[BioDoc]

Around Christmas time, thanks to JasonLI25T's Bargain Alley post, I won a set of Katzkin leather seat skins on fleabay for a great price.
After much delay, I finally got around to putting (some of) it on last Friday night, so I figured I post my thoughts on them so far.

I started with the headrests. The cloth covers came off very easily, just undo the clip and one hog clip and it's off. The leathers were surprisingly easy to get on. Starting with the covers inside-out and "unrolling" it onto the headrest was definitely the easiest way to do it. All 5 headrests took about an hour.

Here's what the back ones look like.

I also did the front passenger seat. Started by disconnecting the battery, then undid the 4 bolts and unplugged the 3 plugs under the seat and the seat came right out. The seat back and bottom separated with the removal of 4 bolts.
The cloth cover came off super easy - just undo the zipper and maybe a score of hog clips. Getting the leather on was a bit more work as it doesn't use zippers. I used zip-ties instead of hog clips - I can see how using hog clips would be much more of a PITA. Still lots of pulling, though, and my thumbs were sore for a couple of days. The whole seat took me about 2 hours, hopefully the next one will go quicker.

Here's the finished product.

Here's the before, for comparison.

The covers seem great so far - the leather feels soft and supple, smells good and the padding underneath feels firmer than the oem cloth (a good thing). They seem pretty durable, too - I took my dog camping after installing the leather :crazy:, something spooked her and she scrambled onto the front seat, twice!. She put a few big "dents" in the center arm rest (She's ~85lbs), but there's not a scratch on the new leathers.
Can't wait to do the driver seat this weekend!

*more pics of driver seat below*

 

[vintage42]

I had Katzkins professionally installed in my Scion xB. To pull the seat covers taut, remove wrinkles and puckers, and keep the covers from moving around, the seams are pulled down through the seat bottoms. I think the Katzkins come with the wire or plastic ties built into their seams that you stick down into the seat, pull on and somehow lock.

 

[Gopher XT]

Your Katzkins' look good. I am looking to source a pair of 04/05 WRX seats and want to throw some Katzkins on them. I think you are a brave soul to let your dog in there... I have a dog guard for sale.

Some other members (Toddlamp for one) have installed these too. You might want to ask for any tips on the install.

 

[BioDoc]

Thanks for the comments and suggestions, guys.

Vintage, I've heard that a few days in the sun or some steam (this scares me a bit) will help get rid of the wrinkles. If it doesn't, I'll consider pulling the seams "through" the seat bottom.

Gopher, that's actually the first time my dog has climbed in the front seat, but it's good to know the leathers can stand up to the occasional mishaps. Thanks for the dog barrier offer, but after reading that the cargo area is part of the crumple zone and not the reinforced "ring" structure, I've been reluctant to put her back there.

 

[teiva-boy]

I've installed leatherseats.com's kit on my 02 WRX back in the day. It was a fun project and the end product was pretty darn good looking. I dont know how people did it without a hog ring plier, but some did.

Your install looks great. The leather 'may' tighten up after some heat and cool down cycles, but I wouldnt worry too much as leather over time stretches anyways, and it would have gotten wrinkled down the road anyways...

 

[BioDoc]

Thanks Teiva-boy, my fellow San Diegan.

 

[BioDoc]

Well, I really couldn't wait 'til the weekend, so I did the driver seat last night.
The procedure was basically the same as for the passenger seat, just a little more involved to remove the trim and old cover, as there were a few additional clips and bolts as well as the lumbar control lever to remove. I took a couple of pics of where the extra clips and "hooks" are, if anyone wants to see them.
Anyway, here's what the driver's seat looks like.

And both.

 

[Gopher XT]

Looks good and really matches the interior perfectly.

 

[BioDoc]

So, just to finish up the story, I got the rear skins installed.
I had seriously considered adding seat heaters, but being that I'm in socal and have people in the back seat maybe a half dozen times a year, I just couldn't justify the expense.
Anyway, here are the pics.

 

[Real Lyte]

Looks great, I want some :icon_biggrin:

 

[Subie 2003]

How easy was the install on the rear seat? Was it an issue because the covers on the back link into the rear cabin carpet (for when the seat lays down)

 

[BioDoc]

Looks great, I want some :icon_biggrin:

Thanks!

How easy was the install on the rear seat? Was it an issue because the covers on the back link into the rear cabin carpet (for when the seat lays down)

Installation was very simple - just be sure to use a #3 philipshead driver for removing the center arm rest so you don't strip it.
The factory seat back cover snaps into a channel in the foam organizer thing.
The Katzkin seat back cover has a wide strip of "Velcro" and sticks on top of the rear cabin carpet.
One thing you should be aware: If you look at your factory seat back cover, you'll notice that the back side of the (seat back) carpet has a plastic backing, the Kazkin cover does not have this - it wasn't a big deal to me, though.
I can post pics of both the attachment for the carpet and the plastic backing if you want.