Ford OEM Seat Upholstery Replacement: How To Do It?

If your Ford leather seat covers are not looking cool anymore, they might need upholstery. It is pretty difficult to keep the leather seats clean. Over the years of use, the seats may have lost their bright, charming appeal. Therefore, you will need a Ford OEM seat upholstery replacement to give your car interior a brand new look.

If you have been using the seats for a long time, they surely have cracks, holes, and tears on them. You can do it yourself, or a professional car mechanic can do it for you. So, we are sharing this guide so that you can entirely replace the seat covers by yourself. We will also cover how to deep clean the seat thoroughly and match the new leather cover with the old one. Let’s get started.

Table of Content show

Ford OEM Seat Upholstery Replacement: A Detailed Guideline

The OEM or Original Equipment Manufacturer seat upholstery will require the following items. Therefore, gather them all together before heading to work.

Equipment You’ll Need:

Torx Bit T-55 Socket
13mm Regular Socket
An Impact Wrench
Hog Rings
A Set of Hog Ring Plier
A Pair of Snips
Needle Nose Pliers
Flathead Screwdrivers
Pry Tool (Not mandatory to have)
A Pair of Mechanic’s Gloves

Materials You’ll Need:

OEM Seat Upholstery Kit
Leather Repair Kit
Garment/Upholstery Steamer

Process

Now, if your seat cover and foam are all good, follow the following section to clean them up. However, if you want to replace the whole seat, make sure the OEM Seat matches the interior of the original factory setup. Because of the wear and tear during the course of time, the seat color has changed. So, you definitely need to clean the old leather cover to get the original color. Use a leather cleaning kit to wipe down all the dirt.

Uninstall The Seat

As you have already brought your Ford seat out of the car, we can proceed to upholster the seat. But if you haven’t yet, that’s the first thing you must do using a Torx Bit T-55 prior to changing the seat cover. Raise the seat all the way up to get some more space underneath.

Now, disconnect all the power connectors and seat belt sensors. Also, remove the elastic from the seat belt that attaches the seat with the belt buckles. You will find some bolts under the seat. Take them off with the 13mm socket using the impact wrench. Then pull off the seat of the frame. Similarly, remove the top portion of the seat from the frame.

Remove The Seat Cover

Undo the black channel J clip from underneath all the sides of the seat. Use the pry tool or a large screwdriver to remove the push tabs and plastic bars. Do not cut yourself with sharp edges of the metal panel.

Now, peel the cover from all the corners and do not peel the cover all the way since it is attached with hog rings. Twist and bend the hog rings using a pair of snips. They will come off easily. If you don’t, you will have to cut them off all the way.

And be cautious when snipping the hog rings as the edges attached to the seat cover are super sharp. You may scrape your arm if you are not careful. Use needle-nose pliers to remove the extra bits and pieces inside the foam.

Steam The Foam

Take the clothing steamer and let it sit on the cushion for five to ten seconds. Then slide it all over the foam. When you are done, leave it in front of a fan for about an hour or until dried up. Before installing the cover, make sure the foam is all dried up. Or it will mold and have a weird smell.

Put On The New Cover

Align the new seat cover (or the old one if it is intact) with the foam bars. Hook the hog rings on all the sides through the fabric using a hog ring plier. Stretch the cover a little, push the foam in, and rolling over the edges, tuck the cover under the foam. Hook the J clips underneath the seat. Do not cut yourself with the metal edges. Then reinstall the seat into the frame.

Conclusion

We hope this Ford OEM seat upholstery replacement guide helped you to install your Ford seat. Now, it is time to follow this guideline and upholster the seat properly. And at the end, you will enjoy new leather seats on your Ford automotive. However, if you do not want to do it yourself, any local upholstery shop can do it for you.