Hey guys.  So I'm just starting to go through my '84, and the carpeting is the absolute worst part of the car.  I see complete carpet sets on eBay right now for $350, and I've got a 10% eBay coupon, so that's a no brainer.

But has anybody installed new sound deadening material under their carpeting?

I see a few places, Corvette America for one, selling pre-cut sound deadening kits for around $140 bucks.  I think the stuff they sell is 3/8 in thick...have any of you guys tried this stuff?  3/8 seems a bit thick...I like the idea that it's really going to quiet down the inside of my car, but I still want my carpeting to fit, you know?

Theres a few places that sell it for under the door panels too, which seems like a good idea.

If nobody has done it, I'll give it a shot and take pictures during the install and let you guys know how it goes.  I'd like to get my new gauge cluster in this weekend, and new carpeting in next week.  I can live with my god awful paint for a while...gotta love a drivable project.  Let everybody know its a work in progress, it's a badge of honor.

Thanks guys.

great to see you are getting right in on your car. i would imagine that the sound deadening for under carpet will compress after a bit. as far as under door panels you may want to watch that. most have a sheet of heavy plastic. bought one of those kits that were cut "perfectly" to fit my 75 and guess what, i stopped trying to get them to fit. and i would think the thickness would make more of a difference on the door panels fitting as they should than on the floor carpet. cant wait to see the pics. maybe do a before and after to show how much a difference something new makes and also shows how great a job you did.

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the dynamic duo

c3vr life member #97

Thanks for the advice on the door panels, Eddie.  I'm going to start with the under carpet stuff, I'd wager that's going to make a huge difference for me by itself.  I'll take some pictures tomorrow and get them posted...the carpets in my car are, in a word, gross.

My door panels are pretty good, and I think most of my interior noise is coming from the back of the car.  My storage bins are empty, so there just huge caverns for the noise to echo in in the back of a C4.  Plus I don't have a headliner on my roof panel, that would probably help a little bit.

Tomorrow's project is just getting to the DMV to register the car.  That'll be a fun use of three hours of my life on my first day off in a week.

on my 90, the abs unit is in the left compartment. it has a piece of insulation over and then the tray that fits in it. the right just has the tray. maybe if you have any of the undercarpet deadener left over you can line the compartments with it.

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the dynamic duo

c3vr life member #97

Replacing the carpet in my '89 has been on the "to do list" for about 6 years now. I've heard varying stories about fitment (good and bad) and it will be terrific to learn from you as you tackle this project. Keep us posted - I'm sure there's many others who want to hear about it too!

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I got some excellent sound deadening materials from Rick at RAAM Audio.  He's very knowledgeable, and not at all pushy... worth talking to him before you waste money on something that might be inferior.  My ZR-1 is a lot quieter now.  

I'm probably going to be buying the carpeting this weekend, and installing it over the next two weeks.  This weekend, its all about putting in my new gauge cluster...there's something very weird about driving without knowing your speed or RPM.

I wish my carpeting was good enough to put it off for a while, but its really really bad.  I actually took a bunch of pictures of the car earlier, I'm going to put them on Photobucket and maybe do a picture thread.  I'll definitely post before and after pictures...but darn, the carpeting in my car is almost embarassing, haha.

I just finished replacing the carpet in my '94.  It was quite a job.  The carpet package that I purchased came (from ACC) with replacement backing material.  It was better (more dense) than the OEM stuff I pulled out, but still was not really great.  I purchased the $140 die cut kit from Mid America and was quite pleased with it. 

I posted a few pictures on my website as I was working on the car.  http://www.wb4eje.com/?p=808

Don't let the "die cut" thing fool you, it still takes a lot of cutting and trimming.  But, the M.A. stuff is quite dense and has a foil thermo lining on the back side.  I was well pleased with it and the car is now much quieter than it was before the carpet replacement.

Some tips:

Stock up on utility knife blades and change them frequently.  Cutting carpet dulls them quickly.

Get a good pair of shears, heavy duty type.  I got mine at a JoAnn's Fabric, and they are expensive, about $45 but worth every penny when it comes to cutting the backing!

There is a trick to getting the glue off the sides of the console....the space shuttle glue that I refer to on my Blog.  Get hold of a small piece of it and pull and stretch it.  When you stretch it, the glue will let go and come off, but you must keep your fingers close to the panel and not let the "string" of glue you are pulling get too long or it will break.  You can't scrape it, chemicals won't take it off, it is some tough stuff.  You just have to pull it off and it take for freaking ever. 

Don't pull the old carpet out and throw it away.  It can be very useful to use as a cutting template, especially around the speakers and other small things that protrude through the carpet. 

Take your time.  I also installed a new radio with the carpet.  I figured a weekend for the radio and a couple of weekends for the carpet.  Took me 2.5 months of weekends.  Measure twice, cut once, and when you cut, cut it oversize and final trim.   I messed up a couple of spots because I didn't do that.  Take your time! 

I also had to repair some cracks in the floor board.  Make sure you check that out when you get the carpet out.

It was quite a job, but the results were well worth it.  Looks like a different car now!  (Smells better too!!)

Good luck.


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Bob - '94 Polo Green Coupe