rijowysock

UPDATE FROM PORSCHE:

as noticed in the above screen shot, the "sport plus seats" only come in "premium leather" surfacing... (Rear Seats are the Standard "Embossed leather" unless "leather interior" is selected)

the reason why it costs $1520 to get the normal shaped seats in "leather" is that the price includes the seat backs of the front seats AS WELL AS the rear seats.



Checked out 991 #1, power sport seats 14 way "leather seats", (not full leather interior)=seats were smooth as butter (the good leather)

Checked out 991 #2, power sport seats "partial leather", =seats felt like rough rubber (the bad leather)

Checked out 991 #3, power sport plus seats 18 way, "leather seats", ventilated and heated seats (not full leather)= seats smooth as butter (the good leather)


my question is if I ordered the "sport seats plus leather" (not full leather interior, no ventilated or heated) will it have the smooth good leather on the seating surface or the rough rubbery leather on the seating surface? to get the normal seats to have good leather it is $1520 but the sport seats plus are only $800 so for some reason I feel they dont mean they are "the good leather?"

seriously confused and even more confused trying to convey my question, the dealer was unsure... and actually told me the non full leather car was "full leather"

Mike in CA

Here's my thought; "partial leather" seats will be just that, the standard partial leather and probably of lower quality. Any of the "leather" seats will be all leather and of the same quality as the seats in the "full leather interior". So if I understand your question correctly, and again this is just an educated guess, if you order any of the "leather" seats, you'll get the "good" leather even if you don't order the full leather intrior.

rijowysock

ok, thats the way i was thinking... just the pricing made it confusing ($1520 to get smooth leather regular seats, $800 to get smooth leather sport plus seats) i assume the difference in pricing is because the front seat backs are plastic ($ savings) and no telling what the rear seats are....

just a heads up, i would advise everyone to not order "partial leather" seats.... this was one thing i really disliked about my 997.2 and 2011 cayenne (it is cheap leather embossed with fake grain and feels like rubber and also rubs off (my 2011 cayenne the leather rubbed off on driver seat from in/out))... the "leather seats" gives you the same smooth leather as the steering wheel/door grabs/shift ****.

"full leather interior" i dont think is a "must" anymore however since you can order "leather seats" because the "faux" dash and doors do not look as cheap as they did on the 997... I actually thought it was very nice... and improved.

Chris from Cali

I'm guessing they'll be like #3 based on your graphic.

LastMezger

Crazy!

WCE

Good point - the price jump from sport seats plus to "leather interior" seems to be the same as partial to leather interior...but if you saw the plus seats without the leather interior and they were smooth, you might have found the only 991 option that's a bargain! Maybe the leather cost savings are in the plastic backshells.

rijowysock

the allusive porsche "bargain".... covering the back of the standard seats in pleather or leather must be very expensive... i still assume that the rear seats would be the "rubbery embossed leather" because if not then their pricing makes 100% no sense.

Rushman71

Of course the pricing makes no sense. $1800 for a a couple of square yards of leather on the leather covered sport seatbacks or $1700 for a couple of square inches of leather on the air vents! It's Porsche!

It really is kind of frustrating. I've looked at buying a Porsche before so I was well aware of this. What about the poor bastard who thinks he has the money because he only ever looked at the base price only to find out the car the way he really wants it costs 30% more money! I understand all the separate tiny personalization options like leather covered buckles, but all the performance options really should be standard on a sports car with the exception of PCCB.

This should really be the difference between the base and the S. The base should be just that, getting you into the 911 and the brand at a much lower price and the S should mean you choose your wheels, seats, sound system, sunroof, transmission, and your color and anything else is exclusive.

rijowysock

UPDATE FROM PORSCHE:

as noticed in the above screen shot, the "sport plus seats" only come in "premium leather" surfacing...

the reason why it costs $1520 to get the normal shaped seats in "leather" is that the price includes the seat backs of the front seats AS WELL AS the rear seats.



very good to know, and I am extremely glad I got the $800 option for "sport plus seats" because the leather is REALLY nice and I get the perk's off full leather (premium leather seats) but not the cost and upkeep of their being leather EVERYWHERE! (my favorite part about my full leather interiors has been the suppleness of the seats)

it is also nice you can order leather doors and dash now separate from "leather interior"... this coupled with the fact the door pulls/console lid/shifter and steering wheel are premium leather makes getting a great interior even easier.

aamersa

I raised above issues with my salesperson as I have ordered the partial leather seats. His response were as follows:

1. The partial leather seats are fully leather on the front and are not leather on the back, hence the definition of partial leather.
2. At least with black interior the leather on the seat fronts is of identical quality to that used for the full leather interior seats.
3. He went on to say that if I saw the full leather seats side by side the partial leather seats, I wouldn't even notice the difference.

The above points seem inconsistent with the discussion in this thread. Can any one confirm what partial leather seats are like with black interior?

rijowysock

1: yes, leather on the SEATING SURFACES, pleather on the backs.

2: it's not, would suggest looking at 997's they have with "partial leather" or at a new 991 in your area with it (i sat in one with the partial leather 14 way seats, it is NOT the same as the "full leather interior" seats.. (the partial leather cars have embossed leather where a pattern and the color has been stamped onto the leather.) the full leather vehicles have full analine leather (simply colored no un-natural grain stamped on surface).)

in "partial leather" cars, the steering wheel, shift ****, door pulls and center console lid WILL however be analine leather.

3: now that i have asked this question i did further research and found out it is just like the 997 series.. partial leather means embossed leather on seating surfaces... leather seats means analine leather.

the COLOR of the interior does not make a difference...

if you have "partial leather" seats, seating surfaces are embossed, backs are pleather.

if you have "leather seats", seats are analine leather

if you have "sport plus seats", front seats are leather, back are embossed.

if you have "full leather interior", everything is analine leather.





im not upset at you, im upset at sales men all over the world that do not know what they are selling, but thankful we have forums where we can pool knowledge and figure things out ourselves....

when i asked about the sport plus seats being smooth, my salesmen told me the car had "full leather interior" which he was clearly wrong. (no leather dash/doors) also full leather has a chrome trim strip on the doors and standard interiors do not.


i hope you get this sorted, the "embossed" leather is not the worst thing in the world but it does wear oddly if stressed... the lighter the color the worse... my grey was fine, nothing bad.. my beige was horrible, stained and wore off in area's all over.

ADias

In partial leather cars there's embossed/coated leather and vinyl surfaces. Typically seat sides and backs and dash and door trim are vinyl.

Std leather is painted/coated/embossed leather - the more common fitting.
Full leather may be coated leather or natural leather. Natural leather is anilin-dyed leather.

WCE

Another thing to keep in mind is not all markets even offer "partial leather" seats or interiors. UK for example gets standard full leather seats and interior!
I'll have to see the US partial vs leather seats myself because our options and pricing still don't make sense to me...and I doubt a Porsche bean counter slipped up and gave us a bargain!

aamersa

Not like I can sort it out much now that my car has arrived.


ps. practicing putting up images for when I get the car.

Rushman71

Okay, a bit about leather. Almost all leather products are embossed meaning the leather is split from the top grain where the natural grain is and then a fake grain is stamped on the leather. You can also sand top grain leather removing the natural grain and emboss as well. This ensures a uniform grain without any natural imperfection or scarring. This type of leather will be superficially surface pigmented and sealed.

Usually a natural leather surface will be aniline dyed. This means the leather is dyed through and through. You have two types of aniline dye, semi and full. Full aniline means there is no protective topcoat, you get the natural grain, but no protection from wear. Semi aniline simply means there is a protective surface coating in addition to the vat dye process. Aniline leather is tumble dyed in a vat. This is going to produce the strongest most supple leather. It will also be the most breathable, but it that means it's porous and will stain easily. Natural leathers will also develop a nice patina over time. In an automotive environment, unlike a couch at home, there are still going to be some surface treatments even on the natural leather to at least protect against UV fading in a harsh environment. So there is no doubt in my mind Natural Leather is semi aniline with a surface glazing.

So unless you specifically order the "Natural Leather" option, you are going to get embossed leather no matter if you order full leather interior, full leather seats, or partial leather seats (where there is leather). I have a hard time believing Porsche would use different quality leather on partial leather seat inserts than it does on the full leather (non natural) interior, but it's certainly possible. They could use a bonded leather which is basically the particle board of leather with very little actual leather in the material. In fact, the surface is actually an embossed polyurethane and the leather particles are on the back of the surface. When you see cheap leather furniture, it's almost always bonded leather. To me, that shouldn't even be called leather at all, but I have never heart of Porsche using bonded leather.