Tundra interiors.

Im new to the site, I’ve used the search function and can’t find a lot of info on the leather kits that are available for the Tundra. Is there a section dedicated to the Tundra interior?

 

Leather kits?
After market leather seats? I'd recommend katzkin

 

And there's no dedicated interior section here.

If I were you I'd post in the general tundras discussion or 3rd gens section with a title asking for aftermarket leather reviews and suggestions

 

Alea Leather is another.

 

Katzskin is good stuff, seen a couple of suvs that had it after a few years, it holds up.

Personally I like cloth seats, found a really nice Tundra when I was looking, but the black/black leather combo turned me off, didn't feel like burning my a@@ every time I got in the truck.

 

Yeah, leather can get hot. I’ve always had leather, and with dogs, it’s extremely easy to keep clean, cloth seats, not so much

 

I did Katzkin

 

That looks really nice. Did you have to remove the other seat covers to install those?

 

I had it done at the dealership. I hear they are a pain to do yourself.

 

I'm considering the DIY route with Katzkins. I hate paying people to do anything I think I can do. The key here is "think". It occasionally bites me in the ass and I end up paying for it twice. I found a set on Ebay I may try and snag up soon.

 

Do it! I've gone from leather to cloth to leather and then changed the cushion twice on my drivers seat so lots of experience with hog rings and upholstery install on this truck. It isn't a great time but absolutely very doable.

 

1. I've got four DIY Katzkin installs under my belt and I can honestly say its not a hard job, it's just very time consuming. I recently redid my Katzkin interior again, this time using the katzkin Nightrunner themed seat package. I'll post some pics later

 

Sound like I found someone I can PM with questions once I start.

 

Nice! Where do you find new cushions for these?

 

Welcome from CO

 

You guys that have seen/experienced different kinds of Katzkins, best one in your opinion? Perforated? All leather?

I’ve also heard cloth is more comfortable than stock leather, is that the same with Katzkins?

 

The ones I'm looking at are perforated. I like the look. I think my current cloth seats are comfortable but my issue with cloth is I have a teenage athlete. He's working out every day and even though I keep a towel in the truck for him to sit on after, I don't want the seats to stink. The leather is easier to clean.

 

Check out the seller 'touchups' on ebay. They have several different Katzkin brand designs. I think they are customizable for things like thread color and insert material....just email them to ask.
They also have a connection with Alea Leather, where (I think) for about $100 you can get the matching center arm-rest cover and upper door panels.

 

I've installed Katzkins on my wife's Grand Cherokee and on an F150 I used to have. As mentioned before, it's not necessarily hard, just can be a little tedious and time consuming. You'll have to take the seats out to do it. If you take your time, you'll get awesome results. Just know that you will have to cut holes in parts of the leather for things like seat pivot points for the rear seats to fold up and for things like the headrest posts. Your hands and fingers are probably gonna be sore from stretching and smoothing the leather. But the end result is so worth it. Better than factory in my experience.

I had to get a set of torx bits, but other than that I had all the other tools needed (sockets and wrench for seat removal, knife/scissors for cutting holes). It's my understanding that the that Toyota uses hog rings on their seats, so I think you'll need hog ring pliers and rings.

I picked up my Katzkins from eBay, about $500-$550 each for the Jeep and the Ford. Here's a pic of the Jeep:



One tip I heard that I followed is to do the driver's seat last. That way when you're tired and want to quit you have to finish the job to be able to drive your car

 

Nice job! Best place to buy pliers/Toyota rings?

 

And yes, the Katzkins do replace your cloth seat covers. There are other options that go over your factory seat covers (Clazzio), but I don't have any experience with them. Only heard good things, though.

 

I haven't done my Tundra yet, but probably eBay or Amazon. Your local Auto parts store may have them, too.

 

I bought a pliers/hog rings kit via Amazon. the hardest part is getting the old ones off. if you've got really strong cutters that would be best. otherwise I used long nose pliers to twist them open.

 

got mine through Sparks iirc.

I had cut up the original foam in attempt at finding comfort. ended up not working well and ruined the pad.

For the new one I put a layer of batting over the cushion and took out the hog rings/metal bar that would be right about where your tailbone is on the seat bottom. made a nice difference.

 

Good to know. The other cars I've done had plastic clips sewn on to the ends of the fabric or leather that attached to the seat frame somewhere.

 

happy to help any time!

 

Oooooh that’s dope!

 

I've been wondering if you could insert one of those 'purple mattress' type pads into part of the seat.

 

What a great idea, insert some sort of thin orthotic seat pad even if it means removing some inferior cushioning to make it fit. After all we are basically reupholstering and have access to the interior of the seat.

 

Exactly. If the OEM padding is replaceable at a reasonable cost then experimenting and/or screwing it up shouldn't be a big deal.