Looking at a '40 Coupe that's good mechanically, but needs interior. I was thinking of an early 60's look with white naugahyde and red piping. Has anyone had something done like this recently? What was the cost roughly?
.........A lot more info is needed here. Are you just doing the seat or all panels as well, kick panels, door cards, quarters, back bulkhead? How about the headliner? Are all of the top bows there, should be 7 total? What kind of floor covering, rubber matting, wool carpet? Big difference in cost. Dynamat the entire interior or just the floor and firewall area? How about the trunk? Prices are going to be all over the place depending on where you get it done and who does it. Best bet is to ask around locally and get some estimates and be specific about scope of work to be done. Good luck.
White/Red would give it that period look, although not my favorite color. Don is correct, cost is going to be highly dependent on scope of work. I just met with my upholsterer yesterday to discuss my new project being done in Bedford Cord. Having to replace any support materials GREATLY affects the cost, as well as how many pleats, seams, etc. A good example- I had estimates of installing a pre-purchased headliner in my 53 of $200.00 to $700.00, and I already had the bows in place so not to mix them up.
Hello, The style and color during our time period of 1956-64 was usually white tuck and toll with 1 to 2 inch pleats. If one had the money, the job was finished with one of our So Cal upholstery shops. If anyone was a standard teenager with limited income or a low bank account, then what money saved went on a 100 mile road trip to the shady upholstery shops South of the border. It did not matter what hot rod was going to get upholstery. It just had to be white tuck and roll. Most hot rods and larger sedans got the full treatment of roof, doors and package panel in white. One 40 Ford two door sedan even got his trunk upholstered in the same matching “Naughahyde.” A fancy subs***ute for leather. The sedan was red with a Buick v8. The white upholstery was pretty anywhere it parked and made the sedan stand out. The red was bright enough, but the sun did wonders for the parked look with moving highlights of the white upholstery. At night at the drive in restaurant parking lot lights, it still had the glow of the white on red look. This guy had a shop in the So Cal region do the great looking white tuck and roll upholstery. The other hot rods were a 46 Ford Purple Coupe with the same style of white from floor to inside roof and doors. The purple was medium dark. But, the white tuck and roll was the standout look for this 46 Ford coupe. It was a south of the border upholstery job and looked excellent. The other Chevy sedan was a silver 56 two door post with chrome wheels. When the white tuck and roll job was finished south of the border, it made the silver paint stand out as the sun moved from one side to the other. The overall “glow” of the white versus silver just made the bland color stand out a**** the other local hot rods. Jnaki The problem with the 1959-62 trend was white tuck and roll. It was a nightmare to keep clean. The washed and unwashed Levi Jeans did a dark stain number on the white surfaces. Blue for the clean jeans and darker oily residue if mechanicals were involved, always showed up after any daily driver or longer road trips were involved. As good as it looked, the difficulties of keeping it clean was horrendous and time consuming. If you plan on getting white carpeting to match the white upholstery, get ready for additional cleaning above and beyond the seating and full interior upholstery. If you plan on getting the trunk lid or complete trunk finished in the same white upholstery, that is a total nightmare. During the teenage years, my brother knew that Levis did a number on any color upholstery and knew he was going to be in and out of the seating area. So, he purchased a set of clear plastic seat covers for his 58 black with red upholstery interior. From 57 to 64, it remained clean and the upholstery was brand new underneath when we sold the Impala. but, no one puts clear plastic seat covers on white tuck and roll. Again, your red piping idea will give the white surfaces some distinction, but, get ready for some additional daily cleaning and constant wiping with what ever you use to clean the white upholstery. As good as piping looks on upholstery, it creates an edge to rub on surfaces that slide across the seating areas. Those areas should have smooth surfaces to minimize the rubbing effect. If it is all one material, like smooth vinyl, then it might be easier than if a white cloth material gets inserted in the pattern. Plus, if it is a two door sedan, moving the white seats forward will leave imprints over time on the corners just from ordinary finger/hand oils. It is a slower process, but it will happen and show up on white upholstery. We had tan upholstery on our 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery with a 327 motor. Over time, the hand marks, too, showed up on those seat top corners. White for daily drivers was/will be a questionable choice, given the extra time and energy it takes to keep it clean. YRMV
White is cool and traditional, but it always scares me. The first time I sat down with dirty (or greasy) jeans on I would probably wish I had gone with Black.
If it doesn’t have a back seat, being you live in cal you could get a couple of buckets from pro car seats the way you want for about 500 to 1000 bucks depending on style. Carpet floor yourself for 300 headliner is dependent on the shop but here it would be 500 plus material. Door panels and kicks you can buy the material by the yard to match seats from pro car again do them yourself. I did my avatar olds business coupe for 1500 bucks
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