#103542, "RE: Suede and Vinyl Interior Project" In response to In response to 1 May-29-09 04:29 AM by BlackBomexTalon
Originally posted by RoninEclipse2G microfiber suede works like normal fabric so if your sewing skills are decent it's great to work with. sheet vinyl won't take all the contours of our dash without bunching if you try to do it in one piece. I'm thinking of tearing the vinyl off my old dash if it's not too warped and recovering it in fresh foam padding and microfiber suede. be warned, upholstery grade faux suede will run you $40-50 a yard and you don't want to use anything less on any surface that will see regular wear. you'll need about 2-3 yards for the dash and about 3 yards per seat.
I know I'm late to chime in but he's pretty much on key, microfiber is great to work with as long as you're pretty competent in the area. The vinyl would be fine but then its going to look pretty much stock.
The main thing after the whole sewing aspect is to make sure you have true upholstery grade glue. This is imperative in making sure you have a nice install. Cheap glues give out, and especially on the dash. Think of all the heat from the sun and this will break down cheap glues with the quickness.
If you plan on doing this yourself you'll need #12 thread and, I just busted out the old Wyotech books the check and make sure I'm right, about 6yrds of material per high-back bucket seat (which is opposed to 5 yrds for a low back), 1 yrd per headrest, 6-7 yrds to be safe on our dashs, 5-6 yards on the back seat, 5 yrds on the headliner with the visors included, 4yrds per door panel( dependent on how you did it), the same for the rear quarters, 2yrds for the kick panels, and 3 for the package tray.
Thats 55 yrds but a whole roll is 50yrds and thats in a 54" width. I say with some carefull layout of the patterns you could squeek out using a roll.
Dont forget all the other shit such as hog rings w/ pliers, quality shears, a steam machine, and so on. Its not a terribly hard task if you can sew, it just takes careful planning and steady hands.
Oh and I dug out some old pics from when I was in tech. My friend did his car while we were in trim but, these are the only ones I can find
