've got a project
on my hands. A couple years ago I contacted a company that manufactured headliners but they said (then) that they did not do a replacement for
an 86 Regal. It'* worth looking into again, though, to be sure. I'd really like to get this girl purdeyed-up. Thanks to you guys for your thoughts.

I've done a couple. It'* a pain if the fabric hasn't come all the way off of the foam or backboard. I use a 3M spray upholstery adhesive. Spray the hard surface, let it get a little tacky, dust the fabric very lightly and then lay it on while lightly pressing all of it down from one end to the other. Mine came out okayish. The biggest problem with the old material is that it doesn't want to unstretch, and then it wants to wrinkle. I agree CorvairGeek'* example looks good!

I appreciate the compliments! What look like imperfections smoothed out and/or were cut out for the courtesy lights, coat hooks ect. It took a lot of practice and patience.
While the 3M products are the go-to in most anything, I used Camie 393 with the fabric I bought from https://www.yourautotrim.com/
When I did the headliner the first time (199, I am suspicious I may have gotten a substandard product from a fabric store. I'd never seen one fade. Granted, I keep vehicles waaaay too long. Attempting to match an old GM maroon/red was a lot harder than I expected, with few manufacturers making product.

Well you sure do nice work. I appreciate the recommendation for the adhesive and fabric. Thanks for the head'* up about
matching maroon being a challenge. My Regal is a wine color and the headliner isn't normal cloth you find in headliners, it'* kind of like velvet. It was
gorgeous when I bought the car but I have a feeling it is going to be a pain to find a replacement. I imagine working with it is also going to
enable me to use cuss words I haven't used in years. :0