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how much to reupholster seats?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by cnschult, Jun 18, 2008.

  1. cnschult

    cnschult Active Member

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    okay I have no dogs or kids & since the prius has no moonroof to vent heat in the summer leather seats would be a stupid option for me, and leather's too cold in the winter.

    I like cloth, just not the light beige or light gray in the prius that dirties too easily. I absolutely love the plaid that Mercedes used in their 1950's sports cars. Since i have the seaside blue, i'm thinking about a plaid that has light blue, navy blue, beige & a little red. I think a multi-colored seats would hide dirt a lot better.

    Does anybody know approx how much it costs to reupholster car seats, arm rests & roof liner? does anybody know what kind of fabric is considered 'automotive grade'? obviously the thin plaid cotton found in beautiful ralph lauren polo shirts isn't 'automotive grade'.

    I'm sure many people would consider plaid to be stupid in a car, but it was popular once, and if you give any old trend enough time it will be popular again.
     
    #1 cnschult, Jun 18, 2008
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    I suggest that you contact a local auto upholstery shop and request a quote. Since you want a custom fabric to be used, my guess is that the cost will likely be $2,000 - $3,000 or more.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Jun 18, 2008
  3. stevecaz

    stevecaz New Member

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    No, no, just do a Google search and you'll find places selling all kinds of automotive fabrics, including new old stock vintage fabrics. Considering its around $1200 to install leather, with the leather material kit alone costing around $600. You might be able to do it for less than that if you find a good deal on fabric.
     
    #3 stevecaz, Jun 18, 2008
  4. greylar

    greylar New Member

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    this is something I have been wondering about. Since there are air bags in the seats wouldn't there be an issue with putting new upholstery/seat covers on?

    Any insights much appreciated
    G
     
    #4 greylar, Jun 18, 2008
  5. Doc Willie

    Doc Willie Shuttlecraft Commander

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    For far less than the price of reuphostering, you could get a set of Wet Okole seat covers, which look like new seating.
     
    #5 Doc Willie, Jun 18, 2008
  6. Boo

    Boo Boola Boola Member

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    You would need to get upholstery/seat covers with either breakaway stitching like the OEM covers or a cut-out/flap where the side airbags deploy.
     
    #6 Boo, Jun 18, 2008
  7. sorka

    sorka Active Member

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    I did my own with leather bought from leatherseats.com. They also do fabric which I believe is less expensive.

    First car I did was my Lexus:
    Complete SC400 interior restoration - Club Lexus Forums

    Note, the photos were taking the day installation was finished. There were a few minor wrinkles but they completely shrunk back within a week. The gathers in the seat centers are sewn like that. But even 3 years later, those are now completely flat.

    The second was my Z:

    TwinTurbo.NET: Nissan 300ZX forum - Leather seat replacement photos.....

    For sale add with more detailed seat photos:

    TwinTurbo.NET: Nissan 300ZX forum - 1992 300ZX Twin Turbo - Super clean and low miles! $16000

    I did the labor myself. The Lexus took about 50 hours combined on the entire interior. The leather was probably half of that. The Z only took about 10 hours because I'd already had some experience.

    Fabric is easier than leather as it's usually a lot more stretchy. It takes leather about a month for imperfections to shrink out. Exposure to heat does it much quicker. I normally leave my windows cracked to keep the interior from getting warm, but after the installs, I left the windows up to get a good few weeks of hot air.
     
    #7 sorka, Jun 18, 2008
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