Any experience with Katzkin?

rafaloco · Aug 10, 2016

Have any of you ever installed aftermarket leather in any of your vehicles?

I'm tossing around some ideas and I'm possibly interested in upgrading my 2016 GSW TSI S to leather. I'm looking at Katzkin and they seem to have a leather conversion kit for our cars, but I have never used their products before and I am hesitant.

I've never reupholstered any of my previous cars but I did find a few shops around me that specialize in it. My main concern is that I'm not sure they will be able to match the factory color. I know if it's not perfect it will drive me nuts!

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jtitocci · Aug 10, 2016

rafaloco said:
Have any of you ever installed aftermarket leather in any of your vehicles?

I'm tossing around some ideas and I'm possibly interested in upgrading my 2016 GSW TSI S to leather. I'm looking at Katzkin and they seem to have a leather conversion kit for our cars, but I have never used their products before and I am hesitant.

I've never reupholstered any of my previous cars but I did find a few shops around me that specialize in it. My main concern is that I'm not sure they will be able to match the factory color. I know if it's not perfect it will drive me nuts!

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I have "some" experience with katzkin's. A couple years ago the wife was looking at Jeeps but really wanted leather but didn't want to go up a trim with other bells and whistles, so the dealership said they could install just the leather seats alone. I know jeeps pretty well and I knew they were up to something fishy when I heard this so I asked them to show me another car with it, sure enough it was Katzkin's. They looked decent, felt decent, but had a slightly "oversized" feel to them, which is required because they have to slip over to fit on, and to tight, obviously would not work.

Roll forward to last year and a friend of mine ran a set in his car and installed them himself. I helped with the install, and it was a lot of work, but the fit and finish is pretty nice. (I actually have experience with upholstery, in general) For someone who knows his way around cars, you can tell it's a "cover", in that it's not an exact fit, like I mentioned "oversized" in a way. For 90% of the population (including the wife) it was a great leather seat, haha.

One thing that drives me nuts is leather seats and clothe on door panels or center console, it's a dead give away, and just doesn't go well, so keep that in mind.

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rafaloco · Aug 11, 2016

jtitocci said:
I have "some" experience with katzkin's. A couple years ago the wife was looking at Jeeps but really wanted leather but didn't want to go up a trim with other bells and whistles, so the dealership said they could install just the leather seats alone. I know jeeps pretty well and I knew they were up to something fishy when I heard this so I asked them to show me another car with it, sure enough it was Katzkin's. They looked decent, felt decent, but had a slightly "oversized" feel to them, which is required because they have to slip over to fit on, and to tight, obviously would not work.

Roll forward to last year and a friend of mine ran a set in his car and installed them himself. I helped with the install, and it was a lot of work, but the fit and finish is pretty nice. (I actually have experience with upholstery, in general) For someone who knows his way around cars, you can tell it's a "cover", in that it's not an exact fit, like I mentioned "oversized" in a way. For 90% of the population (including the wife) it was a great leather seat, haha.

One thing that drives me nuts is leather seats and clothe on door panels or center console, it's a dead give away, and just doesn't go well, so keep that in mind.

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Thanks for the input. I stopped by one of the better reviewed upholstery shops in town and took a look at some of their finished katzkin leather conversions. I did notice on the Tundra I was looking at that the leather was a bit "loose" as you say when compared to factory, but otherwise it looked and felt great, including the stitching and color.

As for the armrests in my car, they're covered in leatherette so is the elbow rest on the doors, but the door panels are cloth...I guess this is something I will have to live with if I chose to do the leather swap.

I'm still not sold on it but I am seriously considering it.

DasCC · Aug 11, 2016

I saw some brown Katzkin on a new 2015 Jetta 2.Slow at the dealer. I snapped a pic at the time but I don't think I have it anymore. it really didn't look that great. Reminded me of Vincent D'Onofrio after his body was invaded by the alien on Men in Black.

GTINC · Aug 11, 2016

No aftermarket conversion will ever look as nice as the OEM seats. One of VW's major pluses is their superior seats (Recaro made)

surfstar · Aug 11, 2016

Don't do it - the cloth seats are really quite nice, especially in warm weather and without a heater in the S model, winter + leather might not be so nice.

Also quite expensive.

I'm guessing you don't have Titan Black, though? I could see beige cloth looking dirtier and leather being easier to clean, though.
I think the S in Titan looks quite nice actually, for a "low-end" model.

Mazdafan · Aug 11, 2016

surfstar said:
Don't do it - the cloth seats are really quite nice, especially in warm weather and without a heater in the S model, winter + leather might not be so nice.

Also quite expensive.

I'm guessing you don't have Titan Black, though? I could see beige cloth looking dirtier and leather being easier to clean, though.
I think the S in Titan looks quite nice actually, for a "low-end" model.

I agree, the cloth on S model is quite nice. The two tone scheme makes it look better than the typical plain cloth seat in a Japanese car. This would have been a higher trim (Touring) seat in a Mazda, for example. If you are worried about staining the cloth, consider doing Katzkin means you ruin the cloth 100% in 1 day. Just use a couple of cans of Scotch Guard every 12 months and never think about it again.

rafaloco · Aug 11, 2016

Mazdafan said:
I agree, the cloth on S model is quite nice. The two tone scheme makes it look better than the typical plain cloth seat in a Japanese car. This would have been a higher trim (Touring) seat in a Mazda, for example. If you are worried about staining the cloth, consider doing Katzkin means you ruin the cloth 100% in 1 day. Just use a couple of cans of Scotch Guard every 12 months and never think about it again.

I have the lighter beige/tan cloth seats. I like them a lot...when they're clean. But it's almost impossible to keep them clean. Any liquid, even water drops, will leave behind stains on the seats. It's especially irritating when it's raining and i open the door to get in the car. The next day the driver's seat cloth will be stained with watermarks all over from the rainwater.

Phil37 · Aug 12, 2016

I was looking at a leather seat kit today from a company called ROADWIRE. It goes for $1690 including installation. They say theirs are not simply covers. They recommend black or beige depending on stock interior color for an OEM look. Alternatively they do offer like 100 other colors including multiple shades of red. Options include contrasting stitching color, two tone and embroidery. What do you all think, would a Tornado Red GSW look good or bad with Red leather seats? Definitely different.

Tm875 · Aug 12, 2016

I installed Katzkin on my last car. The leather quality was pretty decent, very soft, and held up well (it was light beige and didn't discolor in the year that I had the car). The clips that come with the covers, though, are terrible and all either broke during install or shortly after. Plus your hands will hurt for a week afterward

Any experience with Katzkin?

rafaloco

jtitocci

rafaloco

DasCC

GTINC

surfstar

Mazdafan

rafaloco

Phil37

Tm875

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