True Connections

This month we are continuing on the interior and discussing the headliner trim. On all 1964-1967 Chevelles and El Caminos the front of the headliner was held in place with barbs on a stamped piece of steel that clipped into the roof, then a single length of plastic trim snaps on over the steel & headliner material. The plastic trim is available reproduction only in black so if you have a color interior you will need to dye the trim. The rear of the headliner is held on by the same type of stamped steel with barbs, and plastic trim finishing it off. The plastic trim for the rear window is also black and would need to be dyed but it is also different between hardtops, El Caminos, & sedans, and 1964-1965 & 1966-1967. The rear window trim is a multi piece setup, usually involving small corners or small center clips. The sides of the headliner on El Caminos, Sedans, & Wagons are held on by a rubber windlace that snaps onto the jamb area of the body. This windlace is available by the foot and in several different colors, although dyeing is sometimes necessary to get an exact match. On 1964-1965 hardtops, there is a 6 piece polished aluminum trim that holds the sides, comprised of a small front cap that screws to the roof, a long molding that slides into the cap, and a shorter molding that drops down the back, on each side. The 1966-1967 hardtops had only 4 pieces, a small cap in the front and a long molding with a curve near the back that drops down behind the quarter window. The 1964-1965 side moldings are not currently being reproduced and decent ones are hard to find, so if you still have yours, your best bet is to have them straightened and re-anodized. The 1966-1967 hardtop side trim has been available reproduction for a while now and it is a good looking set.

The 1968-1972 front and rear headliners are held in place by the same type of stamped steel with barbs but the finishing trim is a molded rubber, similar to windlace, which just became available reproduction. The front trim has the correct cutout for the rearview mirror but both front and rear again only come in black and need to be dyed for a color interior, the manufacturer claims to have colored trim but if you look closely it is just a dyed piece. Being that they are still slightly off from factory colors we normally recommend dyeing them for an exact match. The side headliner trim for 1968 and most 1969 Chevelles had a steel interior side trim along with steel pillar post covers instead of the vinyl covered ones, none of which is available. The other side trim for 1968-1972 Chevelles is a rubber strip similar to the front and rear trim but with a different shape and only comes in black. The side headliner trim for 1968-1972 El Caminos used a rubber windlace which is not currently available. The side trim is similar to the Chevelle side trim but it had a different shape to it and they will not work in place of the correct piece, so your only option is to clean up some originals for now. Next month we will continue with some new items in the interior.