Seat Upholstery Installation Instructions
Please read completely before beginning installation
Note: The seat upholstery is made to fit as tight as the originals. Caution must be exercised when installing over
pad and frames. Do not pull at seams excessively as it is possible to tear upholstery as these points.
Note: Some vehicles, such as the 1988-Up Chevy Trucks and Full Size Blazer have the original seat upholstery
heat laminated to the foam making it very difficult to remove the old upholstery. Our seat kits for these models do not
require the removal of the old upholstery. Our sets will go right over the original and hog ring where the original seat
cover is attached.
Installation Note: Some models, such as the 1994 and newer Mustang, will require the use of a contact spray
adhesive (most brands are acceptable), in order to get a good bond where the insert portion of the seat (center of seat)
meets the side bolsters. The contact spray adhesive should be applied to the underside surface of the seat upholstery
and the front surface of the foam buns. Let sit until tacky before attaching the seat upholstery to the foam buns.
Installation:
1. Remove the seat from the vehicle and separate the seat back from the bottom.
2. Remove the old seat upholstery and hog rings. While removing the original upholstery, note the
fastening points. The new upholstery will fasten at, or near, these same locations.
3. Inspect the pad, springs and frame; make any necessary repairs or replacements.
4. Determine which upholstery is the backrest and which is the seat bottom; they are not interchangeable.
5. Turn back-rest upholstery inside out and place on top of the back rest. Slide down evenly while
unrolling upholstery working each side until they are even; then install hog rings where required working
from the center to each side. (Do the same with the head rests or arm rest if these come with your seat
upholstery). Wherever your upholstery has velcro for attachment, no hog rings are required. Adjust
velcro to align back rest pleats with bench seat pleats.
6. Turn seat bottom upholstery inside out and place on front of seat. Make sure the center of the
upholstery is aligned with the center of the seat back upholstery. Pull the upholstery over each front
corner working each side toward the back until they are even; then install hog rings one at a time where
required working from the center to each side.
Note: If your upholstery set has a plastic “J” channel, there are no hog rings required in that area.
Simply snap the plastic channel on to the metal flange on the bottom of the seat frame.
7. Re-assemble seat and install back in vehicle.
Helpful Hints: Installation is easier if the upholstery is heated. Warm vinyl has more elasticity and is easier to
contour. Heating is best accomplished by laying the upholstery in the sun or using a hair dryer but, please be careful
not to melt the vinyl.
A thin layer of plastic put over the cushions will help make the seat upholstery slide down over the back rest and seat
pad.
If the upholstery is in a bind, Do Not Pull. Work each side evenly until you can continue with the installation.
If working on bucket seats, start on the passenger seat first. If you have a problem the driver side seat is a reference
and allows you to drive the vehicle until the problem is solved.
Door Panel Instructions
All Door Panels ship with the material covering one side of the door panel without cut
outs. The back side of the door panel board has perforated opening locations or actual
cut outs for such things as door handles, window cranks, electric windows, pull straps,
speaker covers, attachment points, etc.
Some Door Panels have chalk marks on the material face as a guide where cuts are made
for arm rests, door handles, etc. Once the material is cut, all of the chalk marks can be
removed with alcohol or soap and water.
NOTE: If you have a question about what openings to cut or not cut, please refer to your
original Door Panel as a ready reference. If the original Door Panels aren’t available
please contact the company you purchased the product from for technical support.
It is the responsibility of the consumer to remove whatever perforated openings that are
pertinent to your vehicle. It is recommended to carefully use a single edge razor blade to
remove perforated openings.
Once the openings required are removed then the material needs to be cut to
accommodate the part that needs to go into the opening.
This is done by using a razor blade or razor knife and cutting an “X” cut through the
material in the center of the opening. Please be careful not to cut the “X” all the way to
the edge of the opening in the board. It is suggested to leave ¼” of material inside the
opening so it looks clean when the material is folded back.
After the “X” cut is made then you can fold back the material so you can install door
handles, pull straps, arm rests, etc.
If you want to, you can tape or glue the flaps of material to the backside of the board but,
it isn’t necessary as once the hardware and door panel are installed, you’ll never see the
loose material.
