I searched and found that some people have successfully used rit dye on carpets and floor mats, but nothing about seats. I am aware of the fabric dye spray and have used it, but I do not want to use this on my seats. I am planning on removing the fabric from my s13 seats and dyeing it black. This will alow me to repair some of the foam on the drivers bolster and also to give it a new look. Has anyone done this? I have used rit dye before and was happy with the results, but I also know that it will not work with polyester. The s13 seats are tweed, correct? A google search let me know that tweed is usually made of wool, but I just wanted to see if anyone else can offer any of their experiences with this process. Thanks in advance.

hope you dont have a sweaty back

depends on the day.

I'm sure you could do it. I would use two or three tratments, but wash the covers in warm water in between treatments - it'll probably be fine.

So did you try this or what? If so, pics or

i tried it with one treatment. the fabric got slightly darker, but not by much. i heated the water up to boiling and then mixed it with the dye and let the fabric soak in it for about 2 hours. the mix ended up being a little weak, as i only bought two bottles and it took more water than i thought so submerge the fabric. also, the top of the seat back (where it is exposed to the sun the most) did not take the color at all. i may try a few more treatments and see how they come out. i did some research though, and found out that rit dye isnt the best for using with animal fibers aka tweed is made from wool. so i need to find what they call acid dye, which is only internet order from what i can see. i am still not sure if i want to ditch the rear seats though or not. i dont like people sitting in my back seat so i want to get rid of it, but i am having trouble coming up with a *lightweight* way to make it look nice without the seat.

elvis240sx wrote: i am still not sure if i want to ditch the rear seats though or not. i dont like people sitting in my back seat so i want to get rid of it, but i am having trouble coming up with a *lightweight* way to make it look nice without the seat.

I felt the same way when I got my hatch. But my wife and I already have a van and a sedan, so I just took out the rear seat belts. Now I can say it's 'not safe' for anyone to ride in the back. I mean, if it's an emergency or something...

i havent had seat belts in my rear seat since i bought the car, but people still insist that they dont care. im going to buy the c-pillar bar to further reduce headroom back there and i also plan to weld a straight bar in where their feet would go when i do some seam welding in a couple of months. i was hoping to maybe find some cheap s14 seats (front and rear) to replace the ugly tweed.

the other idea i had is kind of crazy. after taking the back seats apart i noticed that the frame of the upper backseat is pretty solid. it also already has somewhere to bolt to (the hinges it pivots on) and is perfectly flat into the trunk when laying down. my idea looks something like this, but is upholstered to look stock.

you can also see how much room there is under it, since the seat bottum isnt there. i was thinking that i could turn it into a "toy chest" lol. the seat back would still pivot up so i can put my cd case and crap like that into . i just need a front and sides really and then line the inside with felt. the thing that concerns me is the gap between the plastic panels and where the seat bottum used to be. i could probably make it out of wood to fit much tighter, but i am wondering how much more weight the wood would be compared to the stock seat frame. got any ideas? lol

That's a good idea... You could probably even modify the bracket to add an 'L' type part to it. That way even when you flip up one side, the gap will still be filled. The weight of the wood - well, it depends on what type. I think a piece of 1/4" or 3/8" plywood wrapped in foam and vinyl would be about the same.

yeah the seat frame is pretty heavy anyway. and wood might be a better idea, i could put some 6x9s in it lol. im trying to get rid of this heavy a$$ infinity subwoofer and box

Whatever you decide to do, post some pics. Your car seems like its pretty sick.

lol i wish my car was sick. ive got pretty much all of the tar out. my welder got a new job so i need to try and find him somewhere lol so i can get the seamwelding done. i am thinking that i should make the rear seat delete out of wood, and integrate my subwoofer into it somehow. then i can mount the amp next to it. i just cant stand to be without loud music, especially when im driving hard. i think that i am going to put the seat delete on the backburner for a month or so, however, as i have an opportunity to pick up an n/a 300zx for very cheap and use some parts / sell the others and do pretty well for myself. i will definately post pics when i begin to work on this though. thanks for the advise btw!

elvis240sx wrote:i tried it with one treatment. the fabric got slightly darker, but not by much. i heated the water up to boiling and then mixed it with the dye and let the fabric soak in it for about 2 hours. the mix ended up being a little weak, as i only bought two bottles and it took more water than i thought so submerge the fabric. also, the top of the seat back (where it is exposed to the sun the most) did not take the color at all. i may try a few more treatments and see how they come out. i did some research though, and found out that rit dye isnt the best for using with animal fibers aka tweed is made from wool. so i need to find what they call acid dye, which is only internet order from what i can see. i am still not sure if i want to ditch the rear seats though or not. i dont like people sitting in my back seat so i want to get rid of it, but i am having trouble coming up with a *lightweight* way to make it look nice without the seat.

I think you are supposed to add salt to that dye - it helps push the pigment from the solution into the fiber. I'm thinking carpet dye though.

i started to do some of the updates to my trunk area the other day. i am using the paint / dye for vinyl and fabric to change the panels to black. heres a pic to let you know hows its coming outits not a whole lot darker, but it definately makes the panels look much cleaner and almost new. the secret is to do one coat of the paint and let it dry completely. next, take a very stiff brush (like you use to scrub the grease out of your fingernails) and brush all over the panel until the stiffness and crunchyness is gone. you will see black powder like saw dust coming off. once its soft again, time for another coat of paint. i did 3 coats on each panel.

oh yeah, i just bought a welder last night with argon shielding gas so i can start doing some seam welding....ohhhhh yeaah

I used that paint on my floor mats - it rubbed off fairly quickly. I would only use it for zero wear locations.

luckily i dont rub on the inside of my trunk very often lol

Any update on the seats. They sell a commercial product too. I wonder if a super strong solution was used piping hot how well it would work.

I don't have a good camera to show texture but I painted my seats with DupliColor fabric paint.The Black-Flat paint is worthless, it's very dull and un-attractive to the point of ugly.The Black-Gloss actually does the job. It looks just about right black color.The paint seeps into the fabric over time so multiple coats are needed. Especially to turn the s-13 seats into black. It leaves the fabric a bit rough, like cotton sacks for grain. I think it'll need to be combed or something.

I painted the support panel of the back seat too. In my car it was really rusted and had to brush it off with a drill-brush. I put primer and flat-black on it. I recommend that to anyone even if you don't plan on painting your back seats. That plate is like made of tin and easily eaten up by rust.

Soravia wrote:I don't have a good camera to show texture but I painted my seats with DupliColor fabric paint.The Black-Flat paint is worthless, it's very dull and un-attractive to the point of ugly.The Black-Gloss actually does the job. It looks just about right black color.The paint seeps into the fabric over time so multiple coats are needed. Especially to turn the s-13 seats into black. It leaves the fabric a bit rough, like cotton sacks for grain. I think it'll need to be combed or something.

I painted the support panel of the back seat too. In my car it was really rusted and had to brush it off with a drill-brush. I put primer and flat-black on it. I recommend that to anyone even if you don't plan on painting your back seats. That plate is like made of tin and easily eaten up by rust.

Wow, evidently you missed the post where I said only to use it only in 0 ware areas because it rubs off.

I hate to be the one to break it to you but you just destroyed your seats. If you're lucky you can take it to a power wash and strip off a good portion of the looser paint. After that you'll just have to make sure not to wear any nice cloths or they will turn black.

I think it washed out of my pants pretty easy IIRC.

I wore white pants today and the only place I see them being dirty is down at the bottom with dirt from Florida dust.I think their rub-off rate is just as the farbic itself. I see more of other farbic being rub-off on them. I tried it on an old worn shirt before I put it on the seats.I still have another rear seat and I'll be getting new front seats.
Modified by Soravia at 10:47 AM 5/5/2007

I recently re-dyed my convertible top black with "Renovo Soft Top Reviver". It might work on seats, too.

use Dupli-color fabric and carpet dye in the spray can. It works great i painted my door card fabric with it. Just make sure your surface is clean and dry before spraying it.

2.4Loflove wrote:use Dupli-color fabric and carpet dye in the spray can. It works great i painted my door card fabric with it. Just make sure your surface is clean and dry before spraying it.

I used that stuff on my carpet. It wears off eventually.