Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Haven't done much to the car in the last three years, but had a flurry of stuff this year, ranging from big $$$ on the calipers to $10 on some stickers.
Things on my radar now:

BULL

Glad you listened.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

rotarymike

iTrader: (4)

I've not done a seat bottom, but did replace the seat back on the passenger. Have the cover to do the driver's but time and tide...

The biggest PITA is getting the seat out of the car. You can get hog ring pliers and an assortment of rings on amazon for $15 or less. If you DIY, I'd strongly suggest separating the seat upper and lower (1 bolt each side, but needs to be torqued back in for safety) to make life easier.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

I've never removed a front seat, but IDK why it would be that big of a deal. Four bolts on the rails to the chassis, disconnect the battery, lean the seat back and unclip all the connectors... /done. Right?

ILM-NC G37S

iTrader: (3)

Get a helper. It can be done solo but those seats are heavy and you'll pay for it the next day. Been there once... (stinks getting old).

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Can do.

...assuming I'm taking the seat out of the car. When I last looked into this, I had an upholsterer who was talking about repairing the leather while in the car. He described stain and leather paint and using a shop fan to dry the work, and needing the car overnight. IDK, leather work is a mystery to me, and most certainly a skill for those who do it.

I need to hit up a few different leather work shops this summer, get some estimates, etc.

Here, I posted these pics elsewhere. This is the current state of my driver's seat. (makes me sad)

rotarymike

iTrader: (4)

Just heavy and large for the portal they have to be removed through -it's awkward to do by yourself. and ILM is absolutely right it will torque your back - there's no 'safe' way these can be picked up unless you've got orangutan arms (and muscles)

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

A little over a year ago, hexotic made this post here ^^^ And at the time, I passed on his generous offer. Fast forward to today, when I realized how truly worn out the top of my wheel had become. I reached out to hexotic, and will be visiting him in Canada next month.

So now I have a little car project to look forward to again! Yay!

Really does look nice in those pics. Very tight. Should look great in a Stone Leather interior.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Really hot day, late afternoon in the shade, that's a perfect time to wash the car.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

A few days ago I took advantage of the 90°F heat wave, and worked Leatherique oil into the front seats, and covered them in big black plastic bags. It baked in the sun for about a day and a half. Then I wiped them down with the Leatherique cleaner, and today I went over them again with 303 and a soft leather brush.

The passenger seat is freaking amazing. Looks absolutely brand new. Aspects of the drivers seat were vastly improved, but the center panels will always be damaged. No amount of conditioning and cleaning is going to change that.

Anyway... Leatherique, FTW.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Today I drove around looking for estimates to repair my driver seat. One place looked real sketchy, and they were closed for the week. Another was closed for lunch, but had this crazy junkyard vibe that also gave me pause. Granted, they did a wonderful job with my center console lid, but years later... yikes! The third place gave me an estimate, but it was weird. He wanted me to know it would be "real expensive" because the seat had to come out and back in, and the leather cover removed, cut, sewn and replaced. The quote was $600, which was less than I was expecting, regardless of their warning how expensive it would be. Again... weird.

So I came home thinking $600 is fine, and maybe I'll do it this summer. But I continued to dig into local shops, when I ran across references to a guy who does leather repair on-site at your home. He's got a pretty stellar collection of positive online feedback, and has been doing this for 12 years now. So we talked on the phone, I texted him some photos, he gave me a quote and we talked again some more. Instead of replacing the leather, he uses some kind of cleaner on the stained areas, then re-dyes the panels, and applies a top coat. He was enthusiastically claiming the worn out leather would look brand new again. And his ask was only $250.



On one hand, color me skeptical because the damage is blackened stain on light colored leather. But on the other hand, it makes me think of PDR, and how even after PDR became common, shops would continue selling expensive repair services involving paint and bondo.

So, he's coming over on Friday morning, and I'm pretty excited about it.

RobC7

Sounds like you found the right person. Leather repair specialist do an amazing job without the need to cut/replace the original leather.

If there isn't any damage to the leather itself this could have been a good candidate for you to try to repair yourself.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

Leather restoration guy is here now. High hopes... knock on wood.

RobC7

You're going to be saying why didn't I do this sooner?