1970 VW Karmann Ghia - Rear Seat Installation:

Video Transcript:

Intro 0:00 Hi I'm Sam at JBugs.com, come cozy up next to me while we put in some new upholstery. Stock rear seat upholstery removal 0:09 Before we can get the new upholstery installed, 0:11 we need to pull off the old material and that starts by removing the carpet from the back rest. 0:16 Now we can start pulling off the upholstery which is stapled onto the wood seat. 0:20 So, we spend our time pulling out the staples that we can, 0:23 and tapping the ones that we can't in flush with a hammer and we work our way around the seat backrest. 0:29 While I'm working on this, would you do us a favor and click on the like and subscribe buttons. 0:33 Once we have all the staples and the material removed, 0:36 we end up with the frame and as odd as that might seem, 0:40 both the bottom and the backrest are just wood that's covered with foam and upholstery. 0:45 We do have replacement foam for the upholstery but seeing as the original foam is in great shape, 0:49 there's no sense in not reusing it. Rear seat backrest prep 0:52 We do see a worn corner though so we'll use some of the replacement foam and some spray glue to patch the corners. 0:59 We set the new backrest upholstery over the seat to check the fit. 1:03 Then, we pull off the upholstery so we can spray glue on the contoured sections of the foam 1:07 and we spray the upholstery in the same areas. 1:10 This will help to make sure that the new upholstery stays formed to the padding. Rear seat backrest upholstery installation 1:15 Once the glue is tacked up we set the upholstery onto the seat, 1:19 lining up the top and the side seams with the foam, 1:22 and then we press the upholstery down into the contoured areas. 1:26 We flip the seat over and remove the remnants of the old backrest clip from the top of the seat frame 1:31 and the backrest hinges from the bottom edge. 1:36 Next, the process is pretty simple. 1:38 We pull the bottom flap of upholstery tight up over the back of the wooden frame 1:42 and stay put in place across the bottom edge. 1:46 Since we're just using a regular staple gun, a hammer helps fully seat the staples. 1:52 Once we're done with the bottom flap, we flip the seat over to check the progress, 1:58 before we get to work pulling up the top flap up and over the seat, 2:02 and repeating the process again. 2:05 Here we make sure to line up the seat as straight as possible before stapling the vinyl on the back side. 2:10 The upper corners of the upholstery are pulled, folded, stapled down as needed, 2:14 and any excess materials cut away at the curved upper lip of the seat frame. 2:19 At the bottom, we fold the two flaps over to check the overlap point and cut away the excess material. 2:27 Then we staple the edge of the bottom flap first and overlap them with the side flap. 2:33 The side flap is pulled taut while keeping the sewn seam on the side of the seat as straight as possible and it's stapled down. 2:41 Once we're done with both sides of the seat, we flip it over to check our work, and flip it down once again 2:48 so we can poke around with a screw to locate the holes before screwing the hinges back into their original locations. Rear seat backrest carpet installation 2:55 Now, we can test fit the backrest carpet before gluing it in place. 3:00 Like in our carpet video, we are using headliner glue instead of spray glue which we actually prefer for carpet, 3:05 and we apply it to both surfaces, 3:08 we allow to tack up, 3:11 and then we set it in place making sure it's straight across the sides and the top and we smooth it out across the back rest. Rear seat backrest installation (in car) 3:18 With the backrest finished, we set it in the car. 3:22 Peel back the front lip of the luggage tray carpet a bit and screw in the hinges at the left and right sides. 3:30 We check that the seat folds up and down as it should, 3:33 before pulling back the rear shelf carpet which is just sitting in place 3:38 and installing a new rear seat latch catch. 3:41 The backrest latch is set over the catch 3:44 and screwed into the seat backrest while pressing it in place against the rear shelf. 3:50 We test the operation of the latch and then it's back to our workbench to get to work on the bottom seat. Rear seat bottom upholstery removal 3:57 The process is basically the same as the backrest. 4:01 We pull the upholstery and staples from the seat bottom board. 4:06 The replacement and the original upholstery which was still in place under the gray cover are removed, 4:10 while keeping the original padding in place. 4:14 All the staples on the bottom of the seat are pulled or tapped flat. 4:17 And here we'll note the rear metal crossbar which reinforces the seat bottom across the back of the tunnel. Rear seat bottom upholstery installation 4:24 Then, just like we did with the backrest, we test fit the upholstery, 4:29 spray glue the original foam contoured areas, 4:32 and those same areas on the material, 4:35 before setting the upholstery in place, 4:38 pressing the material into the foam, 4:41 and then stretching it over to the back side of the seat. 4:45 We start stretching and stapling at the front of the seat 4:49 and work down each side stretching and stapling as we go. 4:54 At the rear of the seat, the material stretched at the middle 4:58 then stapled across the board on either side, 5:01 and the corners are pulled and folded over before they're stapled down as well. 5:07 The extra material that's going to be sitting here will be sitting under the seat, 5:10 as it sits in the rear of the body just like this, Rear seat bottom installation (in car) 5:14 and it will be out of sight and out of mind. 5:17 That wraps up this video but not this series. 5:20 Thanks for watching and let us know if you have any questions in the comments below.