One reason I bought my car was for the interior being in excellent condition, (even at 145k miles). However the seats have faded from black to purple. I am looking for opinions. Should I just spray the purple parts with the interior spray paint? Or should I spray the seats all the way with the interior spray paint? Or should I take the seats off (understanding that isn't that hard with hognose pliers) and rit dye them? Here is my canvas cover before the interior spray paint. I'll post pictures with paint later.
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The seats factory scheme or all black?

 

Well, the problem with alot of dyes is that it makes the fabric crunchy...and it stinks. Wonder how much it would cost to just have those parts recovered?

 

Just FYI, 4th gen seats are a direct bolt in.

 

if it was the carpet... id say spray it.. ive seen excelent results.
if it was leather, id say dye it.. ive also seen good results.

but cloth seats would have to be recovered.

if you look at the cost of recovering the seats (assuming you're not doing it yourself)and then look at the cost of 4thgen seats, you'll want to get the 4thgen ones.
they have a updated, more comfortable modern design... the foam isnt as old, springs arnt weak, ect...

so my advice would be, just buy 4thgen seats.

 

Hi!
I have had pretty good luck with redying frabic seats the same color!
Just do what the can recomends.
Spray lightly, and brush after it is dry! Do this a couple of times.
You may have to do it more than once, and it may refade, but it is cheaper that redoing the whole interior!

Good luck,

George

 

I know I'm bring my post back from the dead, but I did my rear seats last week and they look 10 times better than before. To soften them up between layers I used "Tuff stuff" cleaner (fabric cleaner available at walmart for 2.44 a can) and worked it in my fingers. They still are stiffer but they look much better.


I'm going to do the front seats once school gets out.

 

Very nice.

 

Thanks, it takes a lot of coats to look good. Also I had to use some industrial duct to mask the seats, masking tape and these seats doesn't work.

 

Well I am finished for the time being on dying them, however little to my knowledge they sell a gloss black dye, I used the flat black. Sometime during the summer I'll probably go over them again with gloss black.





As you can see some of the purple still shows through, so far the entire interior took 5 cans. I still love these seats about a million times better than the 93-97 plain jane gray camaro seats.

 

Huge improvement, nice job!

 

Gloss black? I think the flat black looks factory and original. If you coat them with gloss...i think it will look pretty tacky.
So, are you wanting them to be shiney? or is there another reason? BTW, they do look alot better

 

Well after thinking about it gloss does seem a bit outrageous, I think I'll find some test material first. If I don't go gloss, I think I need a few more coats, I want it so black that I can't even remember them looking purple.

Another note, everyone said that after dying the fabric would be completely stiff. However with the use of interior fabric cleaner you can't even tell that they have been dyed based on texture.

 

Gladstoneiroc,

 

Gladstoneiroc,
You did an amazing job dying the seats and carpet. Whst i wanted to know was what kind of dye did you use and where did you get it and how much did it cost? I think that this would be the perfect touch for my IROC'S interior.
Thanks for any help,
Matt

 

I used Dupli- color's vinyl and fabric coating in flat black. It is available in some colors at Walmart and most automotive parts stores, which will have more colors. It cost $3.8x at walmart a can and $4.88 at Advance Auto parts. At this point I've used 5 cans on my interior, including some quality duct tape I have about $20 in the project.

 

Great! I know what the old roc is getting soon. Thanks for the info.

Have a good one
Matt

 

I ought to pick some of that up.. I have the exact same interior, except mine's still purple.. I actually never knew the difference until I saw this.. Good job.

 

Gladstone, did you use Duplicolor's VS3 (flat black) Vinyl and Fabric paint on the canvas cargo cover? Just want to make sure, as this thread had spurred me to fix my sun-bleached cover. Thanks.

 

Jade Grey, that's exactly what I used.

 

Wow your seats are in amazing condition considering the year and mileage. They're just as nice as the ones in my car and mine has 46,000 miles. Is there any secret to keeping them in such good condition... i recently put some seat covers in my car to keep them looking good but i really hate the seat covers because they're meant for 4th gens and dont fit right and they dont look that good either....

 

Well I bought my car with 132k miles (now has 147k) and one of the biggest reasons was due to the interior's condition. However a small hole is starting to form in the drivers seat area . Its the only flaw so far and its driving me crazy. Also get some foam carpet cleaner and work it in with you hands then vacuum, it keeps the seats clean and soft.
Another note, if you have a stain and it doesn't come out. You should clean it very well and the dye it. It makes it nearly invisible.

 

just wondering how the dye has held up for you? i found some seats that i want but they are kinda faded likethat. but they are at a good price and kinda rare so if the dye stuff works good i might try it out.

 

They have held up alright, but here is some added information. Use atleast 3 coats of gloss black, not flat black. The reason why is that gloss black looks closer to original and does not fade as much. I think the lifespan of the dye is somewhere between 2 and 3 years in a daily driver that soaks up the sun all summer long. Finally, dye the carpet and kick panels and buy some quality black floor mats.

 

well im just going to do some seats. i found a set of racing seats from a friend but they have a little bit of blue on them and i was thinking about dyeing them black or grey. how many cans did you use on those front seats? if it will last 2 or 3 years that is perfect for me b/c im just going to put these in so i can have my stock ones recovered but i dont know how long that will take.