GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: dave7268 on 30 August 2017, 12:31
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Well not driven my car for over four months due to a severely fractured collarbone so my dad has been driving me around everywhere and using the car on a daily basis.
Today when he taxi'd me around I noticed that the drivers seat bolster looked rather odd...
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp239/Davedalline/20170830_114635.jpg)
So the bolster is more or less flattened and when you grab it you can feel that it is broken. How has it happened - well my dad has bad knees so he basically slides in and out of the seat all the time resulting in the damage.
Whilst checking this out I noticed a hole in the drivers seat where the seat belt pulls across. You can see that the material has gradually worn through and then a hole developed. I have checked the seat belt and there are no sharp pieces of fabric that could inflict such damage - has anyone else got any wear and tear in a similar place on their seats? Passenger side is fine and gets nearly as much use.
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp239/Davedalline/20170830_114626.jpg)
So the next question would be... does anyone know of a reputable upholsterer who could fix this in the Merseyside/Manchester areas?
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Well not driven my car for over four months due to a severely fractured collarbone so my dad has been driving me around everywhere and using the car on a daily basis.
Today when he taxi'd me around I noticed that the drivers seat bolster looked rather odd...
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp239/Davedalline/20170830_114635.jpg)
So the bolster is more or less flattened and when you grab it you can feel that it is broken. How has it happened - well my dad has bad knees so he basically slides in and out of the seat all the time resulting in the damage.
Whilst checking this out I noticed a hole in the drivers seat where the seat belt pulls across. You can see that the material has gradually worn through and then a hole developed. I have checked the seat belt and there are no sharp pieces of fabric that could inflict such damage - has anyone else got any wear and tear in a similar place on their seats? Passenger side is fine and gets nearly as much use.
(http://i415.photobucket.com/albums/pp239/Davedalline/20170830_114626.jpg)
So the next question would be... does anyone know of a reputable upholsterer who could fix this in the Merseyside/Manchester areas?
What a mess!
I'd have to get a completely new seat or sell the car :cry:
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You can get replacement seat covers from VW but they're a nightmare to change.
I once bought a Scirocco that had a small tear in the passenger seat base and got a new cover from VW which cost about £130 iirc. Had to take the seat out and then apart. Luckily I worked with a guy who had done it before so he helped. The dealer quoted about £300 to do it.
The easiest solution would be a new/second hand seat, but with second hand you never know if it's been in a crash or something.
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What a mess!
I'd have to get a completely new seat or sell the car :cry:
Tell me about it!! :cry:
New car is not an option for another couple of years yet so it either needs repairing or a replacement. Heaven knows how much a new set would cost.
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You can get replacement seat covers from VW but they're a nightmare to change.
I once bought a Scirocco that had a small tear in the passenger seat base and got a new cover from VW which cost about £130 iirc. Had to take the seat out and then apart. Luckily I worked with a guy who had done it before so he helped. The dealer quoted about £300 to do it.
The easiest solution would be a new/second hand seat, but with second hand you never know if it's been in a crash or something.
Yeah, been reading on the net about people who have replaced the covers themselves and it sounds like a right fiddly job to do.
I guess the only real place to source a new seat would be from a stealers?
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What a mess!
I'd have to get a completely new seat or sell the car :cry:
Tell me about it!! :cry:
New car is not an option for another couple of years yet so it either needs repairing or a replacement. Heaven knows how much a new set would cost.
I was only joking about selling the car but I'd be gutted if it was mine, as I'm sure you are.
I'd be scouring ebay and salvage yards for a replacement. There must be a few available.
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I was only joking about selling the car but I'd be gutted if it was mine, as I'm sure you are.
I'd be scouring ebay and salvage yards for a replacement. There must be a few available.
Then don't say things like that jokingly :tongue: LOL, been half tempted on the FL but get a load of earache, "what do you need a new car for, there is nothing wrong with the one you got!" and life is just not worth that kinda hassle (especially when it starts to escalate) :whistle:
Yupp, sure am gutted but not been able to find a replacement yet. Seen two so far and they have both been in quite unkempt conditions with bad stains over the seats so didn't want to entertain either of them.
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How about trying someone like this: http://www.autotrimltd.co.uk/car-upholstery-repairs
I've not used them, but might be worth inquiring before replacing the seat
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Dave, with my car OCD, I'd have real issues with that and need to get it sorted fast.
Sorry can't recommend anyone, but a quick Google turned up these 2 companies - very similar names but they don't appear to be connected. Good reviews on Google for both and lots of pictures on Google for the second under the reviews;
Autotrim Merseyside Limited; https://www.autotrimmerseyside.co.uk
Auto Trim Limited; http://www.autotrimltd.co.uk
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Seen two so far and they have both been in quite unkempt conditions with bad stains over the seats so didn't want to entertain either of them.
When you have a crash that writes off your car leaving in it in the scrappy, it probably does involve some staining of the drivers seat!
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When you have a crash that writes off your car leaving in it in the scrappy, it probably does involve some staining of the drivers seat!
ROFLMAO!!! :grin: :grin:
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Thanks for those links guys - sure appreciate that. :smiley:
I have blasted off an email to them with the photos to see what they say and hopefully get an estimate too.
Just sitting here in the house knowing what the seat is like is grinding on me. I'm not in a mad rush to get it sorted as I still have not been given the all clear by physio to drive, so whilst I am still using my dad as a taxi driver I shall hold off on either a repair or replacement :wink:
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How old is the car? I had the same thing with the seat bolster on my GTD and it was covered under warranty. They had the car for two days but were fixing other stuff as well so I'm not sure how long was down to the fitting of the foam part in the seat but the guy that done it said he has done loads of them.
That was about 2k miles ago and it is starting to go again now. I have a bad back so have to kind spin around a bit before I get out. Did over 120k miles in my last car(CC) and the seats looked like new.
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I'm not convinced that the seats in the GTI will wear very well in general.
Also the material used to cover the door cards appears to have the durability of a pair of nylon tights :sad:
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I'm not convinced that the seats in the GTI will wear very well in general.
Also the material used to cover the door cards appears to have the durability of a pair of nylon tights :sad:
I think the centre sections in tartan will hold up well but I too have doubts with the bolster/sides material.
To the OP, I feel for you, I'd be devastated, a bit pathetic given it's only a car but I would. Might be worth pushing VW on it as it should handle more than it has, pretty poor imho.
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Car is just over 3 yrs old so out of warranty by 4 months. I was thinking about going back to local dealer but to be honest I've found they are pretty useless.
Got a reply from Auto Trim in Manchester who said this is a pretty common repair for them and quoted around £200 for the job (subject to the damage being assessed in the flesh).
This would be a repair of the damaged bolster (not a complete replacement of the whole seat part). They said, "we cut out the damaged foam and replace. But we also laminate the foam top and bottom to prevent this damage happening again"
Does that seem reasonable as I have never had to have this type of thing done before??
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You don't get much for £200 these days so as long as the work is good, sounds good value to me!
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You don't get much for £200 these days so as long as the work is good, sounds good value to me!
I'd consider getting them to do mine in that case as I only have the problem with the side bolster so I would imagine it would be even cheaper.
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You don't get much for £200 these days so as long as the work is good, sounds good value to me!
Yes, sounds like quite a good deal. If you got your dealer to replace the bolster and supply/fit new covers I'd expect the cost would be much more than £200.
Car is just over 3 yrs old so out of warranty by 4 months. I was thinking about going back to local dealer but to be honest I've found they are pretty useless.
Unfortunately, I don't think it would be covered under warranty. VW's new car warranty is pretty limited on what they describe as wear and tear items, which would include seat covers. According to the warranty terns and conditions on VW's website, wear and tear items are only covered under warranty for the first six months or 6,500 miles, whichever is the soonest. Link to new car warranty terms and conditions below;
http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/owners/warranty/new-car/terms-and-conditions
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Bolstered seats don't take kindly to dragging / sliding yourself into them unfortunately. You kinda have to climb into them to avoid this kind of wear/damage, but unfortunately your Dad isn't fit for that. MK5/MK6 GTI seats were notorious for premature wear on the bolsters. They'd be in bits in no time if you weren't being fairly careful.... very common to see MK5/6 GTI's with holes in the bolsters.
VW would probably tell you that the whole seat cushion has to be replaced but a decent upholsterer / after-market leather fitter should be able to sort that without having to replace.
I'd also agree with what somebody else said above - the cloth seats, particularly the bolsters and the material on the door cards - is crap IMO. It's the main reason I'd personally spec leather / art velours in the car - the "pleather" you get on the door cards isn't wonderful either but at least it wears very well.
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Thanks for all your replies - taking the car to an upholsterer tomorrow to be assessed and get a definitive quote.
I've told me that that once this gets repaired there will be no sliding in and out of the seat if he ever uses the car! :shocked:
Gotta agree with the comments on the poor quality of the material used. I would expect something like that happening on a much older car, not at just over 3yrs old.
I too hate the material on the door cards - it doesn't wear very well at all and always looks grotty no matter how well you try to clean it.
Will let you know how things get on with the repair, etc.
Cheers :wink:
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I'd also agree with what somebody else said above - the cloth seats, particularly the bolsters and the material on the door cards - is crap IMO. It's the main reason I'd personally spec leather / art velours in the car - the "pleather" you get on the door cards isn't wonderful either but at least it wears very well.
Interesting views - we sold our 70k 3 year old MK7 GTD and genuinely the seats looked as good as new. Even with having a couple of dogs in the car.
When I was looking at R's or GTi's with leather, cars with 20k miles on had seats that looked f**ked! Stretched leather and large indentations.
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I'd also agree with what somebody else said above - the cloth seats, particularly the bolsters and the material on the door cards - is crap IMO. It's the main reason I'd personally spec leather / art velours in the car - the "pleather" you get on the door cards isn't wonderful either but at least it wears very well.
Interesting views - we sold our 70k 3 year old MK7 GTD and genuinely the seats looked as good as new. Even with having a couple of dogs in the car.
When I was looking at R's or GTi's with leather, cars with 20k miles on had seats that looked f**ked! Stretched leather and large indentations.
Interesting, perhaps then it's harder wearing than it looks/feels (which wouldn't be difficult).
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I agree, my last GTD had ~70k on it and the seats were far from knackered.
Maybe it depends on how you get in and out of the car... maybe normal people don't squash the bolsters!
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I'd also agree with what somebody else said above - the cloth seats, particularly the bolsters and the material on the door cards - is crap IMO. It's the main reason I'd personally spec leather / art velours in the car - the "pleather" you get on the door cards isn't wonderful either but at least it wears very well.
Interesting views - we sold our 70k 3 year old MK7 GTD and genuinely the seats looked as good as new. Even with having a couple of dogs in the car.
When I was looking at R's or GTi's with leather, cars with 20k miles on had seats that looked f**ked! Stretched leather and large indentations.
In my experience - having had cars with both - the leather / pleather wears and ages far better. For example, on a wet day if the door card got wet when opening window or whatever, I'd notice that the rain would leave visible water marks on the door card / side of seat bolsters. They always seemed to get scruffy looking and hard to keep looking well (and I am extra anal about car cleaning so it wasn't through lack of care).
The pleather wipes clean and with a dab of glipitone leather cleaner, always looks and smells great.
You obviously don't agree. Hey ho.
Having said all that, regardless of upholstery, its mostly down to how well its minded. I've seen cars with only a few K on them with very scruffy interiors, both cloth and leather (dealer demo's and the likes).
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I agree, my last GTD had ~70k on it and the seats were far from knackered.
Maybe it depends on how you get in and out of the car... maybe normal people don't squash the bolsters!
I've had the same back problems and method of getting in and out of cars and I've never seen a seat as cr@p as the Golf. How could the seats in the Golf be so different to the CC GT/R line?
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the other half left her window open the once and the rain got in and stained the seat in my mk5, looks horrible still. i'll be getting the seats scotch guarded in the 7.5 if it's possible :) and with being a wheelchair user it does take longer getting in and out so will be worth it in the long run. one good thing is that these seats seem to be darker than previous versions...
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Any update on this?
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I've done this on all my motors with bolsters.
Before getting out retract the seat back to avoid scuffing on getting out.
My Recaro CS were prone to wear on the bolsters and so were my type r seats.
Even told my mates while getting out to lift arse over the bolsters.
As with all these type of seats these all wear quickly. You would think factory would structure these better.
Only other option are capital seat covers bespoke covers to avoid bolster rub.
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I've done this on all my motors with bolsters.
Before getting out retract the seat back to avoid scuffing on getting out.
My Recaro CS were prone to wear on the bolsters and so were my type r seats.
Even told my mates while getting out to lift arse over the bolsters.
As with all these type of seats these all wear quickly. You would think factory would structure these better.
Only other option are capital seat covers bespoke covers to avoid bolster rub.
Problem I have is that I have a bad back. I had mine done at the dealers and the foam padding is just about gone through again after a few thousand miles. The fabric still looks new.
Never had this problem before and covered over a 100k in my CC and the seats looked like new when trading in.