How to Recover a Toyota Car Seat

If you have a Toyota that is in sound mechanical condition but the interior is wearing, particularly around the seats, you can recover them yourself. Toyotas are famous for their ability to take hundreds of thousands of miles, but the seats will show conspicuous signs of wear and tear. You can simply throw a prefabricated seat cover over your Toyota's seats or reupholster them yourself. All you need is some common household tools and a little dedication.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

things you'll need:

• Notepad
• Fine point marker
• Upholstery
• Scissors
• Tape measure
• Sewing machine
• Stitch picker

1. • 1

     Measure your Toyota's car seats with a tape measure. Write down the dimensions on a notepad. Purchase a fabric of your choosing. The fabric should be durable and clean easily. Purchase 5 to 10 percent more fabric than your measurements in case you make a mistake.

   • 2

     Remove your Toyota's car seat from the vehicle by removing the mounting bolts on the floor with a wrench. The car seat fabric will be secured by hooks underneath the seat. Unplug any wiring going to your Toyota's car seat if applicable.

   • 3

     Remove the old fabric from the Toyota's car seat by unfastening the hooks and using a stitch picker to free the old seat covering entirely.

   • 4

     Roll out your new fabric on a smooth, level surface. Place the Toyota's old seat fabric on top of the new fabric and trace the outline with a fine point marker. Cut the outline with a pair of scissors and then turn the new fabric inside out. You will have a couple of pieces of fabric. Pin the new fabric together with safety pins.

   • 5

     Sew the new pieces together with a sewing machine. Turn the fabric right side out and slide it over the Toyota's car seat. Stretch the new fabric from the top down to the bottom, making it fit snugly over the seat. Hook the bottom to the hooks underneath the seat. Place the seat back inside your Toyota and plug in any wires. Fasten the mounting bolts down tightly.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have substantial difficulty in trying to recover your Toyota's car seat with new fabric, you can purchase prefabricated seat covers at most auto parts stores. Or you can have the seats recovered by a professional upholstery service.