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Cloth seats?

03DSG

Active Member
Apr 5, 2016
2,142
2,445
Ontario
I have to say the best seats I have ever had are on our 2014 Ford Escape Titanium. Full leather is free. The partial leather/cloth sport seats are a $350 (CDN) option and are great! Body contact areas are cloth with leather trim om most non contact areas. Good, not excessive bolstering and really nice wear free fabric. My last track car had black/grey alcantara Sparco seats and I actually like the Escape sport seats better. Mostly because I don't need the huge bolsters and the great Ford fabric doesn't 'print'.
 

jeremyz

Member
Apr 5, 2013
257
94
.
Oh yeah, I forgot that they started offering cloth seats in the Viper a few years ago. They are a combination of ballistic nylon and vinyl.
114368_2013_SRT_Viper.jpg


The Ferrari F40 came with cloth (Nomex) seats.
 

Lem89

Member
Apr 20, 2016
87
110
Rocky Mountains
I'm skipping the heated/cooled seats option so cloth will be better for extreme temperatures. Plus I like the feel of cloth so much better than leather. Like my couch, I think cloth feels much more comfy than leather sofas.
 

Dan Detweiler

Active Member
Apr 21, 2016
3,005
12,474
Canton, Georgia
When it comes to seats, I have seen some Tesla owners say that the cloth seats weren't bolstered enough and the upgraded seats felt more secure and comfortable. Any thoughts from you owners out there?

Dan
 

dgpcolorado

high altitude member
Apr 25, 2015
2,485
3,318
The Western Slope, Colorado
When it comes to seats, I have seen some Tesla owners say that the cloth seats weren't bolstered enough and the upgraded seats felt more secure and comfortable. Any thoughts from you owners out there?

Dan
I have the "textile" seats Az_Rael pictured upthread. I find that they give good support going around sharp mountain curves. My complaint is that the bottom seat cushion is very hard and gets uncomfortable after a couple of hours. I'm experimenting with softer pads and may go to an extra seat cushion on long trips. I've never had a car with such hard seats before and don't understand why they did it. (So it would hold up for very obese drivers? I haven't a clue.) It does make me appreciate the chance to walk around at each Supercharger stop.

So far as cleaning the seats: they look to be very easy to clean, although I haven't spilled anything yet.
 
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AUSinator

Member
Feb 20, 2015
175
66
Australia
But cleanability is only on deciding factor when choosing a seat covering material.
Lots of families choose leather just because it's easier to clean. The prestige and the easier to clean are the biggest reasons people choosing leather. So I completely disagree with your comment.
My brother sells sofas he said half of the people prefer cloth sofas half prefer leather sofas. It's all preference. I personally like leather because it doesn't get dusty and smelly after a few years. Also it's a lot easier with small kids just wipe every time they do a mess. In my old car in the back row where the kids were sitting the black carpet floor is completely stained and is unfixable however the leather seats look like new because we could always Wipe the mess easily away..
 
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tga

Supporting Member
Apr 8, 2014
3,866
2,678
New Hampshire
This is the look I associate with old leather:
View attachment 174331

Old uncared for leather perhaps. You definitely can't just ignore it, that's for sure.

Dan
I think modern leather upholstery is much better than the old days. The last car I saw with badly cracked leather like TEG's picture was a 13 year old 1971 Volvo. My 12 year old Mini's leather looks like new, and I've done little to care for it.

I don't think I've seen anybody dispute the cleanability of leather. I'm sure that in most, if not all cases , leather is easier to clean. But cleanability is only on deciding factor when choosing a seat covering material.
Alcantara (and other microfibers) cleans up surprisingly well. Even dog diarrhea (don't ask... :eek:). Two of our current cars are over 100k, with cloth seats (tan and black). Both are in good shape and reasonably stain free (no kids here, but 2 dogs).

When it comes to seats, I have seen some Tesla owners say that the cloth seats weren't bolstered enough and the upgraded seats felt more secure and comfortable. Any thoughts from you owners out there?
From a short test drive, I'd say the next gen seats are way better, but leather only.
 

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