TMI Ghia front seat covers SUCK

[Braukuche]

Ive used TMI seat covers on bugs and busses and they more or less fit over factory horsehair pads but the Ghia ones, especially the seat bottom covers, leave the seat looking like the skin of a circus fat lady after dropping 200 lbs. I can’t help but wonder what they are thinking, am I supposed to stuff a pillow in there to fill it out? The beauty of especially 69-74 seats is that they have a bolster to them, but with these seat covers there is no way to fit them to the shape of the seat. What are you guys doing for padding?
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Go Reds! Smash state!

Retirement is here!
1956 Ghia
1959 SO-23 Westfalia
1960 double cab
1960 Baja Bug
1963 stretched double cab
1962 Golde sunroof Ghia
1963 356 B coupe
1963 Notchback
1967 21 window less rusty now

[jeffrey8164]

“What are you guys doing for padding?”
An upholsterer.
They know all the tricks and have all the materials.
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Volkswagen!
Turning owners into mechanics since 1938.

“Let he that is without oil throw the first rod”
(Compression 8.7:1)

[Vladiiiii]

You are right, unfortunately, the TMI front seat covers don't have the Ghia-specific "cup" shape to them, the indentation that you pull down and tie down the strings to the frame, to give you the impression that you have a bucket seat

Because in Europe there's no alternative between TMI (300 euros), or upholstery / Sewfine plus shipping, taxes (1200-1500 euros for any of those). So I worked with TMI for my Ghia. I tried to replicate the cupped look by glueing strings to the bottom and pulling and tieing them to the frame of the seat, but it didn't work, the shape is like the normal (straight) Beetle seat.

So I used some foam everywhere, while (IIRC) I filled the middles with some thicker foam to even out the shape. For what TMI is, I think they turned out nice, with a very nice feel to them. Not concours of course, but for a nice driver, good enough.

(I don't use the stock seats because with my weight, I slide/fall from them with every corner, and I don't like how the whole bottom tilts around. I have another set of Miata seats I covered in similar vinyl and use those at the moment.)

Regards,
Vlad
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Vlad's 72 Ghia (Once in a Lifetime Restoration topic)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=9237746#9237746

[jeffrey8164]

Vlad, those Miata seats look great.
I have some 626 seats.

It’s hard to tell in your picture but it looks like they’re riding on the stock seat tracks. Is this so? If yes can you tell us how you did it?
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Volkswagen!
Turning owners into mechanics since 1938.

“Let he that is without oil throw the first rod”
(Compression 8.7:1)

[Vladiiiii]

I really don't want to highjack this thread ("Alternative Seats for your Ghia" or whatever it's called thread would be more apropriate), but.... thanks a lot. UK covers, put on by a Romanian in Germany

They don't ride on the stock rails. I drilled some holes in the original vertical rails. Through those holes, I mounted 2 simple 3mm steel "U-Brackets" (but with the U upside down), and in those steel brackets I drilled 4 holes, in which I mounted universal sliders, which are bolted to the seats. It sounds quite complicated and it's a pain to take the seat out (basically it takes 30 min / seat if you're fat ), but in essence, it's quite simple

Your 626 seats look very comfy, and fit the interior very good (or is it the other way around?).

Anyway, as you can see, a few people running non-stock (but stock looking seats) for comfort, sport or practicality reasons. I still stand by that TMI offers good products for the price

Vlad
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Vlad's 72 Ghia (Once in a Lifetime Restoration topic)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=9237746#9237746