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XS seat re-trim

My original seats were starting to show some wear and tear and eventually began to be a real eyesore. There are a variety of aftermarket seats that will fit in a Defender, but I wanted to keep a stock look. Since my Defender is one of those that originally came with leather seats, the only proper solution was to continue to use leather for the replacement set.

I obtained a mostly-complete Defender XS leather trim kit (the kind that they use on XS series Defenders sold elsewhere in the world) and filled in the missing pieces with an order from Exmoor Trim Ltd. across the pond.

I used new foam pieces all around and opted for seat heaters (also from Exmoor) as a "while you're in there" bonus.

Pardon the background mess; this room was being used as a bit of a dumping ground while doing some renovations to my house. Don't do this job on carpet that you aren't about to replace - the seat rails are greasy!


A big box of goodies: new foam all around and XS leather seat skins.


Taking the seat bottom apart is pretty easy on a D90. Just remove that rubber retaining wedge and you're half-way there. New rubber retainers are helpful for re-installation.


There is a major difference in the construction of the base foam. The new-style piece (right) is clearly more supportive compared to the hollow original (left).


This original leather seat base (removed from the foam) is looking worn.


These cracks were there when I got the car. Though I've maintained a regular regiment of leather conditioner, nothing can repair this sort of damage.


The bottom seat's heating element positioned and secured to the foam with heavy duty double-sided tape.

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