[66GT289]

Thanks to the sun, the back seats around the headrest
level have turned a purplish color. I'd like to dye them
back to the original black color. We're talking about a
small amount of cloth, right at the top of the seat back.
Anybody have any experience doing this kind of job?

 

[Mikelonis]

Ever try RIT? You can get it at the Drug Store. I've used it to dye seat belts. Since you can't soak the seat you may want to remove it, apply the RIT, and Rinse. What's the exact material? RIT won't take to synthetic fabrics. Here's a picture of me using RIT on seat belts.

 

[66GT289]

Now there's a good point. I don't have a clue if they're
synthetic material or not. I thought about RIT though.
What happens with RIT and synthetic material? I'll
bet it won't absorb the RIT?
On your seat belts- you don't get color coming off onto
clothes? That wouldn't be good. Particularly with a
seat. I think an experiment on the back on the trunk side
of the seat where you can't see it might give me some
answers.

 

[Mikelonis]

If you follow the rinsing process per instruction, the RIT will not come off. It's clothing dye. It may bleed if you submerged your seats in water but as long as they're dry after you treat it with RIT, you are OK. The stuff is cheap, buy a bottle and see if your seat material takes it.

 

[66GT289]

Just as I was getting ready to mix the RIT up, my wife
came back from Michael's (crafts store) with a permanent
fabric dye called "Tulip cool color spray." It comes in a
small spray bottle. Available in various shades, I'm told,
this one is black (FLSP14-4C). Roughly 5 bucks with tax.
Tested it out on the seat in an inconspicuous place and
it appears to do the trick. After it's dry, water doesn't
seem to make it run or bother it in any way. The down-
side is that with a 4 Oz bottle, it took the whole thing
to get a pretty small area on the top of the rear seat
colored perfectly back to black. (Roughly about five coats
with the appropriate drying time in between)
I'm guessing that RIT would be far more economical if
you're doing lots of cubic feet

Thanks for the replies.

 

[bjmikels]

You might try putting the RIT in a spray bottle.RIT also comes in boxes and just like jello you can dislove it in water then put it in an old windex spray bottle and it works like a charm. Just remember to protect your hand with gloves.

 

[quickshift]

I just finished a complete colour change from tan to black on my 84 cougar using products from PLASTICOAT for cloth and vinyl.........very impressed with results.......does not rub off!