Replacing Leather...

[T4RBoarder]

I was wondering if anyone had replaced the leather on their T4R with cloth? I hate leather and would, if possible and not too hard, like to put cloth in from a SR5 or SE. Would they be able to withstand the seat heaters and would I need to get special ones for the side air bags?

 

[T4RBoarder]

bueller...bueller. Am I the only weird one who wants to get rid of leather?

 

[Rover+Runner]

No, I don't think it's a strange question. My girlfriend does not like leather either - she says that it is too cold in the winter/too hot in the summer. Her Tiguan (and her Jetta) both have cloth seats with seat heaters so it's technically possible but I'm not sure how it would affect the airbag.

You might be able to find someone who has cloth seats and wants to upgrade to leather (maybe you could swap).

 

[Euphor501]

Might think about putting cloth seat covers over the leather, other wise your left with finding a buyer for a Limited 4runner with cloth. Not my cup of tea. However, if your planning on keeping it a good while then don't worry about resale.

 

[climb.on]

I'm don't think the side air bags have anything do do with the seats...when the side curtain air bags are deployed they drop from the the seam between the headliner and the door frame.

My wife doesn't like the leather either. I'd actually consider switching to the sport cloth seats if it wasn't too tough to do. Let us know how it goes for you!

 

[hemitruk]

Might think about putting cloth seat covers over the leather, other wise your left with finding a buyer for a Limited 4runner with cloth. Not my cup of tea. However, if your planning on keeping it a good while then don't worry about resale.

Yea I agree.Some thing like wet okoles or similar seat covers would be an easier option.Wet okoles fit nice and tight and theyre water proof.Had it on My 06RT charger and I loved it.

 

[T4RBoarder]

I'm not sure if I would like the neoprene seat covers or not, I would really like to replace them with stock cloth but I'm afraid it's gonna be too hard to do. Which sucks At this time I'm not really worried about selling it, I plan on keeping it until at least 200k, so should I be worrying about resale?

 

[Euphor501]

Well thats what I"m saying, if your in it for the long haul then don't worry about it. Make it your own and enjoy it.

 

[Rover+Runner]

I had one more idea regarding where you may be able to find Toyota cloth seat covers: dealerships in the Southeast United States offer an XSP package where they convert cloth seats to leather (aftermarket). Maybe you could cold call some dealers in the Georgia/Florida/South Carolina area and ask if they can sell you the cloth seat covers after the conversion is done.

 

[purrfactor]

if you ever do switch, let me know how it goes, i have often thought about the opposite, going from cloth to leather....

 

[SimonSez]

I'm don't think the side air bags have anything do do with the seats...when the side curtain air bags are deployed they drop from the the seam between the headliner and the door frame.

My wife doesn't like the leather either. I'd actually consider switching to the sport cloth seats if it wasn't too tough to do. Let us know how it goes for you!

You'd be better off just trading your Limited seats for someone that has cloth ones. I'm in the process of going from cloth in my SR5 to an aftermarket Katzkin leather kit. So far I've only done the headrests, but the leather covers just go over the cloth. It will be a different story with the rest of the seats. I was trying to find some leather seats to just swap out, but they were all way too costly, so I got my leather kit instead. I got it for less than half of the original cost.

Like someone else suggested, just get some cloth seat covers and call it a day. The covers might not fit like the original cloth seat fabric, but it would be much easier to do.

 

[jlmilligan]

Call around to some salvage yards. You may just find what you are looking for. I had Wet Okoles in my Taco and loved them. The neoprene is thick enough to provide extra cushion. They actually helped in the comfort department quite a bit.