This is the orginal vinyl driver seat in my 68 and I would like to repair it or at least stop any futher damage. The rest of this seat and the passenger seat are in good condition. I keep seat covers on both seats but don't like them.

It may not look like it but you can push the split together and it looks good. I was thinking remove the cover from the seat and maybe glue it together then glue a vinyl patch on the back side.

OK bring it on! :n onod:

 

I don't believe it can be repaired effectively, but it can be refurbished. Many supporting vendors sell replacement seat cover kits... these are not hugely expensive, and can certainly be installed by the average do it yourselfer. Perhps a local auto upholstery specialist might replace just the panel which is damaged though... finding a closely matched material might pose a challenge though.

 

Glue will not work. sooner or later it will tear apart. Only thing to suggest is find a donor seat backing. Take your old one off and get someone to sew a replacement. If you want originality. I have a set of original seats same color as yours but the rib is worn out. So what I will probably do is find a nice origianl seat cover take off the rib and just replace it. Probably cost the same if I just replace the whole seat cover but finding original seats that are not butched is hard to find. I do have a set of seats that were redone with reproduction seat covers but not quite the same.
Hope this helps.
Grant
The reproductions are okay but not quite 100% correct.

 

As you seem willing to patch the tear from the inside...if it would stay 'joined', I would recommend that you remove the seat cover from the seat back, take it to a reputable auto interior upholsterer, tell them what you want, and allow them to fix it the best that they can.

Certainly they would use some sort of adhesive on a sturdy cloth patch. But, I suspect that they would also sew the patch in to the seams on either side so that the patch absorbs all of the future "load" it will bear. They should have a way to seal-off the loose edges of the split, as well. Just find a good upholstery shop and let the pros do their job.

{Dang that screwdriver you left in your back pocket!}

P.S. Should the upholstery shop need some ComfortWeave fabric to replace a section of that seat, I do have an old set of 'factory' '71 ComfortWeave seatcovers that I could cut a section from. I would need to know what size patch they need and an address to mail it to. You can buy some SEM ColorCoat vinyl dye from a pro auto body paint supplier that is mixed to match that seat cover. If care is taken, you will never know it's not as original as the right-side seat. PM me if you want some of that material.

 

That might work. Anything you do to it will have to be done from the back side.

Know any secret Corvette spells and incantations you could use? Wouldn't hurt.

I heart Basket Weave.

 

sorry cant offer anything since you seem determined to half *** it. might as well just duct tape and be done with it :-/

 

with 7T1vette

The only way, in my opinion, to have a fix that will both last, and look good, is to take the cover off, and have a professional repair it. I believe they should be able to do an excellent repair.

I just had someone from here (http://wefixleather.com/) do some work for me. It came out excellent, but it wasn't cheap. I would have someone come out and give you a quote, before you take the cover off.

 

What do you suggest would be the full ***? The OP is trying to do what he can with original upholstery.

 

I've never seen 44 year old seat covers that look that good, even on low mileage trailer queens. Are you sure those are the factory orignal covers?

 

I agree with 7T1vette...let the pro's handle this one....

 

any trim shop can sew in a new panel. if he can't supply the material, try SMS@5032633535 or NOS @ 5867272486. the limiting factor is the condition of the side panel vinyl. can it hold new stitching? the trimmer can tell you that.

 

I wish this site had a "points" system. 7T1Vette deserves it for his offer.

 

Sorry it's taken me so long to get back been very busy today.

A short history on the car. I bought the car in 1986 and was told that it had been sitting for about 10 years which would make it 1976. It is a late production 68. It was built in I think June 68. The car had about 60,000 miles on it. Being the third owner of the car I can't know for sure but I believe these are the original seats. The split was already there when I got the car. After I got the car back together and running I keep seat covers over the seats.

I like a good Mod as well as the next guy and have made some on my car but down deep in my heart when it comes to these cars I guess I am a purist. My car is no where original but when I can I try to keep it original. I would love to be able to keep these seats and not use the covers.

I really really appreciate everyone's comments including dmrodco's . To be honest I figured most comments would be in this vain that's the reason for all of the smiles at the end of my post.

7T1 vette Thank you for your generous offer. I will certainly keep it in mind.

I really didn't think this was a DIY project but wanted to test the waters to see if it had been done before and if anyone knew of a "special" vinyl glue. There has been some amazing things done on this forum. I agree, I need to talk to some auto upholstery pro's.

 

Point. Point. Point.

There's three points I'll toss in. Semebody else add to the pile.

 

How many Points before free shipping is offered?

 

Mike Ward....

You're at it again. Well, below are photos of the interior of my car. The seatcovers, the dash pads (upper, left, & right) the trans tunnel console and most of the interior panels are original to the car and un-dyed! But, the car only has 212K miles on it, so they're almost new.

Yes, it is the original engine and it only has .040"-over pistons in it and almost no ridge in the cylinder walls.

And, no, it wasn't handled with kid gloves all of it's life. It spent 34 years in one family and 3 generations used the car. When I purchased it in 2005, it still had the original carpeting in it...well used, of course.

So, contrary to your belief, there are still original seatcovers out there that are not worn out.





I did have to "re-stuff" the missing foam from the channels in the seatcovers; but I did nothing but clean the dirt from the outside of the covers.

 

That panel may look like it is beyond repair to you and me, but a good trim guy who knows what he's doing can work miracles. I'm not saying it can or can't be repaired, but it's worth letting a pro take a look.


Keep the shiny side up!
Scott

 

I had a 63 Buick that I restored several years ago. The interior was in remarkable shape for a car of its age. It had developed a small tear in the seat similar to yours. I had a upholstery shop sew a replacement panel in place of the torn one and it look really good. About six months later another tear appear in another panel as strengthening one put more tension on another. Just something to consider.

 

It may be very hard to find correct 68 basket weave ( not comfort weave ) material. I bought Al Knoch seat covers, which are suppose to be the best ones, and the basket weave is slightly different than the original. I think that the only other manufacturers making seat covers for 68's are Mid America and Corvette America. Has anyone made a comparisome of their basket weave to the original 68 seats?