STRMLNE

This will be long, but wanted to give my thoughts on these products in case anyone comes across this thread later.

Seat refinish review with Ridies leather and Corvette America foam:

Ridies samples: I requested, via email, light oak samples in all 3 textures, synthetic, natural, and nappa. Received them timely. Only complaint I have is that the samples were very small and it was difficult to get a sense of the color. In my opinion, the samples are more used to get a sense of the texture of each material rather than the color. Once you select a material, it may be worth while to ask if you can get a larger sample of the particular color you are interested in.

Order process: I called Ridies on a Saturday thinking perhaps they were open to place my order. They were not open and I didn't leave a message. However, they did contact me Monday morning presumably from caller ID and I placed my order. Order process over the phone went smoothly. They told me I would receive tracking information within 3 weeks and the package would come from DHL and require a signature for receipt.

What I ordered: I wanted a stock replacement. I ordered light oak nappa leather, perforated leather (like stock), light oak stitching, no c5 emblem. Total cost was $700 shipped.

Rocking seat fix: Both of my seats had the "rocking chair" issue. I ordered repair kits from Lyle at C&S Corvette. I repaired both seats following his YouTube video and also he was able to answer a few questions via email. I cannot recommend Lyle enough. Absolutely amazing customer service. He sells a variety of other products and I highly recommend him. Total cost was $50.

Seat foam: I ordered all new sport seat foam from Corvette America. It fit perfectly. I was lucky enough to read that Ridies' foam does not fit and therefore I was able to avoid purchasing it. Total cost was around $330.

Seat hardware: I ordered two new electric seat control bezels (hoping to cure the "seat gap" issue as my driver side bezel "pin" was completely sheered off) and two new seat recliner levers from gm parts direct (one of them broke upon removal because it was extremely brittle.) I also ordered 12 new seat clips or "christmas trees" (which fasten the leather to the frame) from Lyle at c&s. Installer below had no issue with the clips fastening the leather and foam to the seat frame. (I saw some people having problems with the clips in another thread. But they do work fine with the Ridies leather.) The seat installer did shim the pin on the bezel trying to avoid the seat gap issue. Right now it looks great. But even if I slightly push down on the bolster it starts to slightly separate so I’m guessing over time once the cushion settles the gap will come back. Just a poor design. Total cost was around $150.

Receipt of Ridies leather: The Ridies leather shipped almost exactly in 3 weeks as they told me. I received an email with the tracking information. It ships from Pakistan. However, DHL didn't require a signature. It was left at my doorstep. Not a big deal since I was home, however, you may want to confirm with DHL that they follow their own procedure if you are at all concerned with the shipment getting stolen.

Installation: I had the leather and foam professionally installed by a very reputable interior installer. They installed fabric on the bottom of the seat foam to avoid the wires cutting the same etc. hey told me everything fit as intended. HOWEVER, they did have an issue with the leather on the side bolsters. It wasn't quite long enough. They tried to heat it and stretch it but they were afraid to do that too much because it was starting to pull a seam way too much. As a result, there is a very small gap left where the hinges are on the seat frame. It is not that noticeable (you can sort of see it in the pics) but it is worth noting. If the leather was black like the frame it probably wouldn’t be noticeable at all. After all, the leather is “one size fits all” and it’s difficult to make things perfect so I won’t fault Ridies all that much especially taking into consideration the price.

Overall impressions: Very impressed with the Ridies leather. It really feels like quality leather. The stitching appears to be very quality etc. Overall, I'm pleased with it. Only complaint I have is the short side bolsters. Ridies needs to lengthen the side bolster leather slightly so it can cover the hinges without over stretching the leather. Corvette America foam fit perfectly. I do sit up higher quite a bit now with the new foam.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. I’m sure I didn’t do everything perfectly, but I’m happy with the result.

redzg

Thanks for an excellent report!

FX VETTE

Nice review, looks great!

Sean_emory

It looks great. Whoever installed that really knows what they’re doing.

Ron71

Nice review. Those look great!

Beer:30

Looks excellent. What did the install run?

Old School

Looks really good. Thanks for the write up

STRMLNE

You noticed I left that price out. Haha. It was more than I would like to admit. Haha. I called several places and got quotes ranging from 3-7. I wound up going on the high end of that range. I’m sure that seems crazy to some (and me too, haha) but it was worth it to me. The work reflects the price imo. The original seats lasted me 20 years, hopefully these will last the next 20.

Beer:30

Thanks! I asked because I bought a new set of seats and a set of covers. I fit one of the backs to one of my old seats and it seemed to go on pretty nicely, but could have been better.
I have a buddy with an upholstery shop that I haven't seen in a while, might need to look him up.

TCFS

It looks really well installed and stretched. The money put for installation was worth in my opinion.
TCFS

Fastbird

Those look absolutely outstanding. Well done all around.

STRMLNE

chasboy

Great results bud. Your installer did a great job. You and I are on another thread where Ridies customer service and foam are subject to a lot of legitimate complaints. I don’t know what it will take to wake them up. Don’t mean to take away your beautiful seats, just another caveat to anyone who wants to buy from Ridies.

STRMLNE

For sure. I already had my order pending otherwise I would have definitely second guessed ordering from them. It’s unfortunate how they’re handling the foam issue because I do think their covers are good quality.

AtkRWC

Nice write-up. I am about to go down the same rode. I have limited options when it comes to the installation so we shall see how that works out. Thanks for the time to document the process.

Mike98SilVert

Great write up. Quality looks outstanding and the stock look without emblems really looks good.

chasboy

What are your installation limitations?

oh1vette

OP, looks like we have the same combo - mag red and lt oak/back interior...


How the color match of the covers to the originals?

Hard to tell from the pics, 1st one looks close but the rest seem a lot lighter...


Thanks...

STRMLNE

Now that I look at the pics, the last one to me looks very light, you’re right. Probably just my phone camera. I briefly compared the covers when I got them and my thought was that the ridies covers were slightly darker but not by much. And I was ok with that as long as they weren’t lighter. More of a rich khaki color.

Overall, I’d say they are pretty darn close in color. Now that I’ve had them installed for a few days, they continue to exceed my expectations. It has a great “leather feel” to them and the car has that “new car leather smell” again. I think the Nappa leather is the only way to go with these. It’s worth the extra $150. Everything looks really great to me. Now that the skins have been stretched and molded to the frame even the stitching looks nearly perfect.

I think ridies really shot themselves in the foot with the seat foam issues they are having because their covers are damn nice.

Ill try and post some more pics in the sun/garage so you can get a sense of the color.

mstromquist

Thanks for the review. My next set of seat skins will be from Rides also. From what I've been seeing they seem to be one of the better options out there. Yours look great.