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German Vinyl and Fabric


esty

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i'm just curious, i honestly don't know...what is the advantage or benefit of German vinyl or fabric. it cost more but is it better than domestic vinyls or fabrics...or is it just a selling point because our cars are German...just looking at it in pictures and seeing actual material on sample boards i cannot tell it is German or that it is different or better than what can be bought domestically for a fraction of the cost....if you told me it was Swiss or Portuguese vinyl how would i know

 

does it smell like sausage or stale beer?

 

if we were driving MG's would saying the materials are British make them better?

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Well, I just took apart one of my Recaros, and it had a torn side bolster.  It had already been replaced once, presumably by some local shop that probably used domestic vinyl.  See attached pics.  You can see it didn't last and it definitely feels thinner and the vinyl started peeling from the backing.  You can also see the texture difference.

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Edited by bergie33

Karl B.

1974 2002tii Malaga ("Conrad") -->> Conrad's Restoration Blog

2003 330i ZHP 6-spd

2011 328i xDrive

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I'm sure Lars would have an opinion, I don't have any real comparisons either. I think its usually the subjective eye/nose factor....the one that looks closer...I would swear that a 1970 Triumph Stag and a 1970 MGB maintained in the same conditions would have a certain smell. My friend's Chevy Montecarlo would have a slightly different one. Better? No, just different. For vinyls, if you ignore the grain, what is the difference. You coukd probably find a cheap thin one, used in Germany or made in Germany...but on fabric, try to find a high quality velour for a 1980's Mercedes made domestically...try to find the right looking one period...

A.

1971 2002ti, 1985 E30 320i, 1960 Land Rover 109 Ser 2, 1963 Land Rover 88 Ser 2a, 1980 Land Rover Ser 3 Lightweight 

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Besides the quality (perceived or otherwise), there's the emotional aspect too. To a lot of people, German parts "feel" right for a German car, especially one that was originally made using German parts (less and less the case these days, c'est la vie). Even better if the vender was an OEM supplier. 

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My seats were re-done with German Vinyl and they feel great, not that my Boat reupholster did a bad job but the German product definitely feels nicer to the touch 

 

ADB8BF9F-DD03-4BAF-AF77-781D56012E1D.jpeg

I don't take myself or opinions Seriously

My 4th 2002 and the first set of Square Tail-Lights

See the 4 versions of my 2002 project here: SoCal S2002 | Facebook

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