2007 Ordered: Question about leather

I just took another look @ my 2006 with option #8 (leather); the leather surfaces go to the sides of the seats and over the tops (past the headrests). everything else is vinyl. The leather portions are perforated. I do believe that the Prius is more comfortable to sit in than my Avalon XLS, which also has leather seating. The smell of leather just can't be beat, IMHO.

 

I have an 05 with leather installed at an aftermarket shop and an 06 with factory leather. I like the 05 leather better. The 05 has leather all the way around the seat including the back as well as armrests and center console. The 06 just has leather on the seating surfaces only and is about 1/2 the thickness of the aftermarket leather. I spent 1800$ on the leather in the 05 and I would do it again in a heartbeat as opposed to factory installed.
-Paul R. Haller-

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Paul R. Haller @ Oct 18 2006, 02:46 AM) [snapback]334314[/snapback]</div>

I'm with you. My black 2006 has factory leather, and I ordered a mag grey 2007 w/o leather so I could go aftermarket. (I also want black leather, and seat heaters underneath.)

 

Most cars that come with leather come with "leather seating surfaces". That means the centre panel on the seat bottom and the centre panel on the seat back. The rest is imitation leather - it's hard to tell because it has gotten so good, but if you can look on the underside you can see as the imitation stuff usually has cloth backing.

The aftermarket leather can come with whatever you want. They will make to order - price varying of course, as you ask for more leather. The aftermarket leather is usually less expensive than the factory stuff. You can also get the door armrests covered and the console too. Some kits come with them standard, some you have to order as extras.

Be aware, you have airbags in the driver and front passenger seat outside bolsters. They have to use breakaway stitching there to allow the bags to deploy properly.

 

Can someone clarify the word "leather". Leather from an "animal" or "synthetic leather".

 

I got after-market leather that was manufactured by Katzkin (www.Katzkin.com) - it covers front and rear seats, headrests, center console and arm rests. My price, including installation, was $995, and it was done through my Toyota dealer. Someone else on Prius Chat said the same dealer is now offering that package for $200 more. Still a good price, and I'm very pleased with it.

 

I guess I asked the question incorrectly. Does the PRIUS use real leather?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(azguy @ Oct 18 2006, 07:17 PM) [snapback]334846[/snapback]</div>

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azguy -

I think it depends. From what I read on PriusChat, I think some do get real leather. My dealer in the Bay Area, said they would install leather. WRONG! They used Naugahyde! I discovered this about a week or two later. I checked under the back of the front seats & discovered fabric backing. Most cows don't have fabric backing under their hides?

Good luck,

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(fphinney @ Oct 19 2006, 11:59 PM) [snapback]335428[/snapback]</div>

The Katzkin leather interior kit can be optionally ordered with all-leather surfaces for a significant upcharge (a few hundred dollars). The standard kit is leather on the seating surfaces only. As far as I can tell, this includes the entire front surface, including the bolsters (the outboard panels) not just the seat centers. I say this because the seat sides and back in the standard kit are obviously vinyl, and the bolsters do not appear to be the same material. I have perforated centers so I can't compare the material used in the centers against that used on the bolsters.

Sounds to me like you just got a normal kit that doesn't use leather on the seat sides or backs.