By Ron Fryer

Note: these are instructions for pre-made auto carpets

  1. Remove the seats form the car by unbolting them from the floor and lifting carefully out the door. If there are electrical connections to the seats, detach them before removing the seats.
  2. Remove the seat belts that are bolted through the carpet.
  3. Remove the sill plates from the door openings
  4. Remove the console. There may be some hidden screws in the bottom of the storage compartment, as well as other fasteners in other areas. Look carefully, so you do not break anything. Detach any wires.
  5. Lift out old carpet. You may have to help it come out from beneath the kick panels. The jute padding should come out with the old carpet. Leave in the tar embedded insulator pads and the foil wrapped insulation over the catalytic converter area.
  6. Vacuum excess dirt from floor area.
  7. Take the new carpet out of the box and spread it out, popping the floor depressions to the correct side as you go. You should be able to determine which is the front from the shape of the carpet.
  8. If you have a floor shifter, measure from the firewall back to the shifter and then measure from the front of the carpet back until you have the same measurement and mark that spot for the shifter. Cut a small slot in the center to accommodate a floor shifter. Make it just long enough to push the shifter through.
  9. Place the new carpet in the car. If you have a floor shifter, you will need to put the carpet over the shifter lever to accomplish this. Move the carpet into the best position, with the molded depressions fitting into the floor pan. You may have to lengthen the slot for the shifter lever in one direction or another to allow the carpet to fit where it should. Cut as little as possible.
  10. When the carpet is in the best position, trim the carpet back from the shifter lever to accommodate any brackets for the console.
  11. Lift one side of the carpet and screw the seat bolts and seat belt bolts into their sockets part way. Then let the carpet down and feel for the protruding bolts. Cut a small X in the carpet directly over each bolt, then press the carpet down around each bolt. Do the same for the other side. You can now trim the center of the X out, creating a round hole for the bolt; then do all the bolts that way.
  12. If you have a bolt through gas pedal, do the same for it.
  13. Trim the edges of the carpet about an inch long. You can fold the carpet back along the edge to see where it needs to be cut, or you can feel from the top side of the carpet, but in either case, make sure you know where you are cutting before you make the cut. Measure twice, cut once. You can always cut more off, but you cannot put it back on.
  14. Tuck the edges of the carpet under the kick panels, firewall insulation, and any other place that it needs to be tucked under.
  15. Trim the sides by the door openings, leaving enough for the sill plates to cover.
  16. Install the sill plates.
  17. Reinstall the seat belts, seats, console, and any other items removed while removing the old carpet.
  18. Vacuum and clean up the scraps.
  19. Place your custom fitted matching carpet floor mats over the new carpet. You are done.