Car Interiors

[Royale80]

Spurred on by recent forum purchases got me thinking of car interiors. How well have they lasted over the years? Skizzer mentioned the interior of his Royale-and his seats are in superb condition for a 40 year old car. pottering about this afternoon, I had a look at my interiors and again these Vauxhall/Opel interiors have lasted extremely well. I've looked at other cars in shows and on ebay and lots of the seat trim has gone baggy and looks worn-this I've noticed quite a bit on Granadas.  The 5 series BMW seats seem to fall apart.

Here are my two-the Vauxhall is 40 years old-don't know exact mileage as the engine and box were changed at 109,000 and the speedo is not compatible with the 4 speed auto. Seats, carper cover and door cards in excellent condition.

The Opel is 37 years old and has done 67000 miles-again interior in excellent condition.

Why can't other manufacturers-some do- make things to last?

 

 

 

[sutty2006]

I think it all depends on who owns them. Some people really don’t give a hoot how much damage they do... my 92 carltons interior is almost mint apart from a few threads coming through on the rear seats. I treat it well and so did the last owners. 

[petermchugh79]

Completely agree my Audi 80 interior is 30 years old, and to date seems to be wearing better than my 16 reg Kia Sportages interior, the Audi is definitely not as rattley and better screwed together

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[Shite Ron]

The Royale’s do seem to have survived well and look great. My Granada GL has nice interior, the L still has good foam but the cloth has deteriorated badly.  The mk4 Cortina Ghia estate I have is very nice and original but the foam in the pleats on the seats has deteriorated badly. The mk4 GL has very nice seats still but the car has done more miles and not been looked after bodily as well. The CX interior has also deteriorated and needs attention or retrimming. mk5 Cortina’s seem to last much better but some of the foam in the pleats have deteriorated. It seems a bit of a mixed bag and I assume they may have had more than one supplier for foam. Talking of modern cars my mk3 Mondeo estate was a Ghia but had very utilitarian cloth on the seats, it appeared hard wearing but nowhere near as tactile as what was used in the 1970’s.

[petermchugh79]

Pics were fuzzy sorry

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[Cooper1]

Volvo V70 Torslanda with 190k.. 

 

 

1998 and wear its interior like it is only a few months old!!

[Spiny Norman]

I've mentioned this elsewhere recently but the velour used in late 70s Vauxhalls seems almost indestructible. I've never seen a Royale or Senator with holes in the seats like you do with every other prestige car of the period. I've seen Jags with leather seats worn through to the backing and E39 BMWs with the cloth covers held on by little more than the stitching but I've never seen quality velour go that way.

Not just Vauxhalls, here's my old Saab 900 with 150k on the clock.

[willswitchengage]

 

1 hour ago, petermchugh79 said:

Pics were fuzzy sorry

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Is that an Irish numberplate in the UK typeface?

Personally I think car interiors are improving - just sit in any high mileage vehicle and you'll see what I mean. Often you can barely tell. Tacky and awful seats, sure, but they're more durable. All that vinyl is stronger than fabric as an example - seat covers.

...but the owner matters too. My Corolla is 30 years old and done about 40k miles but I generally use it as a skip so the interior is pretty destroyed. I imagine a sweaty fat person secreting their juices and spreading their mass over the seat will wear a car more, as another example.

Velour fades and attracts dirt - modern smooth fabric is a lot easier to clean and better at repelling dirt in the first place. Can you even get velour on new cars?

[petermchugh79]

Irish car, with pre 1992 Irish typeface, changed when we joined the eec, no euro flag of county name needed, it's what the car would have had when it was new

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[PiperCub]

An Audi from the days they were good cars worth buying, nicely designed, subtle, very well built cars for sensible folk who had a bit of taste. Shame about now. This is an Audi I'd be happy to own. 

[Richard_FM]

The interior of my Toyota Yaris was still in decent nick for a 15 year old car when I PXed it.  Just a little wear on the leather trim on the steering wheel & the seat covers.

One of the worst I can think of was my Uncle's Talbot Alpine that looked very scruffy after 8 years, with the cloth splitting on the seats & the plastic trim looking dull.

[bunglebus]

I love a bit of velour. 

I'll get some pics of my interior when I've cleaned it, think it hides its lunar mileage pretty well other than a shiny steering wheel 

[Spiny Norman]

4 hours ago, willswitchengage said:

Velour fades and attracts dirt - modern smooth fabric is a lot easier to clean and better at repelling dirt in the first place. Can you even get velour on new cars?

If you could get proper 70s velour on a new car I'd gladly pay extra over leather trim. I'd happily tear out a mint condition leather interior if I could replace it with the sort of velour that came out of Germany in the late 70s.

Disagree about keeping it clean, in my experience it's a far easier material to keep looking good than the shit cloth you get in a new car. Most 10 year old cars with cloth seats you see for sale look like they've been owned by an incontinent tramp. This was only the third car I looked at on local Scumtree with an interior pic and it's not atypical of what a modern-ish cloth seated car looks like inside.
WTF do people do in cars nowadays to get them into this state? Is it purely down to the amount of Maccy D shite that gets chobbled and slurped in the car as the driver tries to text his M8s while  negotiating yet another speed hump?
 

[Lord Sterling]

1987 Mk1 Sterling:

When I last sat in it, it was lovely, needs using though. 

1997 Mk2 Sterling (KV6)

A seriously comfy interior, very opulent and inviting. The best thing after a long day at work or hauling heavy stuff about all day. I wish it was on the road for me to potter about in. Maybe one day eh.

[Timewaster]

6 hours ago, Spiny Norman said:

If you could get proper 70s velour on a new car I'd gladly pay extra over leather trim. I'd happily tear out a mint condition leather interior if I could replace it with the sort of velour that came out of Germany in the late 70s.

I don't get leather seats. 

Burning hot / freezing cold, shiney, slidey, piss poor quality in all but the best marques. 

Even the good stuff needs feeding and treating and even then I don't think they are any comfier than a cloth seat. 

A lot of the engineers at work paid extra to have leather in their Ford Rangers. 

Admittedly they have a hard life, but at 3 years old they are all split and cracked. They look like vinyl too. 

[sutty2006]

I think 80s/90s vauxhall interiors wear quite well, apart from gear stick gaitors. Does anyone remember that white 1.7D cavalier envoy I had? That was minging when I picked it up. Hadn’t been cleaned for years and was used by a mechanic (a dirty one), a day of scrubbing and it was very respectable again. 
that 2.2 Rekord E I restored. 1985, interior was mint. They do just seam to last. 

[Timewaster]

Exception being side bolsters on the sporty models. 

Many a Cav Sri had an immaculate interior apart from threadbare patches on the drivers side bolster. 

[Royale80]

 

7 minutes ago, Timewaster said:

Exception being side bolsters on the sporty models. 

Many a Cav Sri had an immaculate interior apart from threadbare patches on the drivers side bolster. 

I'll get some photos of my Sierra-that has worn on the side bolster too. May be me being slightly overweight!

Steve

[cort1977]

9 hours ago, Spiny Norman said:

WTF do people do in cars nowadays to get them into this state? Is it purely down to the amount of Maccy D shite that gets chobbled and slurped in the car as the driver tries to text his M8s while  negotiating yet another speed hump?
 

 

I think it is and i think it's a cultural and generational thing.  One of the perennial complaints in US magazine reviews was that European cars don't have cup holders.  Because German engineers didn't think of them because one didn't drink in the car, one stopped at an approved place on the autobahn (at precisely planned intervals presumably).  My parents wouldn't dream of eating anything more than a murray mint in the car and refuse to deal with drinks on paper cups so no spills in their cars.  

So yeah, people used to not eat or drink in their cars much and now they do and they get minging.  See also - cinemas.  When did a flimsy cardboard plate of nachos seem like an ideal cinema food FFS?

[petermchugh79]

I think it is and i think it's a cultural and generational thing.  One of the perennial complaints in US magazine reviews was that European cars don't have cup holders.  Because German engineers didn't think of them because one didn't drink in the car, one stopped at an approved place on the autobahn (at precisely planned intervals presumably).  My parents wouldn't dream of eating anything more than a murray mint in the car and refuse to deal with drinks on paper cups so no spills in their cars.  
So yeah, people used to not eat or drink in their cars much and now they do and they get minging.  See also - cinemas.  When did a flimsy cardboard plate of nachos seem like an ideal cinema food FFS?

Spot on, there's a complete ban on eating or drinking anything bar water in my cars, kids know the score, but they are allowed to In the cattle lorry aka my wife's cmax

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[Timewaster]

My eldest used to get horribly car sick. 5 miles max. 

This meant she was banned from my Sierra. 

Which also meant the car hasn't been used for about 7 years. 

Should have just stocked up on febreeze and carried on really. 

[Tamworthbay]

20 minutes ago, cort1977 said:

I think it is and i think it's a cultural and generational thing.  One of the perennial complaints in US magazine reviews was that European cars don't have cup holders.  Because German engineers didn't think of them because one didn't drink in the car, one stopped at an approved place on the autobahn (at precisely planned intervals presumably).  My parents wouldn't dream of eating anything more than a murray mint in the car and refuse to deal with drinks on paper cups so no spills in their cars.  

So yeah, people used to not eat or drink in their cars much and now they do and they get minging.  See also - cinemas.  When did a flimsy cardboard plate of nachos seem like an ideal cinema food FFS?

I remember my Uncle would never allow us to eat or drink in his car, it was an absolute tip so no idea why he was so precious. I don’t care what gets eaten in our cars, they are there to be used, but the cars are clean inside as I wouldn’t expect to get crap on the carpet when we eat oat home so why would you in the car? It tends to be limited to the odd pizza on a day out, or a bag of chips if you are on holiday and it’s raining. Drinks fine as well but the Volvo is a bit crap as there is only space for one drink and then only if you don’t want to use the handbrake.

[MorrisItalSLX]

When I compare my 30 year old Toyota to my Mum’s 13 year old Toyota it is clear to see that interior quality has gone out the window.

The 13 year old has bolster ware, foam degradation, threadbare carpet, brittle plastic, sloppy switchgear, a sagging headliner, a warped dashboard and horribly scratched painted surfaces. The 30 year old on the other hand is absolutely fine, with the exception of a couple plastic components that have gone slightly crumbly.

[Tamworthbay]

Combination of weight saving to improve emissions and bean counting to keep costs down.

[danthecapriman]

1 hour ago, cort1977 said:

I think it is and i think it's a cultural and generational thing.  One of the perennial complaints in US magazine reviews was that European cars don't have cup holders.  Because German engineers didn't think of them because one didn't drink in the car, one stopped at an approved place on the autobahn (at precisely planned intervals presumably).  My parents wouldn't dream of eating anything more than a murray mint in the car and refuse to deal with drinks on paper cups so no spills in their cars.  

So yeah, people used to not eat or drink in their cars much and now they do and they get minging.  See also - cinemas.  When did a flimsy cardboard plate of nachos seem like an ideal cinema food FFS?

It’s also because people don’t clean their cars anymore, or at least don’t do it thoroughly any more. Most people it seems can’t be bothered to or see doing a job like that as beneath them. Or maybe it’s not getting done because the cars aren’t actually ‘theirs’ they’re on lease! They use it, make a mess over 3 years then punt it back to the dealers for a new replacement and let some peasant at the dealers clean it after they’re done.

A few years ago my mum was looking for a car to replace her aged Focus, it was staggering tbh seeing what state some cars are in, and I’m talking pretty new stuff here too. Grime, dog hair, food and spilt drink down the sides of seats, in the gearstick and handbrake gaiters and consoles, revolting looking stains on seats and carpets, etc etc. Then you look at the interior itself and start noticing grime engrained into the plastic trims and scratches/damage to them... wtf do people do in their cars to get them like that after only a few years!? In the end she bought a one year old ex dealer demo Fiesta, which was absolutely immaculate.

Im probably the opposite extreme to this tbh, in my cars there will be no - eating, drinking, children, pets/animals. By order! 

[Steve79]

Certain mid 70's to early 80's BL product where the seats always look like the covers have seperated from the base.

Take this fine example, nice inside and out but the interior is suffering the aforementioned issue.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/392763962875

 

[Jerzy Woking]

Had two Mk IV Cortina's back when they were new and I was a rep. Drivers seat bolsters in both were worn through within 18 months (approx 60k miles). I was a rep though and must have been in and out of the car at least 40 times a day

The leather seats in my Saab 9-5 were still immaculate after 15 years, not a mark on the..

My 1999 Merc C200 had the filthiest seats I have ever bought a car with. And they had seat covers on. Surprised how well they cleaned up and the excellent condition of the cloth used. Should have made the body out of the seat material, as it rusted before my eyes.

And after a bucket of water, a bit of baby shampoo and a scrubbing brush....

[sutty2006]

3 hours ago, Timewaster said:

Exception being side bolsters on the sporty models. 

Many a Cav Sri had an immaculate interior apart from threadbare patches on the drivers side bolster. 

Am I the only one that cringes getting in and out of cars with bolsters like that? Thinking my phat ass is gonna destroy them in one plonk. 

[Volksy]

I noticed that the Leather on my S70 and Jaguar XJ, was pretty rapidly torn up on the drivers side bolster. Worked out it was the little rivet used on the back pocket of my Jeans!

[RayMK]

The interior of my 1994 Tipo 1.4ie is wearing very well, though it could be argued that it's had a quiet life - still only at 55K, but it is not garaged. The plastics are not cracking, fading or going brittle.  The seats have always been a bit uncomfortable after a couple of hours and it's not just me saying that. My son and daughter also complain of lower back ache after a while. Oddly, the discomfort has reduced over the last year or so. I think the car is gradually moulding us to the shape it wants.