C17r15
Active Member
- First Name
- Chris
- Joined
- Apr 21, 2023
- Threads
- 2
- Messages
- 38
- Reaction score
- 109
- Location
- San Francisco
- Vehicles
- 2023 GTS ST
- Thread starter
- #1
Sharing a mini project of mine for posterity.
After:
Before:
Side-by-side:
Creating the carbon fiber seat back covers:
Installation:
Reinstalling the new seat back covers took ~30 minutes per side following the above steps in reverse order. The only exception is to begin reattaching the leather by folding the rubber edging into clips from the top of seat to ensure that it is centered, then work your way down each side of the seat toward the base.
These steps are the same performed to remove the adjustable headrest, retrofit rear seat entertainment if not pre-wired (as it requires different seat back covers that have slots built in for the screens), prep the seat back cover for paint/wrap, or address this service bulletin https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10222546-0001.pdf. I didn't experience any squeaking from seats pre-project, but I applied some felt pads to the new seat backs just in case since it's easy to do as a precaution.
While I like my slate grey race-tex interior, the bland grey seat back covers and the surface area they represent relative to the rest of the interior have always bothered me. They remind me of interiors from Ford Econovans.
Taking inspiration from Porsche's LWBS, I had carbon fiber seat back covers made from a spare set I picked up. Although they serve zero performance purpose, I much prefer the aesthetics over the stock units.
After:
Before:
Side-by-side:
Creating the carbon fiber seat back covers:
1) Donor spare seat back covers were ~$250 per from eBay. Covers are identical between driver and passenger seats and share the same part number, just be mindful that seat backs are different between the 14- and 18-way seats.
2) Depending on what you're looking for (weave/pattern, finish, customizations, turnaround time, standing of the shop, etc.), I've gotten quotes from $1,400 to $3,000+ to cut/sand the seat backs down to the plastic frame, layup the carbon fiber fabric, and seal with resin then clear coat. If there's serious interest, drop me a DM and I can refer you to the shop I used for slightly better pricing.
Porsche uses a 2x2 twill weave pattern in gloss on exterior and weight-bearing parts, which is what I went with:
For comparison, Porsche uses 1x1 plain weave in matte finish in Taycan’s interior trim pieces (my steering wheel example below). Feedback I got from shops is that matte finish visually flattens the carbon fiber texture and does not work as well on surfaces this large.
Installation:
I tackled the installation myself. Removing the seat back cover took me ~2 hours on the first seat, and <1 hour on the second seat once I figured out the steps and became comfortable with the force needed. Below are the steps to hopefully save you some time:
- No need to remove the seats from the car, and battery / 12V power does not need to be unhooked
- Start with the seat position at max height and seat back forward, unhook 2 clips at the end of elastic bands under the seat from behind by hand (markup on picture from an eBay listing)
- Using an interior trim removal tool, pull the felt cover away from the base of the seat back cover while disengaging 8 clips that hold the rubber strip on the felt cover securing it in place
- Remove 2x torx-25 screws located just inside the seat back cover
- Using the interior trim removal tool and/or a blunt butter knife, pull the leather away from the seat back cover. This is the most time-consuming step, and the motion here is to pull the leather toward the rear of the car while simultaneously using the interior trim tool to disengage clip fasteners by applying force toward the front of the car. I started from the bottom of the seat on the outward-facing side (side of the seat adjustment switches) and slowly worked my way around the seat back cover, adjusting the seat back and base as needed to a position where force could be most comfortably applied. I counted 17 clips plus 6 metal fasteners per seat
- Once through step 5 above and the leather is fully detached from the seat back cover, remove 2x torx-27 screws from the top of the seat; the seat back cover can then be removed
Reinstalling the new seat back covers took ~30 minutes per side following the above steps in reverse order. The only exception is to begin reattaching the leather by folding the rubber edging into clips from the top of seat to ensure that it is centered, then work your way down each side of the seat toward the base.
These steps are the same performed to remove the adjustable headrest, retrofit rear seat entertainment if not pre-wired (as it requires different seat back covers that have slots built in for the screens), prep the seat back cover for paint/wrap, or address this service bulletin https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10222546-0001.pdf. I didn't experience any squeaking from seats pre-project, but I applied some felt pads to the new seat backs just in case since it's easy to do as a precaution.
