owen meany

I've searched and found some info out there on dying/re-dying, but am looking for a little more direct advice on how well this works. The original color is tan and I'm looking to go black. Is there anyone who has done this or HAD it done in the SF bay area? If so how much and how did it go?
I'm fairly handy and think that I could do it myself with the right product.
Thanks for any help.

stace

these guys are it......http://www.colorplus.com/

good products and service. they carry stock Porsche colors and can custom blend colors as well... easy DIY

no affiliation, etc

Stealth 993

PREP is the most important. You should sand the seats down a little, & clean them the best you can. Then spray the color in a few light coats.

Colorplus is the product I've used to do my airbag in the past.

swmic

I went from tan to classic grey on a door panel that turned out great using Colorplus. I'd be a little worried of wear with seats. That color change would stick out like a sore thumb with any imperfections.

No HTwo O

+993! The owner, JoAnn, is a great vendor to the Porsche community. Her leather care product is also top notch. Great lady.

No HTwo O

There has also been a complete 993 (Turbo) black leather interior for sale in Pano, for many months, for $5K.

autobonrun

I've redyed several sets. The sports seats in my SC were dark brown. I dyed them cork. That was six years ago. They still look great with the only wear point being where the seat belt goes across the piping. I can link to the how to article I wrote if you didn't run across it in your searches.

By the way, going from a lighter color to black is by far easier and more forgiving than vice versa.

owen meany

Thanks for all these thoughts and suggestions. Autobonrun, how long do you think you spent on your re-dye?

autobonrun

Tough question. I would say 4-8 hours hands on time per seat. However at the end there's a minimum of 48 hours to allow the dye to set so it's not fragile before using them. I let mine sit a week just because I was traveling at the time I finished.

Also, during the course of dyeing them, I waited 8-16 hours drying time between dyeing the front side and flipping them over to dye the back. I did one seat at a time just so I got it perfect before I moved on to the next seat. However, I think I put a final coat on both at the same time using the air brush so they would dry together.

Like I said earlier, it's been 6 years now and a lot of the specifics are starting to slip from memory with old age. Fortunately, I documented the steps at the time I did it in the link below.

While I was at it I recovered my steering wheel and redyed the carpet as well. Some photos of the carpet redye are also in the link.


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsc...procedure.html

SKM

Assuming the leather is in good condition prior to dying it black, the only likely issues to develop over time will be the tan showing through on the high wear areas (side bolsters, seat belt rubbing on the side/piping, etc.) and also showing through on the character lines wrinkles over time.

owen meany

Great. Thank you. This gives me a very good idea of what I might be getting into. I'll also look at a professional her in SF that I found from a ferrari guy. If the price is reasonable (under, maybe $300) I'll go with him.
Thanks again.

rg588911

Letherique is awesome. there are lots of pics on their web site as well as step by step diy instructions. you will need their rejuvenator oil, pristine clean, prep agent 3m wet sand paper (600-1500) and the color. they have it all except the sand paper. As always, its all in the prep. Ive had great success with their product on my leather.

600RR

Owen: before and after pix a must.

inkatouring

Hey let me know about the professional here in our foggy city, as I'm interested in dying some sport seats in chestnut....

autobonrun

SKM brings up some good points about wear. And I don't want to give the wrong impression when I say mine has held up 6 years. Yes it has been that long but my car is not a daily driver. I'm sure it would have worn more if it was my daily driver. You didn't say; Is your car a daily driver or just a weekend toy? It will make a difference on longevity of the dyed seats.

There's no doubt in my mind that the best solution is to recover with new leather or have a professional dye the seats. In my case, new leather installed would have been around $2k and the professional wanted to charge me almost$800 if I recall. I chose the $200 worth of supplies and my own time option.