Interior carpet removal

I need to remove my carpet in my 96 XJ. Beside removing the seats and console is there anything else I need to be aware of? I have a small rust hole on the passenger side that needs a patch welded in. Also, it will give me a chance to inspect the floor board and clean the carpet as well.

Not sure about 96 but my 2000 has little tie down hooks in the cargo area that will have to be drilled out - they're rivited in. It may be easier to remove some of the plastic trim as well rather than pulling the carpet out from under the edge. The outboard rear seat bolt is exposed underneath the vehicle (both sides) so start hitting it with penetrating oil now. I just pulled my pass seat today for cleanup and the only reason I didn't do the driver's seat is because that bolt is a little stuck and didn't feel like Fun with Drill Bits today.

You will need to pull the door threshold trim as well.

I'm planning on leaving the cargo area carpet alone at the moment. I figured I'd have to drill out the cargo rivet tie down loops to get the rear carpet out. Smart Jeep, real smart. I don't believe I have any rust issues on the cargo floor itself and the carpet looks ok. I have the headliner, overhead console and sound bar out to be recovered. I have some rust in the roof corners by the lift gate. I think water leaked in because the roof rack wasn't tightened all the way and allowed some water in. I have the patched that need to be welded in and will do that first before doing the headliner, etc.. Thanks for everyone's input.

I just did this a week ago so its pretty fresh in my mind.... Mine is a 2 door. You need to pull: seats, console, threshold trim, kick panels, the end of the seat belts, and rear seat bottom. You don't NEED to remove the seatbelt receptacles/buckles but it makes things a lot easier, but the bolts might be super tight. I ended up leaving the passenger one because it was so tight it was beginning to feel like I might break the bolt. Get the hand brake up as high as you can and put the shifter in 1-2. the rest is up to wrestling the thing out the door. Its pretty bulky and way heavier than I had anticipated. An extra pair of hands would be helpful for sure.

I took the carpet to the local "do it yourself" carwash place because I don't have a pressure washer. I got a gallon of carpet spot remover from Home Depot. doused the real bad spots and let is soak for a bit. Then I blasted the carpet for 10 min or so with the high pressure soap setting. The filthy water that came out was impressive. Brown/Black in color. Then rinsed it thoroughly. You're gonna want that extra pair of hands to help get the wet carpet loaded back up. It'll take a day or two to dry out completely.

I've yet to do my patch panel, but it looks pretty straight forward.

Hope this helps!

I just put my interior back together after pressure washing the carpet and repairing a few small rust holes with POR15 and JB Weld then a thick coat of undercoating. Interior looks pretty nice, carpet came out great for being 21 years old. I need to find some decent floor mats for it. I'm torn between trying to find carpet ones that match close to the originals ones or with catchall rubber types. The latter ones would certainly keep the interior cleaner. A couple of rust spots to repair on the rear roof near the liftgate then install my new headliner, OH console and sound bar. My baby will be almost like new inside the cockpit.

This is my next project after the trans... and if I were you id go with husky or weathertech for floor mats, they are pricy, but worth it. and for the 2 door guys, has anyone had a rust bubble form at the bottom rear corners of your side glass?

also how much difference is there between a 96 and down interior and 97+? the reason I ask is I seen rubber floor liners like youd find in a commercial vehicle and wondered if theyd fit in my 99

sinat01 said:

This is my next project after the trans... and if I were you id go with husky or weathertech for floor mats, they are pricy, but worth it. and for the 2 door guys, has anyone had a rust bubble form at the bottom rear corners of your side glass?

also how much difference is there between a 96 and down interior and 97+? the reason I ask is I seen rubber floor liners like youd find in a commercial vehicle and wondered if theyd fit in my 99

Click to expand...

Any floor mats made for an XJ should fit any year. The body floor pans were the same for the 2 and 4 door versions.

Sweet, thatl let me ditch the carpet and get the rubber flooring instead.

sinat01 said:

Sweet, thatl let me ditch the carpet and get the rubber flooring instead.

Click to expand...

What you want to try and find is a Police Version XJ. Yours is an '01? So a '97 and up I believe. Kinda under the impression that '96 and down carpets are a little different. Same with the rubber floor? Here is an old for sale post. Give you an idea of what it is.

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f73/97-full-factory-rubber-floor-kit-2-available-230642/

I was toying with the idea of seeing if one would fit under a carpet for more of a sound deadening purpose. Never did follow through on that.

The floor pan cut-offs will be '94 and down vs '95 and up. The difference is in the mounting of the front seats. In '95 they added a cross bar for the front seat bolts. I suspect this change was related to the addition of airbags.

Does any know or have knowledge of a source for a molded rubber replacement for the carpet?

I just got done removing all of my interior and carpet and the obove areas mentioned are all that is needed. If you are going to remove your lower seat belt bolts, which does make it easier to clean every thing up, I have a suggestion. I went underneath the jeep where the bolts stuck through the bottom and hit them with penetrating oil and then hit them with a scotch brite pad to clean the dirt and rust off. It took me 3 bolts to figure it out and it made a huge difference. Other than that it is all smooth sailing. Let me know if you have any other questions on the process.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk