Upholstery quality comparison

[VELOCEMAG]

The IAP kit that I got did come with material for the headrest.

[Giovanni2000]

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I did mine with World Upholstery leather sets and they came out great. They've been in now for about 4 years and still look super. I just like the leather better, it has more character and is more comfortable. But the vinyl they have these days is way better than the original stuff back in the 70's and you'd probably be hard pressed to tell that it wasn't leather so considering the cost I wouldn't fault a guy for going with vinyl.

[Bill77]

I used an upholstery kit from World Upholstery. The fit was generally very good, although there were some things that required some work-arounds in the way the cushion was attached. The vinyl panels were shifted slightly from where they were supposed to be sewn together. It was fairly easy to work with the cushions, however, and the results are good. The headrests have real stitching instead of heat stitching, so I kept the originals for now. The color match isn't exact, of course. I have yet to see how they look in sunlight, so I may change to the new headrests or try to die the originals a little darker depending on how they look. Overall, I'm happy with the quality of the kit, especially for the price.

Seat Restoration Progress.

[kcabpilot]

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Originally Posted by Giovanni2000 KCABPilot did you do your door panels with World as well. Has anyone bought door panels from IAP or Centerline?

[phil c]

What about www.leatherseats.com - anyone buy from them? They sell direct, but also on eBay sometimes, and seem to know about Alfa upholstery.[/quote]

I bought a set of leather covers for my Quad from them. They are absolutely beautiful! They use my car in their ebay ads , but I have no affiliation with the company.

[alfaparticle]

I am in agreement with Roadtrip. I wanted more comfortable seats for my '79 Spider. I got a couple out of an 86 Veloce that was in a junk yard and I had them recovered. I had them done in Cloth because I prefer it to leather and vinyl. I was charged $200 for both seats including material. The guy did a nice job.
Ed Prytherch
79 Spider
88 Verde

[ga_mtn_spider]

Same here, here's a couple of pics of ours done in leather by a lady with a shop behind her house. 2 seats including any needed foam, new shifter boot, new parking brake boot including snaps, 2 new door panels made from scratch, covered the upper door trim with same leather, wrapped left and right quarter trim (piece with trunk release in it) and finally restitched half of my boot cover. She made me a deal cause she ordered a bunch of black leather to reupholster a hearse but it never showed up. Seats were 400.00 turnkey and the remainder was 200.00. Not a concourse winner as some I have seen here but I like it and I didn't need to cash in the kids college fund either.

[Davy13]

I just re did my '83's seats with a vinyl kit from World Upholstery... They look pretty good but not spectacular... I did not get new seat foam, but instead cut a new base from a bench seat from a jeep cherokee. The foam cut easily with my wife's electric knife (the kind used for roast beef, etc.). A big time PITA, so I would recommend getting the new foam. If/When you order the seats, also order several yards of material from the same lot of fabric. I then re-covered door panels that I had cut into hardboard using the original panels as templates. Of note, I eliminated the map pocket as well as that plastic rectangle cover below the door handle. Basically, all I have on there is the arm rest and the handle to open the door, and I really like the smooth, no frills look, plus the match to the seats is perfect...

[tatchoune]

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I have a set of the IAP Italian made kits. I have not installed it yet but the quality looks better than any other vinyl I've seen. Once I install it I'll post some pics

[tatchoune]

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Door panels were Re-Originals. I got them through Alfa Parts in Berkeley

[mojave]

I need to recover my door panels, too. Did you purchase the covers from Alfa Parts or the complete door panel?

[tatchoune]

No I didn't. I only purchased hard cardboard pannel from local do-it-yourself store. The skai was very dirty so I cleaned it with a magic detergent (see picture); this liquid removes the 90 % of dirt when good soap removes only 10 %. I bought new plastic clips and stapples of 4mm, and that's all !

[mojave]

Can I have one of your old door panels as a pattern?

A previous owner made door panels and covered them in black vinyl. However, the door panels do not fit properly (they are cut a little too small), the PO screwed directly through the panel to the door in a few places instead of using clips, and the vinyl job is not very good.

If I could make my own panel, like you did, I could probably get it covered in black leather at my local upholster.

I also have a set of '86 Spider Veloce seats that I plan to recover in black leather, too. My car originally had tan leather seats and tan door panels, but I like the black better.

[tatchoune]

Yes you can have it, but I'm leaving in Belgium .... I can send it but don't know the shipping price. I can also give you all the measurements if that can help you !

But a better idea : I can buy a large sheet of paper, and copy the original pannel on it then send the plan ?

[mojave]

I'll see if I can find one in the U.S. I probably won't work on it until next spring, anyway.