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[davemac2]

Greetings folks,

getting ready to start a front bucket seat redo on my 2001 camry which is made with charcoal gray leather and same color vinyl. I bought some leather that is fairly close in color but not quite. I can't find a matching vinyl from anywhere. I have at least 20 different gray vinyl samples that don't even really come close. I don't want to redo the back seat as well to get everything to match.

What do people normally do in this situation? Is it common to think about re-dyeing the leather and maybe reusing the existing vinyl on the seats, or painting new vinyl to match the existing interior? I would think reusing the existing vinyl would make it weak on the stitch line.

What is everyone's thoughts on this?

thanks

[Cody]

Relicate leather has a program where you can send it samples of the color you’re after. They then make matching leather. I have never done it, but hear good things. Are the seats worn in a spot or are the whole seats junk? If it’s just a side bolster or something, no need to replace it all.

[davemac2]

I have a a large hole (6 sq in) in the left driver bolster and the foam has been torn out to the point I will need to repair that first. I'm not as concerned about the leather as I am reusing the vinyl seat pieces on the bottom side and the back of the seat since I can't find a match for that. as well, the seat is 18 years old and the leather has become really stiff and is shrinking from the CA sun here, pulling some of the stitching apart.

[John]

Hey @davemac2 Yes it is very common to run in to this situation... And its honestly usually a pain in the ass. Rarely can you ever find a color to match exactly. Plus if you are even able to find exact oem material chances are that the color will be off because everything else in the car will be faded from the sun. You will have to make a compromise somewhere with a color usually.
This is why I usually avoid repair work with customers. It can be really time consuming and a pain in the ass. But some time it worth doing if the customer is reasonable and understands there will be a slight color difference.

[davemac2]

ok, well I guess that's reality then. It's a pain in the ass. Lol

I didn't even think about color fade too which would screw me up.

thanks john.