I've got an 89 245 with another concern. In the rear hatch area, where the carpet covers the side storage above the passenger wheel well. Not the bottom wood part you pull up on (with a strap) to access the storage area. But the side carpet you pull back to access the brake lights. That entire piece that has the heater vent on it, it covers the gas filler tube, the seatbelt and the fender. It also has all those little black door trim (sometimes pink) pieces that like to break and pull from it's seating. That's my concern.

That backing seems to be cardboard. When it gets old and wet, or just pulled off by unauthorized mechanics that don't know what they're doing, How do you repair those little trim slots?.... Tape or glue? Or has anyone replaced that entire cardboard backing with any success?... It would seem the parts are interchangeable, and the carpet could be stapled onto a new piece, if you deconstructed it, and made a new one. But that cardboard seem pretty heavy duty. A cheap backing, might fall apart quickly or not hold up at all. Has anyone done this with any success, and how? Or is it one of those things you just have to live with?