Katzkin leather seat covers

[madcow]

I drove my car to an upholstery shop that I've used in the past to ask about the cost of putting leather on the seats. I was quoted $1,500 installed, which would include the front and rear seats and the door inserts. This sounds like a good price to me.

When I asked about the color options, I was excited to see that he pulled out the Katzkin brochure (mostly because I've read of a few people using this company).

I have 2 questions for those of you who've used Katzkin:

1. How is it holding up, do you still like it?

2. What color did you get?

I didn't want to get grey and I'm not a big fan of dark interiors, but I think the dark graphite would be the best match. I'm toying with the idea of having the door inserts be something like electric blue (to match the EV badges). Please let me know your thoughts.

 

[madcow]

Well it looks like nobody else has read this post or has tried the Katzkin leather seats. I called the shop on Saturday and had him place the order for the dark graphite. Hopefully it'll be in later this week. I'll try to see if I can post pictures after it's done.

 

[LastEmp]

I have the Katzkin leather in ash color, factory design level. It was an add-on by the dealer who had the only Shoreline Blue in stock near me at the time (and would give me a reasonable trade in for my Nissan LEAF) so I paid the $1,680+ tax for the leather. I later learned it was taken off a white RAV4 EV at the request of a fellow forum member and reinstalled on the blue one, so you're not stuck with the dealer choice of color (or leather upgrade for that matter). I like the door inserts to match the seats instead of the factory fabric pattern. I had to take it back to the installer to retighten the leather in the driver front seating area, otherwise it's holding up well. Out of curiosity, I asked the installer for an aftermarket price, and he quoted $1,395 installed for the factory design, 2 rows of seating, so less expensive than what the dealer charged. They also did aftermarket moonroofs on the RAV4 for the same price, $1,395; and $200 off if you got both the leather and moonroof.

 

[madcow]

Thanks for the post. I'm glad to hear that you are satisfied with the leather. You're car looks great.

 

[edmc]

That is a very nice upgrade!

One question: how (well) do the seat heaters function with the leather replacement?

 

[LastEmp]

The seat heaters seem to work fine with the aftermarket leather and still get toasty at the high setting (based on my previous experience with seat heaters in other cars, since no before and after comparison for the dealer installed leather seats on the RAV4 EV)

 

[dark]

I know a guy who did a Katzkin for $950 on my prius, I assume it will be a similar price for the Rav4 if you want it. You can find his contact here, his name is Tom.

http://priuschat.com/threads/pics-of-my-katzkins-on-my-2012-prius-ii.110635/

 

[cossie1600]

I ordered a set of Clazzio on mine, let's see if it is worth the $450. This is what they did on my other car

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

[brad11140]

I ordered a set of Clazzio on mine, let's see if it is worth the $450. This is what they did on my other car

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

How did the Clazzio work out? I see you can only order up to the 2012 model year for Clazzio. I am pretty sure they are the same but want to be sure.

 

[cossie1600]

Check out the other thread, works great

 

[Weekdayskier]

I just bought mine earlier this month. Also didn't really care for the cloth interior. A local shop that the dealers use installed a Roadwire leather kit. I think it's a similar product to Katzkin. Matches the center console and seat adjustment latches. They also did the door panels in matching material. IMO, looks factory rather than the Clazzios where the rear seat still looks like a seat cover around the latches and seat belts. They got it all done in 1 day.

 

[Kohler Controller]

How much did it cost?

 

[Weekdayskier]

1400 before taxes

 

[kdd3300]

I just bought mine earlier this month. Also didn't really care for the cloth interior. A local shop that the dealers use installed a Roadwire leather kit. I think it's a similar product to Katzkin. Matches the center console and seat adjustment latches. They also did the door panels in matching material. IMO, looks factory rather than the Clazzios where the rear seat still looks like a seat cover around the latches and seat belts. They got it all done in 1 day.

What shop did you go to? Leather seats are at the top of my to do list.

 

[drmanny3]

If you were in Southern CA, I would recommend Skyline Seating in Westminster. They do most of the leather for the Dealership within about 25 miles. They will do the Rav4ev for $900. They do great work. Leather seating surfaces, but everything else is matching vinyl.
Manny

 

[Weekdayskier]

I shopped both. Katzkin and Roadwire are leather surfaces and vinyl backs. They can also add rear seat heaters if you frequently have passengers back there. Mine is occupied by a carseat, so I didn't bother.

The shop is called Autohaus in Hayward, Ca.

For Katzkin, Coach automotive in Union City is a little more expensive. They say they're wholesale only and seem to charge what the dealers charge.

BTW, adding your location to your profile would be helpful for getting the best suggestion for a local shop.

 

[LabDad]

I shopped both. Katzkin and Roadwire are leather surfaces and vinyl backs. They can also add rear seat heaters if you frequently have passengers back there. Mine is occupied by a carseat, so I didn't bother.

The shop is called Autohaus in Hayward, Ca.

For Katzkin, Coach automotive in Union City is a little more expensive. They say they're wholesale only and seem to charge what the dealers charge.

BTW, adding your location to your profile would be helpful for getting the best suggestion for a local shop.

Can you post pictures? Does the front seat heaters work still?

Thanks

 

[kdd3300]

I shopped both. Katzkin and Roadwire are leather surfaces and vinyl backs. They can also add rear seat heaters if you frequently have passengers back there. Mine is occupied by a carseat, so I didn't bother.

The shop is called Autohaus in Hayward, Ca.

For Katzkin, Coach automotive in Union City is a little more expensive. They say they're wholesale only and seem to charge what the dealers charge.

BTW, adding your location to your profile would be helpful for getting the best suggestion for a local shop.

Thanks. I had both on my list to get quotes. I added my location to my profile.

 

[cipolz]

Any updates and pics on this subject would be appreciated.
I'm about to pick up my rav4 north of SF and would like to get the leather interior done.
Thanks!

 

[Weekdayskier]

Can't take pics today, wife took the car to work.

Essentially, both Katzkin and Roadwire are leather/vinyl replacements for the cloth. The kits are made for each specific vehicle in your choice of colors, perforated or not, even suede inserts if that's what you want. These are not add on seat covers and cannot be removed. The seats are removed from the vehicle, the cloth is removed and the leather with vinyl sides/back is put on by a professional upholstery shop. This is not a DIY project unless you are experienced. The stitching and fit are perfect.

The seat heaters work fine. There are no exposed edges. I cannot find any areas that appear untrimmed-it looks like it came from the factory. The door inserts are covered to match the seats.

I have a 4Runner with factory leather. I think the quality is a little better on the Rav.

This is different from the seat covers where you can see cutouts for the rear seatbelts, trimmed leather around the levers and armrest on the rear seats.

Overall, I'm very happy with the product after 7 months of use.