Seat ReUpholstery - Step by step, Here's how I did it Options

[turk22]

I wanted to put together a little overview of my experience in Seat Upholstery.

I started with some very brittle and ripped seat and center cushion.



I purchased my seat upholstery on ebay, but there are several vendors.


Remove your seat, I did one at a time, in case I wanted to refer to the other seat to see how something was done. The first step is to remove the two screws on the back of the headrest


Then the two screws in red behind the headrest flap


There are three metal points at the base of the back rest that need to pry'ed up with a flat screwdriver and pliers to release the bottom of the backrest


Here's the backrest removed, and you can see what it consists of on the back. On my car the headrest cover came off quite easy.


Next you can see the points that hold the side bolsters on, these need to pryed up and straightened as well


But first, you need to remove the seat rails by removing the 4 allen head bolts from each rail



There are 2 metal points under the front seat, holding some tucked fabric onto the seat botton, release the fabric and straighten these points as well


Now you release the points holding the bolster down, there are 10 or 12 on each side



The bolster comes off like a jacket, and will go back on the same way

[turk22]

Don't forget to carefully remove this hard cardboard piece from the headrest flap, you will reuse this piece.


I also removed the nasty padding from the back of the seat, and added some clear silicone to the worst tear in the seat



and cleaned it to remove all the dust and crud


I traced the seat back padding and cut new pieces from 1/2" foam, cut it out and used contact adhesive to glue it down



Next I had to remove the metal rod from the old seat bolster, and install it in the new seat bolster. To remove I simply split the seam with a razor blade and pulled it out, however you have to thread it down the sewn pocket/seam in the new bolster. This is kinda a pain, but must be done, take you time in the 'elbow' and having another pair of hands helps.



My wife cut some relief snips in the tightest corners and it does help the seam lay down in those tight radius(s)


Now you put the new bolster back on (like a jacket from behind the seat frame), and get it lightly in place. You can see the points you will be using to secure it




We found it easiest to secure the points first, then stretch and glue the bottom with contact adhesive




Don't forget to poke holes in the vinyl where the seat rail bolts go...