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Door panel and armrest covers from Interior Innovations


evinX
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Here are my door panel covers from Interior innovations, i went for oem style grain for the main panel, ribbed napa leather for the insert and napa leather for the arm rest.

Pretty hard to fit but im really happy with the outcome, i paid just under £300 including delivery to the uk and my £21 import fee...winning! Was quoted £600-£1000 from UK based companys.

 

What you need:-

 

Evostick time bond, i used 3 tins of 500ml

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Brushes

Craft knifes

Clamps

Araldite to fill and smooth any digs in the oem panel

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8 speaker grill clips from toyota - 90183-03092

 

I used a dremel to cut of the old speaker nut securing clips, dont cut the tabs off!

 

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Strip the door panels down, remove everything

 

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You have to pull these tabs up and the trims pops off

 

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Use araldite to fill and smooth dings/rips

 

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How the covers look

 

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Now this is where your own ability comes into it, theres going to be load of different results...im just a diy try it yourself person, you need to stretch, paste glue onto the door panel and then onto the underside of the cover, let it go tacky and gently lay it down while smoothing it out, i did a small area at a time and started at the top where the window trim sits.

I got this, while its not perfect, its really really good enough for me and its exactly what i wanted, i would like for some of the creases to not be there, but hey.

Enjoy, Kev

 

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The leather will eventually soften and regain it's shape so the visible bits will be fine. The corner will stay creased but if it's where I think it is you can only see it wehn the door is open.

 

I'm personally going for the Top-Gaiters one next year when I get some new seats, £100ish for a pair but less technical design. Bit more boring but wayyy better than the OEM vinyl jobby

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The leather will eventually soften and regain it's shape so the visible bits will be fine. The corner will stay creased but if it's where I think it is you can only see it wehn the door is open.

 

I'm personally going for the Top-Gaiters one next year when I get some new seats, £100ish for a pair but less technical design. Bit more boring but wayyy better than the OEM vinyl jobby

 

I doubt the look of those doorcards will change very much over time, to be honest. If everything is glued down securely then there's nowhere for the leather to move to, so all the wrinkles and whatnot will stay exactly where they are.

 

Bespoke leatherwork costs money for a very good reason: because there's a lot of work involved in not only making it, but fitting it correctly as well. All these mass-produced kits run too much risk of looking less than brilliant because the fitting will more than likely let the end result down. Professional fitting is highly recommended for anything of this nature, in my opinion.

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I doubt the look of those doorcards will change very much over time, to be honest. If everything is glued down securely then there's nowhere for the leather to move to, so all the wrinkles and whatnot will stay exactly where they are.

 

Bespoke leatherwork costs money for a very good reason: because there's a lot of work involved in not only making it, but fitting it correctly as well. All these mass-produced kits run too much risk of looking less than brilliant because the fitting will more than likely let the end result down. Professional fitting is highly recommended for anything of this nature, in my opinion.

 

I agree, but I'm not a rich boy and cant justify spending X amount on door panels and having them perfect. I would like them to be, but my wallet dosent agree. Anyway I'm still loving the interior now :D

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The leather will eventually soften and regain it's shape so the visible bits will be fine. The corner will stay creased but if it's where I think it is you can only see it wehn the door is open.

 

I'm personally going for the Top-Gaiters one next year when I get some new seats, £100ish for a pair but less technical design. Bit more boring but wayyy better than the OEM vinyl jobby

 

To be fair the passenger side, the worst, has creases, been using leather cream and massaging it and the creases have gotten less, I can always peel back and re do the corner. But it hasn't gotten to me...yet :D

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If you want to try and do it again I would maybe use a low heat steamer or hairdryer to make the fabric a little more stretchy! That way once the glue has dried and fabric has cooled down a lot of the creases pull themself out

 

Steam shouldn't ever be used with leather! Heat, yes - steam, no. Steam will ruin the leather.

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I've never seen a decent set of covered door cards, even having allegedly been done by an "expert". I would happily pay £1K for a decent retrim on the door cards. They are £1K + new and damage so easily I just couldn't warrant buying new.

 

Has anyone ever seen a nice set of recovered door cards in a basic leather?

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Kinda feel sorry for you mate, this thread is attracting some negative posts. Good on you for giving it a go, they are not perfect from the pictures BUT as long as YOUR happy then all good :)

 

I've never seen a decent set of covered door cards, even having allegedly been done by an "expert". I would happily pay £1K for a decent retrim on the door cards. They are £1K + new and damage so easily I just couldn't warrant buying new.

 

Has anyone ever seen a nice set of recovered door cards in a basic leather?

 

There is a thread on the supraforums with some brilliant re-trims

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Standard trims like doorcards and suchlike are made using a lot of heat on the covering material, which is also incredibly stretchy and pliable. They also use a press - that's how it fits into all the creases and crannies perfectly.

 

As such, these panels aren't particularly designed for any aftermarket work. So a trimmer has to find a suitable method of making an aesthetically pleasing new "cover" for the part that fits exactly where it's supposed to. You only have to look at the numerous shapes and angles on the Supra doorcard to realise that that isn't going to be an overly easy task.

 

That's why bespoke work can end up costing so much; because there's far more work involved than most people realise. A complex panel made up of different angles and edges and contours will never be an easy item to trim, and any replacement cover for such an item will always be difficult and time-consuming to fit properly.

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Kinda feel sorry for you mate, this thread is attracting some negative posts. Good on you for giving it a go, they are not perfect from the pictures BUT as long as YOUR happy then all good :)

 

This. As said atleast you gave it a go and your happy.

 

I've been quoted about £250 to re-trim my door cards with faux leather as I want them to be near on the same as the stock. That was black with red sticking and having the indent part of the doorcard done with perforated leatherette.

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The camera flash will never do any favours to things like this. I think you've done a pretty solid job. Lets see some pictures with them in the car. Like Cered said, that bottom corner isn't going to be visible when the door's closed and at the end of the day if you're happy, that's it.

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This. As said atleast you gave it a go and your happy.

 

I've been quoted about £250 to re-trim my door cards with faux leather as I want them to be near on the same as the stock. That was black with red sticking and having the indent part of the doorcard done with perforated leatherette.

 

Who was that with Rob? What was the quality of their work like?

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That was http://www.stitcheduptrimmers.co.uk Just found the email, vinyl £250 leather £300.

 

This was the picture I sent them showing them the style of what I'm after in the material I said in previous post. Haven't seen their work in person but looks like they do some good work in the pictures. I'll probably go down to them in the new year and go from there.

 

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Hi eviX, My leather seat covers arrive next monday from same supplier, i know you have done the same job and they look great, they look hard work and lots of fiddling etc, but this will keep me out of the rain before xmas.

My brother just had his front seats recovered in leather on his Toyota Amazon by a local pro, it cost him £1,300 inc.vat, drive in, drive out, so if you are strapped for cash and you have the desire and skills to do the job, then you will be made up, you went balls out on your doors but i am sure they will shrink back, and as some other members have stated, people do not look at every little bit of the door, they just see it as part of the interior, not like a picture of just a door almost magnified.

 

I'm off to buy a big bag of cable ties now. Good luck. herbiemercman.

Edited by herbiemercman (see edit history)
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That was http://www.stitcheduptrimmers.co.uk Just found the email, vinyl £250 leather £300.

 

This was the picture I sent them showing them the style of what I'm after in the material I said in previous post. Haven't seen their work in person but looks like they do some good work in the pictures. I'll probably go down to them in the new year and go from there.

 

http://i1063.photobucket.com/albums/t508/RWheaters/70E5D381-1973-454C-B70C-7749953F618A_zpsryedd4z7.jpg

 

Dave at stitched-up did my last retrim. nice bloke but an absolute nightmare to get hold of and speak to.... hence why im doing mine myself this time

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