Changing Interior Trim - anyone done this?

[cj10jeeper]

The difference between the standard and sport is night and day having started with the standard and changed them. I can only liken the standard to more like hard sofas and I found them very unsupportive, but ironically fairly comfortable on long motorway journeys. The sports are a much narrower seat and of course much deeper base and side supports, so the trade is they hold you well but can be more restrictive on longer journeys. For larger people this in itself could be a problem, but for me and Mrs CJ they fit the job perfectly

Incedetally though the seats use the same frame they are made very differently. While the base of the standard fits over the posts for the back the sports sits entirely inside, being some 4" narrower. For this reason I don't think you'd readily convert a standard to sport, but of course could increase support.

On the heating element IIRC you can buy those as retrofit items.

 

[Mr Whippy]

The difference between the standard and sport is night and day having started with the standard and changed them. I can only liken the standard to more like hard sofas and I found them very unsupportive, but ironically fairly comfortable on long motorway journeys. The sports are a much narrower seat and of course much deeper base and side supports, so the trade is they hold you well but can be more restrictive on longer journeys. For larger people this in itself could be a problem, but for me and Mrs CJ they fit the job perfectly

Incedetally though the seats use the same frame they are made very differently. While the base of the standard fits over the posts for the back the sports sits entirely inside, being some 4" narrower. For this reason I don't think you'd readily convert a standard to sport, but of course could increase support.

On the heating element IIRC you can buy those as retrofit items.

I found the M Sports perfect in the Si I drove really, and find the normal ones pretty 'ok' but haven't really loaded the car up much in bends yet.

Personally I prefer my seat to hold me put, but it's not essential. Given the choice/option, I'll take M Sports... I didn't want to wait around forever or pay a premium, so if I find some I'll swap, but I don't think I'll hugely miss having them.

Seems to be a fair few cars being broken, not sure how much the interiors are going for... might just put my name down at a few bigger dismantlers/breakers, any Si model seat will do the job I think. How much would you pay CJ? I'm thinking £350 for ok non-heated non leccy ones, to £500 for good non-heated non leccy, through to say £750 for very good heated leccy ones.

Dave

 

[Sticks]

I'm at the point of getting mine built up by an upholsterer from SE to 'Sports' but haven't yet taken the plunge.

I quite like the standard seats to be honest, if they just sank down a bit more in the middle, with harder side bolsters, they would be tons better...

OR, just find some Msports

Dave

That's pretty well what I agreed with the seat upholsterer. The downside is it's still pretty expensive, and the local stealer will offer me less in trade in at some point. It was the narrowness which put me off when I bought the car, one or two people I know just wouldn't have fitted in.

I'm still looking for some Sports seats butI suspect I'd have more luck in Black e.g. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110324187314&ih=001&category=10374&_trksid=p1742.m153.l1262

 

[cj10jeeper]

Actually I've not looked on the boards at the going rate for ///M seats lately, but I'm sure they jump up rapidly in price between black to red and then of course if you find electric and or heating a little more of a premium, but really just a bonus. I'm sure peol eare mostly after the sport seat primarily. Bet you don't find anything South of £500 the pair

When i was looking they were described as rarer than hens eggs, hence I purchased manual with heat and retrofitted the bases. I would however reckon you'd get £200 for your old one's so factor that in.

 

[Mr Whippy]

Yep, I'd certainly factor in selling the old ones.

After looking more anyway, any colour would go ok in a black interior car, as long as you could match the door card leathers somehow (probably fairly easy to do from BMW, and then again, sell the old door cards)

In retrospect, the car I saw in silver with the red M sports had a grey interior, which I'm not actually so sure I'd like... harder to keep clean and fresh looking, and as always source spares for (black is abundant)

Budget isn't really a huge issue when you consider the seats are the thing you always use on a car, for every journey, no matter what

Where did you manage to source your seats CJ? Via a forum sale?

Dave

 

[cj10jeeper]

My seats came from a private sale after an ebay listing that went wrong. Amazingly the owner had purchased them and was going to take the bases off and make them into gaming chairs for his PlayStation. Luckily he did not know how to do it so sold them on

Door cards are a single piece and new about £500 each IIRC and the inserts are plastic bonded onto the main part. Not at all easy to split off.

In the end I had my black door cards stained to match the seats and a year down the road they are still perfect.

but there are many different sources of red leather...

Black door cards should be easy to come by and grey have limited value as few cars had the grey interior. I think it was only the first 2 to 3 years with dream red ??

I think are right that black is easier to maintian which is one reason I have this set up now:

 

[Mr Whippy]

Mmmmm very nice

That would be the only thing if I got anything other than black ones, I'd need the door card leathers to match (ideally)

\goes off to look on ebay.de and breakers websites again