E39 Leather Swap - How Doable?

[EmailAddress]

The initial message was deleted from this topic on 07 November 2023 at 11:49

[d_a_n1979]

EmailAddress said:

Is doable a word ...

I've got a red interior and want to swap to black.

Doorcards, rear seats etc are fine.

Front seats I would just swap the seats for ease but the 'old' seats are electric and the 'new' are manual.

Is it straightforward to just swap over the leather bits and leave the plastic casing / shell / mounting? (Therefore retaining the electricery.)

You'd save a lot of time & faff by finding front memory seats in black leather, sell the manual seats on

[E63eeeeee...]

I've stripped down a couple of sets of E46 seats, which I assume are pretty similar. I'd have had no confidence about putting them back together looking anything other than terrible. There were a lot of breakable clips, single use fasteners and leather under tension in there.

There is a 50s Kid video on YouTube where he re-covers an E46 seat base which might give you an idea what's involved, and that's probably the easiest part. Personally I'd either be looking for another set, given black are pretty common, or paying a proper upholsterer to do it.

[Marc p]

Is it possible? Yes. Is it worth it? No.

For the effort involved converting manual seats to electric, I’d either just leave them manual or hold out and buy electric versions. It’d be easier to just have your current seats retrimmed in black.

On a side note, if those manual black front seats are sport ones and heated, providing they’re in good nick, I’d make an offer to take them off your hands

[Touring442]

Just bolt the manual seats in and leave the plug tucked under the carpet. You'll need to plug in the seat belt occupancy wire, no biggie. The sensor wiring plug changed in 9/98 btw.

You wouldn't believe how much an electric E39 seat weighs.

[steve_n]

Dye them black yourself.

[NiceCupOfTea]

I’d imagine the red interior will be worth a bit, especially if they’re sports seats. I wouldn’t butcher them. M539 Restorations does a complete interior swap on his e46 and may have other relevant videos.

[Marc p]

NiceCupOfTea said:

I’d imagine the red interior will be worth a bit, especially if they’re sports seats. I wouldn’t butcher them. M539 Restorations does a complete interior swap on his e46 and may have other relevant videos.

I assumed it was an aftermarket re-trim, if it’s an original individual red interior, then I probably wouldn’t remove it due to the rarity of it.

[Caddyshack]

I’d have a look at getting the ones you have coloured.

[E63eeeeee...]

Caddyshack said:

I’d have a look at getting the ones you have coloured.

Red seats are usually quite sought after if in good condition, the idea of paying someone to paint a set black seems nuts to me.

[d_a_n1979]

E63eeeeee... said:

Caddyshack said:

I’d have a look at getting the ones you have coloured.

Red seats are usually quite sought after if in good condition, the idea of paying someone to paint a set black seems nuts to me.

Agree

The OP will soon find OEM seats in black leather; the red ones, if in good nick, will fetch good £££!

[e21Keith]

I've done a few of these in e30, e46, e39 and e90.

Of course it's easier just to change the seats like for like and I've never seen a change of colour work particularly well, particularly after a few years' use. Finding a good driver's seat without the usual bolster wear can also be challenging.

It would be a shame to lose the electric (and heating?) functions you already have. Personally I'd strip the seats down and swap the covers over (assuming they are both sports/comfort seats of course). It's a lengthy but not a complicated job as long as you have the hog ring pliers to re-fit all the steel hog rings. In most cases it's also possible to use a passenger seat to refurb a driver's seat by swapping the bolsters.