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Thread: GAHH Upholstery Kits

  1. #1
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    GAHH Upholstery Kits

    Anyone with recent experience using GAHH front seat kits in their E31? I’m particularly interested in how well they have matched the shirring of the leather on the upper sections of the front seats. I know from prior experience with their kits on other models that they take some adjusting to get a good fit.
    SteveCT
    E31s
    F30 daily driver

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by SteveCT View Post
    ...the shirring of the leather...
    Sure can't comment on install yet, but you may direct me to point and shoot loose skins.

  3. #3
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    Thanks, Hyper. Do you recall whether you ordered the blind stitch or double stitch version?
    SteveCT
    E31s
    F30 daily driver

  4. #4
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    I'm '97 and blind.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by SteveCT View Post
    ... they take some adjusting to get a good fit.
    More skin in the game, I've just started in on some Recaro's in the W201 16V.
    A "dog catches mail truck" moment, perhaps 8 hrs per seat.




    Here, the anchoring system whereby rods (wires) in sleeves pass through the shell and get clipped to embedded rods.
    I see sleeves in the E31 skins, so I'm expecting similar tech when I finally get in there. W201 got priority.


    Two reportables...
    * While the E31 style and "nappa" grade seems spot on for the e31, for the W201 the Gahh people gave we a lesser grade, and got creative with style, and left out a feature ( an internal skirt for positioning the skins before the final clip-in of the edges).
    Style changes might be (?) due to pattern changes per model year, similar to the break in the E31.
    However, if I were targeting a concours resto, then this is a fail.

    * The W201 Recaro's where not originally manufactured with restoration in mind.
    The leather was attached to the shell and then the shell was extensively crimped to the frame.
    It will be headzup for similar philosophy in the E31.
    So when the restoration guy gets in there, his "hands are tied", and time and labor cost is higher than for a maintainable design.
    If its DIY, ok fine.
    To keep labor down, a shop might be tempted to compromise in ways that an owner might not agree with, if they knew.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hyper View Post
    ... perhaps 8 hrs per seat...
    Not close.

    The W201 Recaro's took 12 hrs and 10 hrs.
    Installed, transformed the car. Huge.
    I'll follow up with the rear bench.




    The first E31 was 25hrs, due to mechanicals research, then 10 hrs.
    8 hours would be the next proficiency step.
    Not transformative, because they had started out good, fallen less, but definitely this resets the feeling of quality in the cabin.
    By comparison, the E31's required more primitive trade skills. Cutting, glue gun, staple gun.
    Someday, a write-up.




  7. #7
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    Thanks for the update. Look forward to the write up some day; in the meantime, would love to see some photos of the finished E31 seats.
    SteveCT
    E31s
    F30 daily driver

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hyper View Post
    Not close.

    The W201 Recaro's took 12 hrs and 10 hrs.
    Installed, transformed the car. Huge.
    I'll follow up with the rear bench.




    The first E31 was 25hrs, due to mechanicals research, then 10 hrs.
    8 hours would be the next proficiency step.
    Not transformative, because they had started out good, fallen less, but definitely this resets the feeling of quality in the cabin.
    By comparison, the E31's required more primitive trade skills. Cutting, glue gun, staple gun.
    Someday, a write-up.



    Those are both less than desirable results, especially the E31 seats.

    I hope you're looking into steaming (or heating) the leather to achieve a more OE fit.

  9. #9
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    The Gahh cut is generous.
    I'll guess that they receive dimensions from the OEM or their agent and that the dims anticipate shrinkage over time in the heat.
    The design of the E31 is looser than the W201, and combined with generosity before shrinkage, gets you "less than desirable results".
    Hedging my shrinkage bet, I added a thin layer of dacron batting to all the bolsters.


    ***
    {ed: By comparison the W201-16 is tightly tailored.
    Think Tom Ford on Daniel Craig.
    }

    Shrinkage over time then causes the leather to become TOO tight, notoriously splitting the seems, especially where UV has hit the threads.
    The Gahh padding/batting design is slightly different from my OE, and perhaps it has something to do with model year changes.
    Here I'm happy to have a bit more slop.
    Big improvement, feels WAY better.
    Last edited by Hyper; 09-27-2022 at 04:04 PM. Reason: Spotted: Bond in a Ford

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