Thinking of a new look for your car or truck? Maybe some newly wrapped seats will do the trick. The first question you should ask yourself is,do I want to keep the stock look and value or go totally custom? When restoring a cars original status; stitching, number of panels/ style and type of materiel are an important aspect in keeping the cars value and stock look. On the other hand, color change, types of material,style, or even stitching and/or embroidery can make the big difference in your personal ride. Here are a few tips and suggestions that should come in handy when disassembling your car. Most interior shops require you send them just the "skins" of the seats. So removing the seats and getting the "skins" off is a must, but do not worry its not as hard as it sounds. Ok, "leather seats", most of the time,the only part of the seat that is leather is the main center section,the rest is usually vinyl or some other type of fabric. For example,the bolsters are usually vinyl because it lasts longer than leather in the "wear" department. The backs are vinyl or carpet.
![]()
Headrest Car Monitor
Starting out, disconnect the battery! This is important to assure not shorting out any loose or bare wires that could damage your cars electrical system or computer resulting in a costly repair later. Now take a good look around at bottom of seat for plastic pieces covering the bolts that hold it in, these are usually held on with some type of clips or a small screw or two. Remove these pieces. Be careful gm plastic is fragile and will break if bent too far. Most front seats are held in with 4 bolts. Remove these bolts. (Note: for electric seats,it may be necessary to move the seat forward and backwards to get to the bolts, so reconnecting the battery is required.) now look under the seat with a flashlight and find plugs and/or wire connections that need to be disconnected before removing the seat from your vehicle. Carefully disconnect them. Make note to ensure proper reconnection later. Now you can carefully take the seat out of the car! Make sure you keep track of what screw and bolts came from where, to ensure proper replacement. Same with the plug connections. Most, if not all plugs, can only go back in one way. Take a few pictures for future reference if need be. Also, you can put your parts in a baggie and label them for easy identification later on.
Headrest Car Monitor
Once the seats are removed from the car, take a good look at them, see how the upholstery is attached to the seat. (Take a few pictures if necessary). You may need to remove power seat switches from the side of the seat or maybe even a video monitor from the headrest before removing the "skins" from the seat. Be careful when removing the video monitor cable as you take the headrest out. Take your time, if you have trouble or need help,you can go online to a website about your car/truck to get detailed information about this. (Ie. How to get this monitor out of my headrest.) again these parts are usually held on with a small screw or clips,using a plastic tool to pry clips is recommended. One more thing,if your car is equipped with heated seats keep an eye out for this wire connection. Sometimes the heating element is attached to the fabric itself or the foam part of the seat. Don't forget to remind your "interior" people about the heating elements in your seat skins.
Now you can remove the fabric, newer vehicles have plastic strips that attach to the seat frame or flat metal part of the seat, older cars have hog-rings,this is a small metal ring that holds the fabric to a thick wire on the bottom of the seat.(A hog-ring tool is needed to replace hog-rings,you can use a good pair of side cutters to cut the old hog-rings off and you must use new hog-rings when reattaching fabric to seat). Be careful, there are sharp metal edges on the seat,wearing leather gloves is a good idea. After you get all clips off, remove fabric. Most newer cars have Velcro strips holding the fabric to the foam part in certain areas, be careful not to rip the foam when separating the Velcro strips. Slide your hand up between the fabric and the foam to separate the Velcro strips. Now kind of turn the fabric inside-out and peel up from bottom. This procedure is for the up right part of the seat, as for the sitting part undo the clips or hog-rings and remove fabric.
Once you get your "skins" back from your vendor, check to make sure everything is the way you want it. Then you can start to re rap your seats. With the front seats, start at the top with the "skin" turned inside-out and roll it down top to bottom. Be careful with the Velcro strips. You probably have to cut out the area where the power seat controls go. Make sure the "skin" is pulled down all the way before making any cuts or connecting Velcro. Make a small cut in middle, then cut to the corners, be careful not to cut too far. Trim the fabric as needed until the power controls fit snug and clip into its proper place. This is the same basic procedure for the headrest monitors, if applicable. You may also need to make a couple small holes where the headrest posts go thru the top of the seat. Some pulling and stretching is required to get the new "skins" on and clipped properly. So you may have to work at it a little.
One more step, put the seats back in, carefully, make sure all your wire connections are plugged in and all the bolts are tight. Reconnect the battery and make sure everything works properly. Hopefully it does. Now you're ready to go cruising in style.
Installation is as important as the equipment you choose to buy. Unless you have done this type of work before, it's highly recommended that you have it done professionally. Here at serious about sound llc our technicians can help you with the design and choosing the right products for you and your vehicle. We also offer installation of all our manufacturers products. We are fully insured and have a secure facility to accommodate all types of cars and trucks.
Replacing Your Car or Truck Interiors Upholstery
Headrest Car Monitor
Tablet 7 Android Ihome Clock Dock Drill Driver
