A clean and well-groomed car interior is always pleasant, and especially if its interior is overstretched and does not look like a factory interior. We will tell you about the nuances of the constriction, cost and different options.
The content of the article:
- Selection of materials
- Preparation
- New covers
- Padding
- Price
After the appearance of the car, its "inner world", that is, the interior, immediately catches the eye. Indeed, it is by the appearance and condition of the car's interior that one can safely judge the nature of its owner. At first glance, you can tell whether the car enthusiast likes cleanliness and order, or prefers disorder and dirt.
If the car enthusiast loves comfort, softness and cleanliness, then, first of all, the seats of his car interior do not take the last place for him. Often times, the seat cover is simply replaced to give the seats a fresh look. This process is best left to the masters who are familiar with it. But, if financially in any way, or if you want to experiment at home, then the "green light" for such plans.
Any sewing of clothes is not complete without the help of a sewing machine. So it is here, she will be needed. Because the whole job of updating the seat cover is to work with a sewing machine and in the ability to correctly cut future fabric or leather covers. It must be remembered that re-tightening the seat will take a lot of time and effort.
The choice of material for the seat upholstery
Before directly proceeding with the hauling of the seat in the passenger compartment with your own hands, you will need to decide on the material for the seat. Such material can serve as suede, leather, velor, etc. The color and shades of the seat upholstery should be matched directly to the color of the upholstery. But, if your heart desires, then you can pick it up at will.
As a rule, strict motorists sheathe the interior of their car in one color, but the extravagant and extraordinary prefer a combination of several colors. This gives the interior and seats some exclusivity and fashion. This rule also applies to seats and their cover.
In all elite class cars, a leather interior is quite common, which means that the seats are upholstered with this material. But, unfortunately, this has its own huge disadvantage of such material. It lies in the fact that the skin heats up quite a lot at high temperatures. And precisely because of this, driving a car on summer days can lead to a lot of negative statements about the car and discomfort for the driver. In the period of cold and frosty weather, everything is in reverse order: then it is twice as difficult as usual to somehow warm the seat.
When it is financially impossible to "make" leather seat covers, then such versatile materials as alcantara or velor will always come to the rescue. They have been popular among car enthusiasts for quite some time. And what's more, they are good for their qualities during their long-term use.
Preparing to seat upholstery
When starting the first stage of seat constriction, it must be remembered that in any repair work that is carried out on the car, you need to concentrate all your attention on all the details and in no case should you rush, but do everything confidently and according to the recommendations. So, first you need to remove the seats. They, in turn, are fixed with four bolts. First you need to disconnect the negative terminal of the battery, and also disconnect the electrical wiring terminals. This is in case they are present in the car, then this is only when the car has heated seats.
Next, you will need to remove and sign all parts of the old covers removed from the seat. It is also recommended to indicate on them the type of material that will be replaced at this or that interval. Then you need to remove the standard seat covers. This can be done by simply bending back the metal clips on the back of the seat.
Old covers that were previously removed from the seat should be carefully cut at the seams. In the near future, they will come in handy as sketches for cutting new blanks for the seat cover. Then you need to outline these patterns on the material clearly along the edges. But, here is one point: during the cutting of these patterns, it is necessary to retreat at the edges of about 5-7 mm.
New covers at home
When you start the process of creating a new car seat cover, you need to have all the tools you need ready in advance. You will need: a marker, scissors, a hammer and foam rubber (its thickness should be no more, no less than 2-3 cm), a sewing machine and glue in a can.
Now to the point. On the material of the future seat cover, you need to put patterns from the old cover and fix them on top with a slight weight. This will keep the patterns in the same position when sketching and cutting out new parts of the future car seat cover.
Next, you need to circle the old part of the seat cover with a marker on the new canvas and cut out all the necessary details. But, do not forget that when cutting these elements, you need to step back from the circled edges by 2-3 cm.
There is a material for car seat covers such as Alcantara. Special attention is needed here, since this material is fleecy, and, as a rule, in one direction. This means that during the pattern and sketching of old car seat covers, you must pay special attention to the fact that the fleecy surface of all parts of the future seat cover is directed in one direction.
Upgrading leather or Alcantara car seat covers can provide foam. It is glued directly to the material. It is recommended to glue the foam rubber using a special can with this viscous substance, and not with a brush. Further, all the patterns of the future seat cover must be sewn using a sewing machine. All elements must be sewn neatly and with the utmost care, and when the car seat cover is almost ready, all of its seam flaps will need to be glued. Initially, all unnecessary pieces of foam rubber and material are cut off. Then, after degreasing and cleaning the cuffs of the seams, they need to be glued to each other.
As soon as all of the above has been done, the lapels must be beaten off with a hammer (this is already directly as the glue dries). It is also recommended to sew them with a double stitch, and all other shreds that go beyond their edges of the future seat cover do not have to be cut with scissors.
Correct "dressing" of the cover
Before you put new covers on the seat, you will need to make special straps. After that, it is turned inside out and pulled over the back of the seat. Then the cover is pulled over the seat itself. This is not difficult. The seat cover must be tightened with plastic clamps, which are pulled through special holes, to the base of the seat itself. It is fixed by the knitting needle. If the edges do not become along the contour of the seat, then they must be well tightened.
When the car seat is stretched using a material such as leather, then at the end of the whole process it must be treated with a hot air stream around the entire perimeter. A hairdryer is great here. The heating process must be closely monitored, since the leather can easily overheat, and this will lead to the loss of its previous appearance and quality, especially when installed on the seat.
When the leather seat cover is stretched like a drum after drying, it will indicate that it is completely dry. Next, you will need to treat each upholstered seat cover with a damp cloth and steam from an iron.If you follow all of the above tips, then the leather cover will have excellent elasticity and look smooth on the seat. Upon completion of the process of tightening the seat with your own hands, it is advisable to inspect and remove all fingerprints or remnants of glue from materials such as alcantara or light leather.
Overtightened seats at home will not only delight the eye, but will also become a source of pride for themselves, and from a practical point of view, they will also serve for a long time, and will perfectly preserve the seats.
Seat upholstery pricing policy
The pricing policy for car seat upholstery at service stations is often not fixed for all cars, but rather individual. It all depends on the number of seats that can be covered, on the parts of the seat, on the material, as well as on the production of the car itself and its brand.
So, the hauling of four seats at the service station for a domestic car (such as VAZ 2101..112, NIVA, Priora, Kalina) from the customer's material will cost about $ 160, and if the material is provided by a service station, then the amount will start from $ 220 and then a lot will depend on the material chosen. When it comes to cars such as GAZ 24-01 .. 3110, 31029, 2410, 31105, then upon providing your material, you will need to pay from $ 165 for the hauling, and without the material, the amount is from $ 200.
In the event that four seats are hanged for a car of foreign origin of any brand and model with the presence of its own material, the amount to be paid will start from $ 220. Without the availability of your material, the price rises and starts at $ 280.
There is also a padding of some parts of the seat. For example, for the constriction of two headrests, both for domestic and foreign cars, the price will be from $ 15 without having its own material. And for the installation of covers brought by the customer, you will have to pay from $ 30 for a car of the domestic auto industry, and from $ 35 for a foreign car.
And now about the cost of material and work on the covers. For four seats of such cars as VAZ 2101..112, NIVA, Priora, Kalina, a motorist will have to pay from $ 160 for sewing and hauling with any fabric material on a foam base with the presence of its own material. If the soul desires a more chic look of the car interior, then the service station will take from $ 400 for sewing covers for the above cars on leather material and together with eco leather. And for "clean" leather on a foam base, you will need to pay from $ 600.
For the GAZ 31-02, 31029, 3110, 31105 car seat covers made of leather and eco leather on a foam rubber basis, the price will start at $ 440, and for pure leather covers on foam rubber you need to pay from $ 640. This is subject to self-provision of material to the workshop for the seat upholstery. If the customer provides the material, then the amount starts from $ 200.
Prices for covers for cars of foreign origin are naturally an order of magnitude higher. So, for the manufacture and covering of covers with the presence of the customer's material on a foam rubber basis, the price starts from about $ 185. For four seats, a combination of leather and eco-leather on foam rubber for a foreign car, taking into account the material, will cost from about $ 470, and from pure leather, the cover will cost from $ 660.
At the service station, everything will be done correctly and best, but if there is a desire to dream up yourself, or simply finances do not allow, then you can make car seat covers with your own hands. While it will take a lot of time and effort to re-tighten the seat, it is well worth it. And if there is no desire to do anything on your own and the thickness of the wallet allows you to chic, then you can completely rely on the service station simply by indicating the desired color and material of the future cover for the car seat.
