Leather seat photos wanted

[steve91tt]

I am considering redoing the seats in my 1973 240Z in leather. I have been looking at both the MSA and classic Datsun leather kits but I have been unable to find much on the forum from folks that have used either kit.

Anyone have any experience with leather in a Z?

[jackboxxx]

Ive done both, bought the seat kit from MSA and installed it myself, and have also had an upholstry shop do the seats from the ground up.

Though the MSA kits are ok, and looked pretty decent, they dont compare

to having the seats done professionally, .. every seam is tight, the support is great and you can choose your exact material, or materials...but it will cost more to go this route.

I attached a picture to this but it was really bright outside today and you cant really appreciate the quality of the work from the photo.. my upholstry guy re-did the black on the frame of the seat, cleaned the plastic protectors between the seat and the adjustors..rebuilt the webbing, and foam..and gave me like 10 books to look though to pick the texture i liked best..

[steve91tt]

Those seats are beautiful! Do you have photos of the msa seats to compare?

[Mike B]

A friend of mine installed the MSA leather seats (with new seat foam also from MSA). He didn't like how they turned out so he had a set custom made. He said the bolsters on the MSA seats weren't even side to side, the seams didn't line up properly, the gap between the bottoms and back was uneven, and the stitching wasn't even on the pleats on the back. The upholstery shop also charged him extra to put the MSA covers on since the new foam padding didn't fit without cutting and splicing the foam backs. They were too narrow as received.

The first picture is the MSA seats and the second is the custom set he had made.

-Mike

[Inf]

...

The first picture is the MSA seats and the second is the custom set he had made...

Great comparison photos. It's like night and day.

[steve91tt]

The first picture is the MSA seats and the second is the custom set he had made.

Wow! Big difference. thanks for sharing.

[d240zx2]

Datsun Restore. I got covers, pads, webbing. Did the job in my living room. It looks great, sits great. No complaints and would do it again if needed.

[steve91tt]

Datsun Restore. I got covers, pads, webbing. Did the job in my living room. It looks great, sits great. No complaints and would do it again if needed.

Sound like a great option. Do you have any photos?

[oldhemi]

I recently bought a MSA vinyl cover off of eBay. It was just the seat back piece for $25. The damn thing was not even close in the seams! I sent it back. Here is a link to some pics of that cover compared to my original seat and what I think is a 74.5 - 76 seat:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14971874@N03/sets/72157623632720534/

I know that the 260Z seat has different pattern (vertical vs. horizontal) than the 240's. I posted this to show the quality of these seat covers - maybe the 240's are mo'betta. But, c'mon this thing is in left field!

I am now more than ever intent on saving my originals after seeing MSA seats. My passenger seat is real nice. My drivers seat needs a bottom but the seat back is very salvageable by an upholsterer. And, I do have the unknown seat that I could use very nicely.

Those independently made seats sure look good. Are they leather or vinyl? How much are we talking for this work? Hmmm, didn't all 240's have the 4 ventilation buttons?

Edited March 21, 2010 by oldhemi

[Bonzi Lon]

These are not leather but would look good in Steve's color of car.

Long story short, my car was to be bronze/copper (this is 1980) with an interior to match. The seats were done by a lady that did household furniture. I asked her if they could be made with more cushion around the sides and headreast, no problem, make the pattern bigger in that area.

They came back in 2 weeks and $400 lighter in the checkbook. They are fantastic. Stitch work is great, even has cloth covered piping. The sit is unbeleivable, softer than any recliner. However, as you can see, they don't go with a blue car. Right now I am using the seats out of #110, no cushion left at all. Stock ride height but my eyes are lowered 3 inches.

My options are many, but the ideal would be: Sell these seats to someone that could use the color. Get a set of 73 seats, must be reclineable, with bad covers and have that lady make me a new set like the old ones she did in off white leather, maybe blue piping, or a blue 240Z stitched in the headrest.

Bonzi Lon

[Bonzi Lon]

Double post, sorry Arne, please delete.

Bonzi Lon

Edited March 21, 2010 by Bonzi Lon
oops

[steve91tt]

These are not leather but would look good in Steve's color of car.

Bonzi, sounds like we are in similar situations. I am changing the seats in my car because I am switching the exterior from brown to 901 silver and switching the interior from butternut to black. I was targeting leather over vinyl because I was hoping that leather would be more comfortable in the summer months.

I did a 1991 300z last year in black leather. It turned out great and I got to have fun playing with listing wire and hog rings. Unfortunately the company that made the 300z seat skins does not make a 240z kit so I am looking for alternatives.