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SEAT COVERS
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Here are my seat covers uninstalled.
Front:

Rear:

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INSTALLATION NOTES
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Ok I did the seat cover installation myself. Overall, not a hard thing to do. Just takes time and patience.

As you strip off the old seat cover, you remove the hog rings and remember where they were. This is the biggest trick of the whole install. Do one cushion at a time. Take off the old cover and replace with the new one. This way everything stays fresh in your mind! You are supplied new hog rings, just use them in the same place the factory did to unsure an even tight fit!

The hog ring install was a pain. Tying to get the tool in the tight places, hold tension and get the ring to stay in place while you closed the ring. Well worth the effort in the end though.

I learned a trick to install the new covers thanks to Bruce from Hawks 3rd gen parts. He said to place a plastic bag over the seat cushion before you pull on the new seat cover. The bag will make it a slick surface and help you get the cushion into the seat cover. It will help it slide all the way, w/o damaging the seat cover by pulling and stretching it and breaking seams. This will help ensure for a nice tight professional looking fit! He was so right!

Here are some pics of the process as I went through the install. This is not a step by step, but a guide based on what I remember from the install.

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SEAT COVER INSTALL
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First, obviously, remove seats from the car. :)

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FRONT SEATS
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Take off the plastic covers on the seat�s hinged area. Detach the back of the seat from the bottom cushion. Then you want to remove the seat track from the bottom seat cushion.

Now you can strip off the old seat cover.

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BOTTOM SEAT CUSHION
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First you have to take the old seat cover off. Again pay close attention to where the hog rings are located as you remove them. These are the places you will install the new hog rings with the new seat cover.

First detach the hog rings on the bottom of the cushion.

Down the sides there are hog rings holding the side of the seat cover to a metal bar that is part of the cushion�s frame. Take these loose.

There are 2 flaps, one from the seat front one from the seat rear, that come together and attach to a piece of metal.

Now you can begin to pull the cover up. It will not come off yet. The PMDs have 2 rods that holds the seat cover to the top of the seat cushion.
They run parallel on either side of the center padded section of the cover. One end is hooked in the other is hog ringed to a bar made into the frame of the cushion.

You have to detach the hog ring. Now If I remember right you will now be able to unhook the other end. If not then just slide the old cover off the rods.

Now the strange thing� PMD seat covers have a built in pouch that takes a inch and a half or so piece of soft foam. This foam is located w/in the old seat cover you have removed. On the bottom cushion I believe the foam will just slide out. You then simply slide the foam into the pouch of the new seat. This foam runs the length of the seat cushion and wraps around the front and down. It gives the seat a more separated & graduated look.

Now with the foam in the new seat cover. You move to installing the cover on the seat cushion. Now again this is also a PMD only thing to my knowledge. The PMDs have a rod that holds the seat cushion to the foam. One end is latched in the other is hog ringed to a wire made into the frame of the cushion. You will remember this from the cover removal.

Well now you have to slide the rods into the fabric tubes the new seat cover has. Then reinstall the rods as you removed them. Don�t forget to put the hog rings in the same place. Now this is the easy part.

Now you have to pull the cover down and around the seat cushion. This takes patience. The cover is designed to be very tight, or it will not look right. You are going to think it will not fit, but it does. You have to gently pull the cover and push the cushion into place. I had to hit on mine to help mush it all in place. This is not easy and does take time. But work it as gently as you can so as to not damage the cover.

Once its sort of in place, you will see the flaps on the ends of the cover with a plastic flexible tube that will need to meet up to the metal bar you detached the hog rigs from on the old cover. No it will not reach the cushions metal bar easily. The seat cover will have to stretch and be pulled very taunt to fit.

It will fit though. You can attach the side or center flaps first what ever is easier.

Remember to try to attach them where the factory did if possible.

This is the finished product�

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FRONT SEAT BACK ****************************************
First you have to take the old seat cover off. Again pay close attention to where the hog rings are located as you remove them. These are the places you will install the new hog rings with the new seat cover.

This is PMD only�
First gently, with a panel puller, work off the back panel. It is help on like a door panel, with plastic push pins with little fingers on them. Try not to break them. If you do any parts store sell replacements. The most important part is not to break the plastic holders off on the panel.

Underneath, you will see flaps that come together in a square pattern.

You have to detach the hog rings in this area. There are flaps that wrap around the seat cushion. The top flap with the center section of the seat will now pull thru the open hole head rest of the seat.

To detach the cover around the headrest is pretty easy. Wish I had pics. The piece is held together by 2 piece of plastic formed into a U shape. The 2 open ends latch to each other seeing that they come from separate directions. This is confusing to explain in writing, I will try to get a pic!

Once this area is loose you will see some hog rings. Take them loose. Also there is a plastic piece that the cover is stapled to. Take out the staples.

Keep this piece. You will reuse it.

Now move on to taking the cover off the rest of the seat. Check there might be hog rings on the base of the back I have forgotten. Once the hog rings are out I believe you can carefully begin to work the bottom of the cover off the cushion.

Now this cover is like the bottom cushion, the cover will not simply pull off. Down the center sides of the cover, the PMDs have 2 rods that hold the seat cover to the seat cushion. They run parallel on either side of the center padded section of the cover. One end is a straight end that slips in. The other hog ringed to a bar made into the frame of the cushion. You have to detach the hog ring.

Now the other end will slide out of the hole.

You take these rods out of the cushion.

Now in the seat cover is a built in pouch on the seat back.

Again it is a inch and a half or so piece of soft foam. This foam is located w/in the old seat cover you have removed. Now look at the seat cover�some have this some don�t. The foam has a slit in it. Some seats have a flap that pulls the cover thru to create a tucked look at the PMD emblem. If it does, look on the inside and you will see a set of flaps coming together with hog rings.

Simply detach all the hog rings piece by piece. Once they are off, the foam will slide right out.

You then simply slide the foam into the pouch of the new seat. Line the slit in the pouch up with the slit in the foam. The cover then has a flap that pulls thru the foam in the slit to give it a tucked in look.

You will hog ring all 3 flaps together.

Now with the foam in the new seat cover. You can install the PMD logos if you want. They are a complete pain. The have press on flat metal retainer you will see on the back side of the cover.

You can get a small screw driver and get it to pry the flaps up around the pins enough that you can slide/push the pins thru and release the logo.

Then flatten the flaps back down and attempt to reinstall. Again a major pain by hand. I wonder if there is a special tool. You have to get it lined up on the front how you want. Poke holes in the cover and put the logos pins thru the cover. Then you have to find those pins on the back side of the cover and press the metal plate onto these pins to lock the logo in place.

You move to installing the cover on the seat cushion. Now again this is also a PMD only thing to my knowledge. Down the center sides of the cover, the PMDs have 2 rods that hold the seat cover to the seat cushion. They run parallel on either side of the center padded section of the cover. One end is a straight end that slips in. The other hog ringed to a bar made into the frame of the cushion. You have to reattach the hog ring where the other was. You will remember this from the cover removal.

Well now you have to slide the rods into the fabric tubes the new seat cover has. Then reinstall the rods as you removed them. Don�t forget to put the hog rings in the same place. Now that was the easy part.

You have to put the headrest cover on as well. The replacement covers were Velcroed and harder to install in my opinion then the old style hook.

The Velcro does not have the holding power and will not lay as flat. Don�t forget to put the plastic piece back in.

I had to hog ring the cover to the place where the old on was stapled. Now it take work to get the headrest to lay w/o puckering. Put it on like the old one was. Use the hog rings where the factory did.

Now you have to pull the cover down and around the seat cushion. This takes patience. The cover is designed to be very tight, or it will not look right. You are going to think it will not fit, but it does. You have to gently pull the cover and push the cushion into place. I had to hit on mine to help mush it all in place. This is not easy and does take time. But work it as gently as you can so as to not damage the cover. You have to work it to get it to lay w/o puckering.

Once its sort of in place, you will see the flaps on the ends like the old cover.

Start trying to see if they will meet up. If not, keep working it. This was a very tight fit and I had to muscle mine to fit and to get the hog rings on. You may need a friend to hold the cover while you hog ring. You should be able to get all the flaps to meet up in the back.

Hog ring them good. If there were any hog rings on the bottom you must attach them as the factory did.

Now you have to put holes in the cover so the back cover can be attached with those push pins. You need to match them up with the factory hole locations for a tight fit. If any of the little fingers look real worn down, it is a good idea to replace them to ensure a tight fit.

Now if you are changing the color, or the material you are using on the seats, you will need to purchase some extra material to cover the back cover piece...

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How you recover the panel:
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First take off the old material. Chances are as old as they are they have fallen off, are in the process of falling, or have been glued back on.

To reattach the material I had to thoroughly clean the panel to clean off any old glue or foam left behind. Then I had to lay out the vinyl on top of the back cover. With a sharp pair of scissors I cut out the basic shape. The ends will be tucked under the lip of the panel, so it is not crucial that it is perfect.

I then got the heavy duty 3M spray glue and I had to coat both the panel and the back of the vinyl.

Once the glue tacked up, I carefully held the vinyl over the panel, to orient it, to see how it should lay to cover everything. I then started at one end and very carefully laid the material down. I rubbed the vinyl down as I slowly worked my way across the panel. I had to be sure the 2 glue surfaces made good strong contact. At the same time, I had to be sure there were no air pockets and that the vinyl laid even and taunt across the surface. Some area required some stretching to get things to lay perfect. I also used a roller tool. It�s a wooden wheel on a handle. It allows you to exert greater force, in a rolling motion, on an area without causing the material to dent up from you finger tips. It gives a smooth tight finish in corners where your fingers can't get.

Then it is a matter of simply putting the old or new push pins onto the back panel. Then you line up the pins with all the holes in the seat back metal and press the panel on the seat back. You may have to gently bump, with your palm, the areas where the pins are going in to get them fully seated.

Now you must reattach the hardware to put the seat back, back on the seat bottom. Then reinstall the tracks and your done.

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BACK SEATS
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These are easier then the PMD fronts.

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BOTTOM SEAT CUSHION
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First you have to take the old seat cover off. Again pay close attention to where the hog rings are located as you remove them. These are the places you will install the new hog rings with the new seat cover.

First detach the hog rings on the bottom of the cushion. They attach on all 4 sides and there are hog rings holding the sides of the seat cover to a metal bar that is part of the cushion�s frame.

Take all these loose.

Now you can begin to pull the cover up. It will not come off yet. These seats I covered have metal bars built in the foam on the top of the cushion too.

They are what hold the seat part down to the cushion. They run parallel on either side of the center section of the cover and along the back. You have to detach the hog rings. And again remember where they are so you can install the new cover the same way.

Now pull off the old cover. You can see in the pics how there are 3 strips that the inside of the cushion attaches to!

Now on to installing the new seat cover. First off line it up like the old one and start planning out the hog rings that will attach to the inside of the cushion. There is no bar on this install like the front seat, so there is a potential to pucker the seat cover. You will see the flaps on the inside of the cover with a plastic flexible tube that will need to meet up to the metal bar you detached the hog rigs from on the old cover. Keep the cover taught and line up the new seat cover's flaps with the bar in the bottom of the seat cushion. Start on the back one and work your way to the front. Again don't let it pucker. One you get all the inner seat hog rings attached, the hard part starts.

Now you have to pull the cover down and around the seat cushion. This takes patience. The cover is designed to be very tight, or it will not look right. You are going to think it will not fit, but it does. You have to gently pull the cover and push the cushion into place. I had to hit on mine to help mush it all in place. This is not easy and does take time. But work it as gently as you can so as to not damage the cover.

Once its sort of in place, you will see the flaps on the ends of the cover with a plastic flexible tube that will need to meet up to the metal bar you detached the hog rigs from on the old cover. No it will not reach the cushions metal bar easily. The seat cover will have to stretch and be pulled very taunt to fit. It will fit though. Remember to try to attach them where the factory did if possible.

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REAR SEAT BACK
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Now I have the Deluxe rear spilt folding seat backs.

These were the easiest of the bunch.
First remove the old cover. It unzips. Then look for all the hog rings. Remove them. Remember where they go.

Then before you pull off the cover, you have to remove the folding seat latch.

Now you can begin to pull the cover off. Now it will not come all the way off. Some seats have a flap that pulls the cover thru to create a tucked look at the center of the back.

If it does, look on the inside and you will see a flap going thru the foam and attaching to the hard backing plate with hog rings. Simply detach all the hog rings piece by piece.

Once you do this you can pull the cover right off. Now there is a plastic backing plate that the seat cushion sits in.

You have to keep all this together as you fit over the new seat cover.

So hold it all together and begin to pull down you new cover. Again its tight and you have to work it on the cushion.

Once its about 1/3 of the way down you will have to attach that flap on the new cover to the backing plate thru the slit in the foam.

Once this is attached you can continue to pull the cover down into place.

Once in place you will have a few hog rings to attach, remember from the old cover.

Then you have to attach all the hog rings. Then zip the cover up.

Finally you have to poke a hole in the cover for the latch to install back to its original hole. Also, I believe, you will need to make a hole for the rod at the base of the seat back so it can insert into the mounting plate in the car.

New cover next to the other old one.

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DIRECTORY FOR RAIF'S INTERIOR SITE
01 Site Overview
02 Power Windows and Door locks
03 Miscellaneous Trim Pieces
04 Smoked Plexiglas Covers, Flush Mounted KITT Light Box
05 Carbon Fiber
06 Carpet Swap
07 Overhead Console
08 Red & Black Seats
09 Seat Cover installation <<<
10 Red & Black Door Panels
11 Red & Black Rear Cargo Panels
12 Kick Panels &Lower Dash Panels
13 Car Motor Sports Mats and T-Top bag
14 Neon
15 Center Console Repair
16 Painted Center Console
17 Dash Repaint
18 Repainted Gauge Cluster
19 Autometer Pillar Pod
20 Seatbelts

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