406oc.co.uk

Just before I go & spend £300 on a set of seats for my LX, I've had a recurring idea that keeps popping into my head re interior upgrades.

Been contemplating it for a while, but am really unsure as to whether it would be worth it or not, but how about fitting coupe front seats & the rear seats from an early leather shod 406 saloon or estate. The cloth interiors are too different to get away with, but I reckon the leather would match fairly well.

Here are what I've been looking at:

Saloon and estate rear seats aren't interchangeable to my knowledge

I'd just grab a set of non-coupé leathers. The seats are much more comfortable and more durable than the coupé's. If it weren't for the need for folding backs in the 2-door, I'd have replaced my coupé front seats with saloon/estate seats as soon as I got the car

Wasn't looking at fitting saloon seats to an estate, they were just an example of what I'm looking at as the earlier type leather is a better match for the coupe fronts than the ribbed type.

But the point about comfort & durability is taken on board. I honestly thought the coupe ones would have been nicer as they look sportier than standard ones, but at least somebody said before I wasted money trying.

Might get on & order the other set then. £330 delivered & including doorcards & the seats themselves are mint. More expensive than the last few I saw on Ebay, but they're so few & far between, if I waited that law of sod would push the bidding up near that level anyway & I'd still have to sort delivery out!

BTW, just tried a quote for my OH on that marmalade thing & it said £245 for 3 months! Don't know if they've done it cheaper because she's 40 or bumped it up because she's blonde AND Irish, but seems like a lot of money to me.

£330 is a LOT for an interior, especially as you could pick up a whole car with leather for under £200 (I paid half that a few years ago for my dad's ill-but-roadworthy 406 exec complete with leather!!!)

As an example: £100 for a cream early D8 saloon interior if you're near somewhere called "Bourne"
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0544245684

or search ebay for "406 breaking estate" or something for a list of people you could send a message to. There's also local breakers yards you could try. Don't pay £330 unless you're getting the rest of the car as well

Ah, but there's the problem - I have contemplated getting a whole car that's spares or repairs & selling off the rest, but the last one I saw that fitted the bill went for over £700. Plus, I have a D9 estate with airbags in the seats so I need to get a similar aged interior other wise the lack of side bags will throw up warning lights & these aren't so easy to find. Been putting the interior request on Partsgateway & a few others for a few months now & this is the first time anybody has come up with one.

Whatever happened to that estate full leather Puggy was sniffing round a good few months back?

First I've heard about that, but if it was months back, it'll more than likely be gone by now.

£300 is top buck for a full leather interior! I'd want no marks on it for that.
I got mine for £70!

As for interiors for the saloons/estates... you can find them if you look long and hard enough.

Saw a 406 Executive with a gorgeous cream interior a few months back. Has been crushed since

Cream interior is nice, but really need to get black or grey otherwise I'd need to look at changing carpets & other bits so it didn't look silly.

Having read Blue's post on the other topic though, I'm now swinging back towards the coupe front & early estate rear plan again.

Do any of the coupe seats have the airbags in them? & did they do manual leather or are they all electric too?

I think the very last run of coupes featured side airbags. 2002-2004 roughly.
The seats will not be a straight swap though, as has been said. If you're good at DIY and metalwork, I do not see why not however.

99% leather coupe seats are electric.
If you can find a half leather interior, they are manual.

Check out Ade1122's shop on ebay - http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/ade1122/
He's a member of the 406 coupe club and highly recomended seller.
If you get a leather interior from him he supplies a loom that lets to connect the electric seats to a car with no electric seats. I used his loom. Fantastic bit of kit.

Rear coupe seats definitely not a straight swap - that's why I'm aiming for the early leather rear bench from an estate as the non ribbed pattern matches the coupe style fronts better - but I'm only looking at fitting the front seats from a coupe. Would've thought the fronts would just bolt straight in wouldn't they?

It's possible I suppose, but I don't realy know.

One way to find out though

I have the early exec leather, sure its real comfy but they look very dated, it just reminds me of an old Volvo and some spirited driving sees me moving around far too much. the coupe fronts look okay. Ive been trawling ebay for something different, something with Recaro on maybe

The coupe seats hold you quick nicely for some spirited driving.

I may have stumbled across the answer to this one with the help of servicebox. Can anybody with a coupe tell me if the seat mounting bolts are all fixed into the car vertically please or is there one that goes in horizontally?

Think that plan has gone out the window now, but just as well as I've only just clicked that I'd be sacrificing that nice comfy armrest on the seat if I used coupe fronts.