6.9 leather seats

[Styria]

For some reason, leather upholstered 116 seats, that's front and rear, suffer from a bad case of pleat collapse but, in addition, 6.9 rear seats can completely collapse. Terrible to look at, even worse to sit on. First picture illustrates the very common problem of calico separation from the underside of the leather it is sewn to. Just have a look - it's not pretty.



The next picture illustrates the "handywork" of some Motor Trimmer - you'd want to have him on your side, wouldn't you ? Absolutely disgusting. The owner of the car has not previously seen the picture hereunder. When I had told him the state of the seat, he expressed surprise - well, here's the proof in the pudding.



Regards Styria

.....and the auctioneer's favourite expression of worn out stuff - "patina" - sounds good, sounds impressive, doesn't it ?

 

[motec 6.9]

Looks good well one on the left does .

 

[abl567]

The blue seats are W109, not W116

 

[BenzBoy]

the blue seats are w109, not w116

ssssssssssssssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

 

[abl567]

oops, sorry

 

[motec 6.9]

To late tell me more tell me more

 

[260ebenz]

Again another top notch refurb job Styria!

6.9 refurbed seat looks just as good as the refurbed seat in the 300SE.

 

[Oversize]

Obviously calico just isn't strong enough for the application..... Great finished product!

 

[Styria]

Hi Mark, I tend to think that it rots - certainly the variety of calico that Mercedes used in the '70s. Whilst obviously W126 have a few years on the earlier models, I have never really seen 126 seats as collapsed as the 116 variety. Even if you have a look at pristine and low mileage 6.9s (they are the most pictured), the back seats can be in surprisingly soft and fragile condition. Regards Styria

N.B. Anyway, you would probably in the best situation to examine the leather upholstery and its condition - a number of cars to choose from compare and assess their condition. I'd be interested in your findings.

 

[Oversize]

Hmm that sounds like a challenge!

 

[Styria]

In absence of a reply from Oversize D).....well, he has sold a couple of his 6.9s, I thought I'd provide you with some details of the upholstery in Gleaming Beauty- my own 6.9 of course. For years, both front seats were fitted with Sheepskin covers which came with compliments from SEL69L who rescued quite good quality units from a Mitsubishi he happened to chance upon at Pick 'n Payless.

I really do think that the comfort factor of the front leather seats benefit from the fitment of sheepskin covers. I know that not everyone will agree with my findings, but that's what I have experienced. However, not having access to the leather coverings means that one is unable to apply leather dressing to the covers. So when I decided just recently to purchase and fit new sheepskin covers, I was not really looking forward to what I might find once the covers were removed - there certainly was no way of knowing what state the leather would be in. Additionally, there was much concern as to whether or not the pleats would be flattened as illustrated earlier in the thread. BTW, regarding Anthony's comments he is of course quite correct in pointing out that the two front seats came from a Ch. 109 car - in fact, it is a 6.3. I wanted to illustrate deterioration of 6.9 rear seats, and the 'wear and tear' that leather upholstery can suffer from.

Anyway, getting back to GB's front seats. Much to my surprise, the sheepskin covers had really protected the leather covers from deterioration. There was no further evidence of cracking that had not already been evident prior to the fitting of the sheep skins, mainly on the driver's seat, but all in all I was ecstatic that there was no appreciable damage, neither to the leather NOR the pleats. Quite remarkable. Next job was to have the trimmer not only fit the new sheepskin covers, but I also asked him to liberally apply some leather conditioner, leave the leather in the sun covered by clear plastic (to make the leather sweat and achieve better penetration) prior to fitting new covers. Additionally, at his own behest, he did build up the padding slightly, the driver's seat that is, and I now have two not only beautiful looking front seats, but they are also comfortable and it's gratifying to know that all is well in all aspects, even the ones one cannot see.

Whilst I was at it, I also applied about five applications of the leather conditioner to the bottom section of the rear seat as well, and it is in truly virtually unmarked condition - just the right 'patina' inspite of its thirty seven years of age. I do have some photos somewhere, and I will endeavour to post those. Regards. Styria

 

[WGB]

My 6.9 spends more time on a Battery conditioner these days but a couple of weeks ago I started it from it's sleep and drove it for a couple of days.
Started immediately and pumped itself back up over 15 seconds or so.
It's leather seats as supplied by Styria look as fresh as the day they were installed and the car drives well.
I might shout it to a full fluid replacement this summer.
Cheers to all.

 

[Oversize]

Well I can categorically say S2 W126 seats DO NOT FIT into a W116 (or 6.9) without a significant amount of modification. The mounting points are quite different, even though they look fairly similar. I was quite surprised to make this discovery yesterday and shocked there is such a difference between the models.

The distances between front and rear mounting bolts are around:

W116: 310mm
W126: 363mm

The width apart is about the same. The W126 seatbelt receivers appear to be wider and therefore appear to contact the centre console of a W116. And don't even start me on the rail that the receiver runs along! I'd suggest the mounting point on the trans tunnels will also be in an unworkable location. Oh and let me also make the observation that I think the W116 mounting bolts are oddly close together (barely more than a ruler) and are prone to cracking.

I have pix, but I can't upload them from my phone due to my infuriating computer....

I wish I'd done more research earlier, because I would not have bought everything I am now storing. So this apparently small fact has far-reaching implications on my collection. In my defence I have seen pix of a W116 with W126 seats, but they must've chopped the hell out of it to achieve that feat. The spring bases may be interchangeable and you might be able to swap a W126 backrest onto a W116 base, but I don't know why you'd bother.

So there you are; you heard it first on TK!

 

[Styria]

This is an old thread dating back to 2015 - April to be precise. I don't know how to attach to the current thread in which I comment on the sound proofing behind the back squab. Regards Styria

 

[john erbe]

Agreed. My back seat had a tear and I am not a big fan of those pleats. My solution was to install the rear seats of a 420 in my 6.9. Just finished the project today. If you want to see the final result I posted today on the 116 Forum. Having trouble attaching photos here.

 

[john erbe]

Here you go...