How to Replace Worn Seat Padding in a Truck or Car

The chair is one of the most crucial elements when it comes to your comfort while driving your car or truck. The chairs in vehicles are padded and covered with whatever finishing material your type of vehicle has, ranging from fabrics to leathers to canvases. Over time, the seat padding within your seat will wear out and you will need to repair the seats back to their original state for continued comfort. Replacing the seat filling allows you to customize the new level of padding and make your car or truck like brand new again.

Things You'll Need

  • Wrench set
  • Utility knife
  • Padding
  • Sewing kit or sewing machine (optional)
  • Refer to your owner's manual for exact specifications on how to remove the seats from your car or truck, which will vary vehicle to vehicle. Use a wrench from the set and loosen the bolts that hold the chair onto the mounting brackets. Remove the chair completely from the car or truck and set it in a clean, level place where you can work on it.

  • Decide if you want to only replace the padding, or if you want to replace the padding plus replace the old material covering the seat. Pull the padding out of the affected area if you wish to preserve the existing material. Use the utility knife to make a cut along the length of the seat on that side to make room for the new padding. Cut the new padding to fit and slide it into place. Sew the material back together and reinstall the seat.

  • Remove the seat from the chair assembly for your car or truck following the instructions on your owner's manual. Completely remove the old seat cover plus padding if it is in very bad shape. Measure new material using the old seat cover as a reference, and add a couple inches to each measurement to allow for inseams. Turn the material inside out and sew three of the edges together with the sewing machine. Turn the material right-side in and insert the seat padding. Sew the final edge with the sewing machine or by hand and re-attach the seat to the chair assembly.

  • Put the seat back into your car or truck. Reattach the entire assembly to the mounting rails on the floorboard and tighten the mounting bolts.