Black tex interior

[jersey st garage]

Hi All,

Looking for a needle in a haystack! I require a used base seat cover in black tex. The centre flutes of the seat are embossed and not smooth. My reason for the request is I have a totally original, first paint 67 230sl with a rip in the drivers side flute. I'm left with two alternatives re-trim two original seats in new tex and spoil an untouched car or just hope that someone has kept a spare set of black tex seat covers with embossed flutes in good condition that will fit a 67 car.

Any other advice appreciated.

Thanks,

Matt         

[mbzse]

.../... a rip in the drivers side flute.../...Any other advice appreciated 

As you have black Tex, there is a chance to find something I think...  Talk to upholstery shops (in Germany...) I'm sure they rip out such interiors every now and then. A reputable upholsterer can sew in one flute in the seat of your car, and you are good. I advise strongly against re-upholstering the whole. It will not look like what came from the factory.

[lowpad]

Completely concur with mbsze.  My '66 230SL seats appeared tired and had some small tears.  My mechanic advised me to keep the original (and nearly indestructible) Tex covers and fit new springs & horsehair and fix the tears.   They are now nearly new.  I've never seen a set of MB Tex repro covers that look anything like the originals (at least on our early cars).  A good upholsterer can often work miracles ....  I also used one of a mobile seat repair guy on my 993 and E350 and you absolutely cannot spot any sign of tear repair.  Suggest you exhaust all repair possibilities before defaulting to replacement.

[114015]

Nope.

I don't concur with Hans....
... this time.

Hans (mbzse) is a very knowledgeable and skilled 113 owner and aficionado - for sure.
However, this time he is not correct...
... due to the fact that he is only going with the 280 SL and not (no longer) with the earlier ones ... (his own citation).



Well, Matt,

Your 230 SL has got the early style MB-Tex (smooth) that only the 230ies and 250ies have got but not the 280ies (= more coarse).
Your black MB Tex is not black but is called "caviar" by the factory (deep dark grey)
and that kind of material is today absolutely  'unobtainium' (Jonny B's words)...

If you want to exchange yours you need to find a donor's driver seat cover.
Those were common in the old days but are hard to find today, especially the driver's side because those are mostly ripped as well when they came out.

Yes, Hans is right that maybe the one or the other interior shop does have had customers with an old (and original) set of MB tex covers but mostly they (the shops) have nothing better to do than throwing that 'ole stuff' immediatly away once they have put new (and incorrect) vinyl or leather into that particular customer's car.


Well,
best is to get your seat cover repaired.
A good upholstery shop can carefully take your seat cushion cover off and can get it repaired from underneath/behind (with a glued-in piece of cloth, vinyl or leather) and then repair the upper side with a bit of liquid leather repair fluid/gel.
Nearly invisible afterwards.

That's the way you should go (or seek for),
Then you preserve the "original" condition best.


IMHO...

Achim