Horsehair seat bottoms--still available?

Drew Gregg

Drew Gregg

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The interior shop that worked on my car asked me about the horsehair bottoms in the CS and 2002 seats.
Is there any source for these?
They are restoring a full interior on a CS.
 
when I was a grad student 3 decades ago I redid some 2002 seats with synthetic horsehair material. I did this because I couldn’t afford the rubberized horsehair stuff from the dealer.

The stuff came in sheets, a bit like a 3/4” thick low density gigantic scotchbrite pad. I started with heavy Cotten fabric sewed to the wire/spring frame. Then I built up the desired squab contour with pieces of trimmed synthetic horsehair. For the last/top layer, I used a continuous piece that went from edge to edge. I used heavy leather luggage thread to tie the padding onto the wire frames to try to get the same shape as the original molded horsehair. I used cotton batting under the seat covers (from World Upholstery). It turned out ok, for 4x cheaper than dealer parts, and I drove that car for 14 years before the rockers and floors rusted away due to salty Michigan winters.

I’m sure a good upholsterer can do way better with foam, but I liked that I kept the construction somewhat original.

www.upholsteryconnection.com

Rubberized Hair / Rubberized Curled Hair

Perfect replacement for horsehair and hog hair. Moth-proof, durable and clean. Use for upholstery, model-making, hobbies and crafts. Sold by running foot. Learn more!
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1 x 24 Rubberized Hair

Looking for the perfect product to replace old horse hair upholstery padding? Rubberized hair is a hypoallergenic and mildew resistant upholstery fill that is long lasting and durable under frequent use. Similar to foam, this rubberized hair is easy to cut using scissors or a knife and is easily...
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Not sure why you want horsehair.

I bought some ($$$) for my wife's Pagoda and they are stiff as a board. My upholstery guy would have rather used foam any day.

They just have no give whatsoever.
 
From my experience the MB pads are super hard and not constructed like the BMW ones were. A good upholstery shop will add foam over the horsehair and vinyl between them and the springs to keep them from disintegrating further.
 
The above posts are very informative. I guess the customer wanted the horsehair if available. They know how to rebuild seats with traditional materials.
Thanks for the answers to my question.
 
I recently recovered my seat bottom spring with 3 layers of foam - high density to soft, following upholstery industry recommendation. Pretty happy with results. PM if you'd like foam numbers and source, and pictures of the process.
 
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