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Hey everyone, I've been loving my C5 (2003) that I bought recently... but I'm starting to plan on doing some interior upgrades. I want to add either alcantara, carbon fiber, or leather... maybe a combo of 2 or the 3... not sure what I want exactly.
I sorta like the looks of these 2, not completely in love with either, but just to give you an idea of what i'm talking about.
I'm not sure what's the best way to go about this. Obviously i don't want that much red but I like the red stitching an alcantara accents. I also like carbon fiber look but that's expensive so i'm not sure...
Oh and also I saw these door upgrades, let me know what you guys think. https://rb.gy/qf8gis
Where would be a good place to start? I've been googling like crazy but admittedly i've never done anything like this before.
Last edited by Hero Danny; Apr 15, 2021 at 11:56 PM.
It really depends on how far you're looking to go. If you're worried about the cost of carbon fiber, you don't even want to know what the full interiors that you posted pics of would cost. We're talking THOUSANDS! As for the door upgrades that you linked, I want to make sure that you are aware that these are just covers. They're NOT refinished door cards. They need to be glued to your stock door cards. You would have to either do all the labor yourself, or pay an upholstery shop to do it for you. It's also worth noting that the adhesive holding the vinyl onto the stock door panels is known to fail, so you're not going to want to just glue it on top of the existing vinyl. You would actually need to reskin the door card. I think interior mods are fantastic, and they can really make the car look sharp. I just want you to come in to this with your eyes open. You're looking at a very deep, very expensive (but really cool) rabbit hole.
If you decide you want to go down that rabbit hole, Apsis and Caravaggio are both top notch options. If you contact them, they can make any custom interior pieces exactly as you want them. If you decide you do want carbon fiber pieces, I would check out American Hydrocarbon. I just ordered a custom steering wheel from VQcarboncustoms. Although there are lot of great options out there for custom steering wheels. The other option which I can also suggest, is to find a good auto upholstery shop in your area. Go talk to them about what you want. They can likely do a fully custom job. This would have the added benefit of you being able to handle, feel, and see in person all the materials that you have to choose from. Good luck! We're here if you have any more questions. Let us know what you decide to do.
Last edited by MWWarlord; Apr 16, 2021 at 02:40 PM.
Reason: spelling and grammar
Oh and also I saw these door upgrades, let me know what you guys think. https://rb.gy/qf8gis
Seen these before, and I have to say it always bothers me that a photo of their product, ostensibly designed and placed to convince me to buy, has such terribly crooked and meandering stiches. Worse, they are in a contrasting color so that the poor workmanship stands out even more. Price seems excellent, but it sure appears to be a 'get what you pay for' situation.
That second picture's interior is probably close to a $8,000 interior. I am in the midst of building mine, just working on collecting all the needed pieces. Jersey at ApsisUSA did both of those interiors you pictured.
To me, the second one is better. Fake carbon fiber looks awful. Real carbon fiber is prohibitively expensive.
yup.. fake carbon fiber looks... fake. Even real carbon fiber, I'm not a huge fan of .. .the only reason people use it is because it's expensive, but it's already dramatically cheaper than it was years ago, and will continue to become cheaper, down the road it'll just be another plastic bit.
I'm not a huge fan of the diamond stitching, to me that belongs in a older hot rod, but that's just my opinion.
yup.. fake carbon fiber looks... fake. Even real carbon fiber, I'm not a huge fan of .. .the only reason people use it is because it's expensive, but it's already dramatically cheaper than it was years ago, and will continue to become cheaper, down the road it'll just be another plastic bit.
I'm not a huge fan of the diamond stitching, to me that belongs in a older hot rod, but that's just my opinion.
I have about $6,000 tied up in my custom interior - most of which came from VetteEssentials. I have added more since these photos were taken, but the seats are a combination of leather/carbon fiber leather/suede (similar materials to what you are considering)...
Hey everyone, I've been loving my C5 (2003) that I bought recently... but I'm starting to plan on doing some interior upgrades. I want to add either alcantara, carbon fiber, or leather... maybe a combo of 2 or the 3... not sure what I want exactly.
I sorta like the looks of these 2, not completely in love with either, but just to give you an idea of what i'm talking about.
I'm not sure what's the best way to go about this. Obviously i don't want that much red but I like the red stitching an alcantara accents. I also like carbon fiber look but that's expensive so i'm not sure...
Oh and also I saw these door upgrades, let me know what you guys think. https://rb.gy/qf8gis
Where would be a good place to start? I've been googling like crazy but admittedly i've never done anything like this before.
The second one seems better, I wouldn't want to cover the steering wheel like they did in the first picture since it could interfere with the airbag. I re-did my seats from interior-innovations and I think they came out good, although you should use the GM foam when you do them, the interior-innovations foam is super stiff. I don't mind that but others might not love it. While I was at it, I also did heated seats. I got the metra bezel and a kenwood dvd nav and now the car is a lot more up-to-date. Covering all the panels with leather and nice stitching is a great way to go extra premium, but it also costs a lot more so I didn't do it. I did all this work myself too, so that saved me money.
Here are some photos of my interior. Most pieces are from Redline Goods, but main dash and radio bezel are from APSIS. Local guy did the hydro carbon and another local guy installed the door panel coverings. Steering wheel is from RFE Design. Working on seat options next.
They are not a US company, they can't follow simple instructions on your order, they have the worst customer service, they are slow to reply if at all to your emails.
I tried to cancel my order after giving them multiple chances. The seats weren't done yet, at least to my knowledge, and got no response on the req to cancel. We called and talked to someone and they said they would get it canceled.
The very next day they ship the seats and told us they couldn't cancel the order due to it being custom??? like seriously
Save yourself the hassle and do not bother with Ridies.
St. Jude Donor '14-'15-'16-'17-'18-'19-'20-'21-'22-'23
Originally Posted by Troy01Z06
Do NOT buy from Ridies!
They are not a US company, they can't follow simple instructions on your order, they have the worst customer service, they are slow to reply if at all to your emails.
I tried to cancel my order after giving them multiple chances. The seats weren't done yet, at least to my knowledge, and got no response on the req to cancel. We called and talked to someone and they said they would get it canceled.
The very next day they ship the seats and told us they couldn't cancel the order due to it being custom??? like seriously
Save yourself the hassle and do not bother with Ridies.
Only Advice to the op is try to stay with one vendor if you are going with anything but black. I have a bunch of Lt. Oak parts from various vendors and the colors are off.
They are not a US company, they can't follow simple instructions on your order, they have the worst customer service, they are slow to reply if at all to your emails.
I tried to cancel my order after giving them multiple chances. The seats weren't done yet, at least to my knowledge, and got no response on the req to cancel. We called and talked to someone and they said they would get it canceled.
The very next day they ship the seats and told us they couldn't cancel the order due to it being custom??? like seriously
Save yourself the hassle and do not bother with Ridies.
Sorry for your experience, but I for one had no problems whatsoever with Ridies. I explained what custom touches I wanted and they were very accommodating. My upholsterer was vey impressed with the quality of the leather, and I was blown away with the color match to my car. I even won best interior at one car show I attended. The upholstery is now over 2yrs. old and still has that great leather smell, and shows no wear at all. Again, sorry for your experience, but I have nothing critical to say about Ridied.
Interior upgrades?
New seat skins can make a world of difference in the interior.
