Hi Hugh,

There was not a single particular manual. I figured out what was going on through lots of web research, and for disassembly, I just figured it out as I went. You can pretty much look at the headliner, and know that everything that comes through it has to be removed.

The color was close. Not perfect, but close. I chose not to re-cover the underside of the sunroof shade. If you look, you can tell that they are different, but in truth, nobody ever actually looks unless I point it out to them.

Interesting note: according to Volvo, all 850's have a beige headliner. Thus, when I was getting my new plastic sunroof surround, it only came in beige. (They assured me it was correct, "because they all have beige". It was correct for my car!

I would say it took me several weeks of figuring out what to do, and ordering the new material and adhesive. (I'm cheap and went for the slow truck of ground shipping.) Once I sat down to do it, it took maybe an hour to get it out, (slow because I was figuring out along the way how to do it,) another half hour to really scrub to clean up the fiber board, (I was kind of fussy about getting every last particle that I could out of there,) then about another half hour to spray glue and put on the new fabric. Then I let it dry overnight, and it took maybe another half hour to trim to my satisfaction, then less than a half hour to put it all back. (Easier going in, since I now knew what I was doing.) As with all car jobs, it would go faster if I had to do it again.

If you don't like that one WLS Headliners, there are several places that will sell you the material, including local fabric stores.

Roger

Erwin,

I'm glad I'm not alone in my misery. The only benefit I see, is I have two other Volvo wagons, and eventually they too will develop the same problem. If I successfully deal with the current sagging headliner, I'll be able to deal with it again when the other wagons become problematic. I guess I have to expect these things when you drive a 15 year old car with over 200,000 miles.

Hugh

From what I learned here over the years, the hard part is removing all of the plastic trim. Best to do it while the car is hot and the plastic plyable so you don't break any plastic tabs. The liner will come out through the hatch, make sure you have a suitable place to work, no rain or pets.

Klaus
--
Always willing to listen, just not able to take direction.

The glue MUST be fabric glue. Any old glue will not work.

As I said, you need to feel where the rigid support is, make a small cut through the fabric, spray the glue through the cut and immediately pres the fabrick against the rigid support. This is a stop gap measure and will not look as good as removal and new fabric, besides the fact that you will probably get glue on your fingers and transfer it on to the outside of the fabric. Lighter fluid will remove glue, but stinks for a few days.

Klaus
--
Always willing to listen, just not able to take direction.

"Did you have to purchase the replacement piece from a Volvo dealer?"

No. I purchased the headliner fabric from JoAnn Fabrics for around 40 bucks, it was a pretty close match; + 2 cans of 3M interior spray adhesive.

But you need to understand that this is two pieces. There is a backing material that is kind of like a resin material and very brittle. It is usually still in one piece while in the car. If you are not careful though, it can snap while trying to remove it. It is pretty easily repaired with fiberglass mesh though.

"Were you required to pull down the old ceiling liner and replace it with a new one?"

Yes, that is the only way to get the job done right.

"Is this a difficult and complicated job to do?"

Difficult - yes. Complicated, not really, but you have to be willing to spend a lot of time doing it. It is not a simple pull-it-out and slap another one in - 2 hour job.

I'd recommend that you look through the 700 FAQ on this site and check out the headliner replacement section. It was very helpful and may give you some insight into what your trying to do.