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Do you really need seat covers?

K

Kat california

Messages
8
Location
Edinburgh
Vehicle
Cali now sold
Hi.

I have read a lot of posts on the various options for seat covers.

We have a 2023 Cali Coast with fabric seats. Does everyone buy seat covers ( Brandrup are now £600) or is it good enough to rely on spraying the fabric and cleaning them regularly, if you are careful?

Thoughts please
 
We decided not on balance but have a set of the VW quick fit black ones for certain occasions. Generally come up on here around the 100 mark. We just use the back one. Day to day use we have sprayed the heck out of the seats with anti seat stain stuff and that works fine for us. For the back we just put a blanket down as it does stain when cooking. Would love a cover that just did the lower bench seat and nothing else.
 
Kat california said:
Hi.

I have read a lot of posts on the various options for seat covers.

We have a 2023 Cali Coast with fabric seats. Does everyone buy seat covers ( Brandrup are now £600) or is it good enough to rely on spraying the fabric and cleaning them regularly, if you are careful?

Thoughts please
Click to expand...
Q. Do you cover your settee or armchairs at home?
We don’t, and likewise the California. Autoglym Interior Shampoo and a damp cloth has served us well over 8 yrs.
We get water stains easily removed with a damp cloth and we use ours all year round.

Obviously if you have specific requirements for a waterproof cover due to pets then cheap waterproof covers can be useful or just a blanket.
 
Kat california said:
Hi.

I have read a lot of posts on the various options for seat covers.

We have a 2023 Cali Coast with fabric seats. Does everyone buy seat covers ( Brandrup are now £600) or is it good enough to rely on spraying the fabric and cleaning them regularly, if you are careful?

Thoughts please
Click to expand...
Brandrup seat covers are crap, anytime I open either doors when raining it leaves water stain, then you try cleaning as suggested via Brandrup and it makes a bigger stain. Save your money and either go without or an alternative to Brandrup.
 
Kat california said:
Hi.

I have read a lot of posts on the various options for seat covers.

We have a 2023 Cali Coast with fabric seats. Does everyone buy seat covers ( Brandrup are now £600) or is it good enough to rely on spraying the fabric and cleaning them regularly, if you are careful?

Thoughts please
Click to expand...
I have a ‘21 model. The seat fabric got ridiculously stained very quickly. We don’t have a dog.

We spent £1,700 fitting premium leather seats instead. Well worth it.
 
Last edited:
Inka waterproof covers have served us well with wet dogs, wet wetsuits, rugby kids & accidental spillages etc; They wash at 30degrees in the washing machine and dry very quickly.

(But make sure that any covers you might purchase have been airbag tested or you will need to inform your insurers. We nearly purchased some more expensive sailcloth type covers but when we checked our insurers told us that our insurance would not be valid as we would be interfering with a factory fitted safety device.)
 
When we first got the van we had much smaller children and I would spend the whole time cleaning the seats of jam/honey/mud/water stains or 'encouraging' them to avoid the same. Fitted covers and haven't worried since.
The original Moonrock Grey/Crete Anthracite upholstery is terrible for watermarks but does clean up really well. I think if the children weren't in it then I would take the covers off.
 
Thank you for your replies. It is only the two of us so I think I’ll just go with being careful and the Autoglym shampoo and see how that goes for now.
 
Looking at the price of seat covers when we bought our 2017 California, we decided not to get them.

We adopted the approach that if things got too bad, we’d simply replace the seat fabric with something else – a leather retrim perhaps. Six years, later and with an annual DIY shampoo, the seat fabric is clean and tidy. From time to time the seats get marked. Nothing that hasn’t come out and they look as good as new once cleaned. I'm still tempted by a leather re-trim, but haven’t done so so far. We do us fleece blankets to cover the seats when we’re using the van. Inexpensive and they double up as blankets!
 
I think maybe seat covers are a bit like everything else on this forum ........... 'They've fitted that (whatever) so I probably need it too' . :D ....... btw I suffer from this all the time!
 
Kat california said:
Hi.

I have read a lot of posts on the various options for seat covers.

We have a 2023 Cali Coast with fabric seats. Does everyone buy seat covers ( Brandrup are now £600) or is it good enough to rely on spraying the fabric and cleaning them regularly, if you are careful?

Thoughts please
Click to expand...
No, not everyone buys seat covers, it’s very much a personal choice as are most things in life. Seat covers are a definite for us, even if we didn’t have dogs. We paid £700 for good covers 4 years ago and they still look as new, and yes we would buy them again.
 
Second vote for inks covers - cheap and do the job. We have a golden retriever that likes sand, puddles and swimming so they have been a life saver - plus if we ever sold seats are as new :thumb
 
Yes to covers - for when I finish a mountain bike ride and forget I’ve got a streak of mud all way up bum and back and jump into drivers seat…. At least the covers can come off and be washed….
 
No you don’t.

But if you have boys into rugby, or female dogs in season they are advisable.

We went for the ludicrously priced Jackyards: loose fitting and easily removed, washed and replaced.
 
There are several solutions to this problem, I went for a leather retrim.
 
We spent a year or so just with microfiber towels draped over the seats. They served a purpose but became annoying because they needed frequent repositioning so for us covers were inevitable.

Leaving the seats uncovered was not an option because they mark so easily. Yes, we could have had cleaning products on standby but having covers allows us to me more relaxed about using the vehicle.

A big factor in buying covers though was to add a bit of colour and character. I personally find the factory fabrics very unappealing.
 
One reason for seat covers apart from protection from soiling is to reduce wear. I don’t know what the current seat materials are like but I found my T5 seats didn’t wear well, showing bobbling despite care and low mileage. Compared to my abused, high mileage and old Peugeot which show little sign of wear.
 
Interesting thread as I’m just deciding what to do when my Ocean comes through. Think I’ve decided on waterproof covers from Inka for the rear only due to cooking and a big hairy dog!
 
We decided on decent covers before using the van properly. With the best will in the world, the 8 year old is highly likely to spill fizzy pop or pasta sauce on the seats sooner or later. Muddy feet get everywhere and the fabric (T6 Ocean) is stupidity light for a working vehicle. We find that with the covers on we are able to relax whereas otherwise meals and travel would be a stress-fest. (We got the expensive Brandrup ones buy at 50% discount as factory seconds'. They are very good.)
 
Spray protection, couple of times, and no problem 6 years on but no extreme use.

Went with the theory that I'd put new covers on when selling if seat appearance justified a 'cover up'.

Years ago I put covers on a cars seats and found that the cover material had worn the original seat cover material so never repeated the seat cover route. Dirt and grime had gone through the covers over time and was unseen.
 
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