Seat Covers

[march2012]

My name is Joe Visser, Dan Kretzer and I have been life-long friends sharing our love for things automotive.
 
Dan mentioned that he had bought seat covers for his GT from you and he was unsure if you were still importing them or not. I saw pictures of the covers installed on Dan's GT and was impressed with their apparent quality.
 
Long story short, I have a "67 B.R.G. 67 B (Reggie) that I bought a few years ago that needs to go back to its black interior roots. A previous owner had the interior trimmed out in tan, which as I am sure you know, is wrong, wrong wrong.
 
I thought I could live with the tan, but every time I get in the car I feel the need to go black. Please let me know if you are still involved with MGB seat covers.
 
Thank you,
 
Joe

[Art]

Hi Joe,
  
Thanks for writing.  I am still involved, but currently I'm out of stock of the '72 patterned leather seats that Dan has.  And even if I had them, they would not be year-correct for your car anyway.  
  
I right now only have made patterns for the MGA and the 70-80 MGB headrest cars.
  
The seats I made follow the '72 patterns and basically match all seats from '70-'80, with the exception of headrests (which I have made both the smooth "D" and wedge-type).  The roll-and-pleat pattern of the seats I chose is pretty much the same as was used on all for the leather.

Now, you might be able to use the leather covers without the headrests (I just would not have the holes cut for the support pipe), but I've never tried it on older frames and am not sure what combination of foam cushions you would use or would fit the 67 frames to accommodate them.  Finding a set of later frames and not using (or upgrading to using) the headrests might be easier.
  
Let me know if you are interested as I will be going back to my overseas source next month and can look into both making a set of '67 leathers or if I can adapt the ones we have patterns for to the '67.
  
Safety Fast!
  
Art
  

[march2012]

Hello Art,
 
Thank you for responding so quickly. I know many people have no objection to changing/upgrading their "B's" interiors to the more modern style, I prefer to keep the car more like it was when it left the factory. I'm looking at two possible sources for the correct pattern upholstery, one is, of course, Moss and the other is Prestige, I wonder if you have had any experience with either of these companies for upholstery, or is that why you have been making seat covers yourself?
 
Thanks again for your response,
 
Joe (and Reggie)

[Art]

Hi Joe,
  
The Moss (include TRF and VB in this comment) seats happen to be very good.  Moss does not make them themselves, but I have used theirs and the Victoria British offerings before and find their sources seem to have the fit and finish down well.  The older foam cushions seem to work better with any of these as well (hence the use of '72 patterns on my seats).  While not an issue with your seats, I found adding some memory foam into the recess of the sculpted foam seat base works better with my upholstery on later foams.
  
I do not have real experience with installing or living with the Prestige product, though I have heard several that have tried them say they do like them.  They are rated better than Autocraft and other mass-market makers, but the fit is not as exact as the restoration catalogs offer and may require some additional foam and/or adjustments to really look right.  Not so bad, and often more comfortable as a result, but not quite original.  They did offer a good idea in a leather fascia seat (leather seating surfaces only with matching vinyl sides and backs) that helped as an alternative to the ever increasing cost of the Moss and VB offerings and they looked uniform, but they are not exactly original.  
  
Also, if going the leather route, the replacements by all are "representative" and may not be the exact construction or pleat width, so, while no one but the most stringent judge would see (or care about) the difference, they may not be entirely as original.  
  
I hope that helps you.
  
Art