- When your carpet arrives the
first thing to do is to check the tag on the end of the box to make
sure that you have received the correct year, make and model carpet
for your vehicle.
- Unpack the box(es) and remove
all contents. For ease of installation, unroll the
carpet or molded vinyl floor covering allowing it to lay flat over
night, giving it a chance to "relax" before beginning installation.
It is normal for there to be some wrinkles incurred
during shipping. These wrinkles will relax during installation and
after the carpet has had a chance to conform to the vehicle's floor
pan. If you are not going to install your carpet or vinyl
immediately, please unroll and lay carpet flat, propping up the
tunnel area and popping out any molding on the carpet. Do not store
product rolled up in box for an extended period of time.
When working with the molded vinyl
floor covering, the application will be easier if you unpack and lay
the vinyl floor covering flat in a warm area, out of direct
sunlight, over night before beginning any installation--Do not leave
molded vinyl or molded carpet in direct sunlight until
after installation is complete, doing so may cause product to
warp incorrectly and will void any warranty on product fit. The molded vinyl is quite thick and
can be somewhat difficult to work with, especially when cold.
NOTE: Vinyl floor coverings are left large and will
be long in the door way
areas and may also need to be trimmed front to rear. Molded vinyl
floor coverings will have to be trimmed. On vinyl floor
coverings, you should work from the tunnel (hump) area and and work
toward the door area making sure that you fit the vinyl into the
floor pan areas and then trim the excess from the outside to make it
fit properly.
Working from the door area toward the center tunnel
will make the tunnel area push up and bunch.
- Take the time to compare
your new carpet pieces to your old pieces to ensure that you know
where each piece will fit.
Take your time when installing your carpet and do not omit any steps
in the instructions. If you do not have your old carpet, make
measurements with a flexible tape measure and compare measurements
to your new carpet before installation. If you have any questions about your new
carpet or how you should install your new carpet you should stop
installation until you have contacted us at 712-465-2208 during
regular business hours. If you feel you have received an
incorrect or defective carpet do not install any part of the carpet
set or cut or alter any
pieces of the carpet set and phone 712-465-2208 for a return
authorization. However, do not call until you have taken
all pieces from the box and inspected, remember, most carpets
will need to be trimmed in the doorway areas and may have to be
trimmed front to rear. On most carpet sets you will also have to cut
for the seat belt holes, seat bolt holes and the hole for the
shifter if you have one--this is normal for all aftermarket
carpet since holes vary slightly from vehicle to vehicle and it
would be extremely difficult for the manufacturer to precut those
holes and have them fit properly. Once any of the pieces have been installed, cut
or altered, your carpet cannot be returned. A complete carpet
set must be returned.
- If your new carpet is a set
with more than one piece, take the time to dry fit your smaller
pieces so that you know where each piece fits before beginning the
actual installation. This will eliminate any errors of
installing a piece sideways or upside down. If necessary, take
a piece of chalk and mark arrows or "up" on the back side of smaller
pieces.
Do not use
ink or marker to mark the back side of carpet pieces. Ink or markers
may bleed through to the right side of your carpet in a hot car in
summer.
- Remove all seats, seat belts
(only the seat belts that are mounted on the floor), the console (if
you have a *console **NOTE: console must be
removed in order to install carpet), old carpet, door sills and on some
applications (especially molded vinyl) your kick panels, etc. If you
have a manual transmission, remove the stick shifter if possible (it
is usually held on with a bolt) for ease of carpet installation.
If you wish, you may leave in the jute padding from your old carpet
for additional sound deadening, but all of your old carpeting must
be removed. The new carpet that you receive is not meant to replace
all padding in vehicle. Do not remove factory heat
shield. If you have removed all original padding from your vehicle,
additional padding may be needed in order to insure proper fit of
your new carpet or vinyl floor covering.
*Do not attempt
to install your new carpet without removing the console.
- Now is a good time to inspect
the floor pan and repair any damage or rust, and to lay down any
sound deadener you may have purchased. (Sound deadener should be
installed on the bare floor pan under any carpet padding.)
- Make certain that the heel pad
on your new carpet is in the correct place (under the steering wheel
and under the gas/break pedal) before you start installation.
NOTE** If this is a two piece carpet, the binding must be
under where the front seat(s) will be and the binding must be
running from door to door.
Some one piece carpets look
"square" when out of the vehicle--especially pickups and small
cars. Make sure that you have the carpet facing the right direction
before cutting any holes. The most common mistake that the
inexperienced installer makes is installing the carpet sideways and
cutting the hole in it before realizing that he/she has it in
sideways. Also, your new carpet will probably look bigger than your
old carpet, this is normal since you will probably have to trim your
new carpet in the doorway areas and possibly front to rear. If the carpet does not seem to fit correctly, or if it is
way too long in the door ways and too short under the firewall, you do not
have it facing the right direction--simply give it a 1/4 turn, until
it drops into place. Each carpet is manufactured in a mold that is
specific to that vehicle's year/make/model floor pan. It is
impossible for the carpet mold to fit thousands of vehicles of the
same year/make/model and then not fit just one vehicle--these carpets
fit properly every time.
- Correct placement
of your new carpet may be made by either laying your old carpet on
top or under your new carpet or by fitting half (folded
lengthwise) of the carpet into the floor pan in your vehicle (making
certain that the heel pad is in the correct place), before cutting
any holes for the shifter (if you have a floor shifter), etc. Start by "x"ing out the smallest hole
possible, then if needed, you may enlarge the hole as your
installation progresses--work carefully and slowly. Change the
blades in your knife as needed.
- Use your old carpet for a
template only. Do not cut the holes in your new carpet out the same size as the
holes on your old carpet. Start with the smallest hole
possible, and only cut a hole in your carpet if you are satisfied
that you have the floor pan indentions lined up correctly between
your old and new carpet.
Do not cut or "X"
holes out for seat belt bolts or seat bolts, you will need to do
that once your carpet is correctly positioned and installed in your
vehicle.
- Holes should only
be cut in the carpet after you are certain that your carpet
is facing the right direction in your vehicle and positioned correctly (side to side
AND front to rear) in your vehicle. (Your carpet cannot be returned
for any reason after it has been cut.) Work carefully and slowly. If
you feel you do not understand how to install your new carpet, have
it installed professionally.
- Do not glue carpet to the
floor of your vehicle, it will give it a bumpy look and there is
no need to glue it in the floor area. It will also make your
installation more difficult if you have to reposition your carpet.
When you replace your seats and trim pieces, it will be held in
place with no where to go. Carpets are not glued down from the
factory in the floor pan area. You may, however, have to glue
tailgate and/or wheel well pieces depending on your particular
application.
- After you have
your carpet laying down in the floor pan areas and positioned side
to side and front to back correctly, it is possible that you
may have to do some trimming in the doorways and occasionally under
the fire wall or where your gas pedal is, though you must be certain before you trim any carpet
under the fire wall that you do not have the carpet positioned too
far forward in the vehicle. Be sure to put door sill trim in
the proper place before determining if you need to do any trimming
in the door way, this way you will not cut your new carpet too short
if you do need to trim. A small amount of carpet should fit
under the door sill trim.
- Positioning your
carpet correctly when installing it is the best way to insure the
proper wear of your carpet, so take your time. If you feel
uncertain how to install your new carpet, have a professional
install it for you.
- If your carpet
came with a dimmer and/or radio grommet this is the last thing that
you install. When you are certain that you have the carpet laying
where it should be, cut a small hole where your dimmer switch/radio
switch is and slip the grommet (small side first) through the hole
that you have just cut from the back side of the carpet. Make
the hole as small as possible, it should be a tight squeeze when you
are installing the grommet. Then
lay the carpet back down into place.
- Now you can cut
the holes for your seat bolts and seat belt bolts. Use a sharp
object and probe the floor until you find the hole, cut the smallest
circle possible to expose the bolt hole in the floor. Don't forget to
thread the seat belt sensor switch through the correct hole before
reinstalling the seats.
Do not use an electric drill for the seat belt or seat bolt
holes--the carpet and padding will wrap around it and get caught.
You may also damage the bolt holes in the floor of your vehicle.
- If you have air
ducts under your front seat(s), now is the time to knife a slit in
your new carpet to allow for your air conditioning/heating ducts.
- Reinstall the
seats, seat belts, console, door sills, kick panels, etc.
- If you have any
further questions about installation after reading all of these
instructions before beginning your installation, you may contact us
at 712-465-2208. All of our sales personnel are experienced
installers and will be able to answer any questions you may have.
- Again, once your
carpet has been cut or altered in any way it is not returnable,
exchangeable or refundable for any reason. Please be certain
that you have your carpet positioned correctly (side to side and
front to rear) before doing any cutting.
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