Painting the carpet.

[smitty54]

Has anyone tried painting/dying their carpet. I know that there are spray paints made for this so I am curious as to how it would come out. I was in one of the shows this past weekend and was told that my carpet was faded. The carpet is still in good shape. So the question is, paint, or replace.

[IDMooseMan]

I haven't painted any carpets, but if it were me, I'd replace the carpet. More expensive in the long run, but that's my preference.

[Jimmy2.3Mustang]

I've painted a couple carpets. It's not as good as replacing them with the color you want, but it doesn't cost $150+ either. It will wear back to the original color if it's in a high traffic area, but you can always paint it again.

[Gemini1999]

I haven't painted any carpets, but if it were me, I'd replace the carpet. More expensive in the long run, but that's my preference.

I agree with that suggestion.

[smitty54]

So from what I'm hearing, if you want a car to be presentable at a show, replace, not paint. That's what I thought, but I wanted to get some perspective on the painting. Thanks, all.

[Jimmy2.3Mustang]

What have you got to lose? If you're going to change the carpet anyway, why not try painting it? I painted the carpet in a beater, drove it for a few years and no one ever guessed it was painted, and most didn't believe it was painted. I didn't even use a product for that purpose. A few years later when I found a black carpet in a junkyard car, I switched over and a buddy put my painted rug in his car. Assuming you're just touching up a faded area, chances are no one will ever notice. If you use a product designed for dying carpet it'd probably turn out half decent. If you're looking for every last point at a carshow, spend the money on new carpet.

[Gemini1999]

There's nothing wrong with painting, but if you are going to the trouble of removing the seats, console, kick panels, etc. and are pulling the carpet, the only major difference is the amount spent and the time spent to replace vs. paint.

[Bryan Knebworth]

I've always heard that Fox repro carpet is a total PITA to get to fit properly. You could color-test the original to see how it comes out.

[smitty54]

Which company makes a good quality replacement carpet?

[wraithracing]

If you choose to paint the carpet, make sure you use a stiff bristle brush and brush the carpet out after allowing the paint to dry a bit between coats. Otherwise the carpet becomes stiff and a bit matted and looks terrible. I did the paint option on my Pace Car's carpet when I first bought it due to not being ready to redo the interior and I couldn't stand the faded black carpet. The paint has held up fine, but I also have floor mats at all four locations so it reduces the amount of wear. So if you need to save the money or time, it's an option. Just don't expect the painted carpet to look as good as new carpet. It won't but for a daily driver or even the occasional weekend local show car it can be fine. This also depends on the amount of wear on the carpet. If the carpet is just faded it will look much better painted. carpet that is well worn painted just doesn't look good at all.

As for carpet, the ACC stuff is the most prevalent, although fit and long term color stability can be issues. I haven't had major fitment issues with ACC and I have installed several dozen sets over the years, but it never fits like a glove so to say. If you take your time and make your holes, cuts, and trims carefully it will fit well and look very good. There is another brand of carpet available for the Foxes, but I can't recall it right now, hopefully someone else can chime in and help me out.

Good Luck!

Trey