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I, too, replaced my wife's E350 driver seat bottom with a USAutonation cover a few months ago and it fit very well. To accelerate the after-installation fit, I used my heat gun on low temp on the areas needed. It looks OEM perfect!
Rob
Originally Posted by RWagz
I'm seeing quite a range of prices for these seat covers.
$240 manufacturer's replacement (that may rip the same way)
$229 genuine leather Richmond Auto Upholstery (looks like their prices went up 15% in the past six months)
$143 vinyl / $175 leather - aftermarket replacement ex: usautoseatnation (ebay)
~$50 ebay aftermarket - a few dozen ebay sellers (when filtered to U.S. sellers)
I got the $143 version based on the good ebay feedback. Those $50 ones look like aftermarket dropship crap. I'll share my results here.
Originally Posted by derekwh
I got the $143 ebay vinyl/mbtex seat bottoms. They fit and look great, good match to the seat backs.
Can anyone who purchased from USAutonation on ebay confirm whether the seat replacements have the seat heater pouches? I emailed seller and he said he had to ask the installer.
Can anyone who purchased from USAutonation on ebay confirm whether the seat replacements have the seat heater pouches? I emailed seller and he said he had to ask the installer.
I'm seeing this a bit late, but I believe that is where I got mine and it DID have the correct pockets.
This thread prompted me to check the prices on ebay.
My seat bottom at over 150k miles has only single dot wear out so I am not planning to replace it for at least a year, but I went on ebay and found $49 seat (shipping included) so could not refuse the temptation to put it on the shelf now.
It just arrived and when I don't have seated seats, it looks like perfect fit. Obviously 10 yo original seat and new one have different shines, but looks like original color.
The guy I bought it from is sold out, but I see more $4x covers on ebay.
Dealer quoted me almost $900 to swap the seat cover, no thanks. I got a seat cover replacement from Richmond Auto Upholstery for $200 and installed it myself. The fit and finish are amazingly good! I'm still waiting for the cover to "relax" and take a little more shape which will happen over time.
Hi, this looks amazing; great job. Did you install this on top of the existing seat cover or did you have to remove the existing one? And was it easy to install? I am not too handy with the car stuff so asking before I buy. Many thanks for posting.
I did not do this job on W212 yet, but looks like the design is the same what older models have.
The best way to deal with it, is to remove the seat, find good bench or table, lined with cloth and put the seat upside down on it.
This way you can put your weight on the seat from other side, what will take tension off the cover entering the grooves.
Hi, this looks amazing; great job. Did you install this on top of the existing seat cover or did you have to remove the existing one? And was it easy to install? I am not too handy with the car stuff so asking before I buy. Many thanks for posting.
I removed the old one. To me the hardest part was unplugging the wiring harness, the rest is easy if you follow the instructions in the YouTube videos. I suggest fluffing the foam up before reinstalling, it makes the seat feel and look brand new.
I did not do this job on W212 yet, but looks like the design is the same what older models have.
The best way to deal with it, is to remove the seat, find good bench or table, lined with cloth and put the seat upside down on it.
This way you can put your weight on the seat from other side, what will take tension off the cover entering the grooves.
This is great advice. I used an old piece of carpet and work don the floor.
It matches perfectly actually. I'm lucky to have light beige seats so fading and weathering is minimal on that color. The leather texture also matches.
One thing to consider, the new seat cover has backing foam attached to the leather. The heating element will not be as efficient as OEM seat.
this too common ripped inferior vinyl all too often rips at the horizontal seam, most commonly in the Driver seat. If you can avoid the plasticy MB-Tex,
opt for vertical pleated leather option.
in 5 E class vehicles from 1991 - 2011, I was fortunate to have leather options. I will NEVER
settle for vinyl seating surfaces in future MB's.