paxus

I've gone back and forth on this a whole bunch. I simply love the look of leather inside a car. Cloth to me, seems a little cheap looking. I don't think I'm an elist on this issue, I have cloth seats in my current car, and I just believe that a maxima should have leather seats. It's just the way I see the car overall. I don't want to offend anyone with cloth seats out there. I just want to discuss the pros and cons of these seats in the maxima. So the way I see it:

Leather pros:

*More luxurious look.
*Easy to Clean up.

Leather cons:

*Gets hot as hell in the summer sun. (I've heard tinting helps this a lot)

Cloth pros:

*Doesn't get super hot in the summer, but it does get somewhat hot.
*Better support/comfort?

Cloth cons:

*not all that luxurious looking.

Does this seem legitimate? What's your opinion?

asu174

iTrader: (11)

I live in Arizona and have the frost leather. If you park in the sun, I would consider cloth, but I am garaged 90% of the time, so it has never been an issue.

Plus I have really bad allergies and cloth retains dust and pollen and other nasty stuff. I just spray and wipe with the leather and it's all gone.

Final score:
Leather 10
Cloth 1

dino1063

I'm going through the same dilemma right now.

My car was purchased with cloth, but I'm looking at getting seats from leatherseats.com soon. I just want to make sure it's easy enough to install!

ILoveMyMax

girls like leather..its all that matters

[maxi-overdose]

iTrader: (3)

leather cons:
-when I am doing hard turns....I slide off on my seat
-more maintanance.

pjalst

I changed my seats from cloth to Leather www.leatherseats.com , and I will never go back.

NYC2SD

I live in San Diego. Even if I park in the sun my leather stays pretty cool . I have my windows tinted and use a sunshade. Just be smart and you won't cook your butt!

BuddyWh

I'd add as an advantage for cloth upholstery: it's a lot quieter with a cloth interior as cloth sharply attenuates high frequency noises.

The allergy and asthma advantage for leather can be really compelling though and over-ride it's disadvantages for a sufferer if it doesn't also have a strong leather smell.

BuddyWh

NYC2SD

After the new car smell goes away, wouldn't the cloth retain more fibers and spores that irritate those that suffer from allergies.

Trev_Daddy

I would very much argue this point...I think that the leather in my Maxima is simply the most comfortable in any car I have ever owned. I love the feel of the leather, and with the power adjustable seat, you can adjust it just perfectly to fit your posture.

Leather helps with the resale of your car as well. And as someone pointed out, chicks dig the leather And isn't that what it's all about??

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

yeah some ppl complain their asses get all sweaty on that leather, pardon my french.

A brand new Max with leather may cost up to a grand more than one with cloth seats.

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

Leather also gets cold as hell in the winter.
But I'm going to try not to get leather when I buy my Max. I plan to have it done later, either get the leatherseats.com kit, or have Katzkin here do it locally. Nissan charges $1500 MSRP for their leather, which is only real leather on the seating surface. The side/back of the seats, and the door panels are simulated leather (vinyl). No thanks. I can get a full high quality leather setup for half that, with my own choice of colors/stitching, etc...

asu174

iTrader: (11)

Cloth retains a ton more allergens. Cloth can breathe, but it can also retain junk from the air.

The new car smell and leather smell gave me a slight sinus headache for a while, but I eventually got used to it.

Greg's2kGLE

Chicks definitely dig the leather! I don't slide off the seat in hard turns like some people say. Throw some tint on and it won't be as hot. I find the steering wheel gets hotter than the seats. Leather is a nice option.

ChoppaBoy

nothing compares to the look of having leather in your car, but cloth is MUCH more confortable in my opinion, especially compared to nissan leather

Greg's2kGLE

Thats what heated seats are for

Tanman

I live in Texas and bought my Maxima with cloth because leather gets too hot. Actually, I've found this isn't really a problem because I have tinting, I have covered parking pretty much all the time, and I use the AC a lot. Looking back, I'd have gotten the leather.

Another question, is the leather from leatherseats.com as good as leather from a local aftermarket shop (like Classic). They charge around $1000 installed, and it starts out hard, but becomes supple with time as you break it in. Does the leatherseats.com leather start out soft? If so, it may not stand the test of time.

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

Unfortuanately not all Maximas have Meridian.

ms.thicknes

The cloth that is in the max is also of better quality and very plush

every time someone gets in the car they comment on the softness of the seats and how comfortable they are

cloth and leather both have advantages and disadvantages..it's just a matter of you deciding which ones you can live with

I did not choose leather because i live in a local that stays hot and even though my car is tinted, a fried who is a cop told me that women SHOULD not use sunshades because it prevents you from seeing inside the car at night ..which of course could be hazardous to a girl's health (yea i went off on another tangent but it's another reason that i didnt get the leather package)

if you do have a problem with allergies, invest in the micofiber air filter for the cabin.....because you STILL will have carpet on the floor which will STILL hold the same amount of dust and allergins as the cloth seats

compared to the seats of my first two cars (a sentra and beretta) the max seats are totally luxurious

i like to rub them....oops sorry ...wrong thread

i keep reading posts of maxima owners complaining about the interior of the car....remember..we could be driving a yugo a tercel or a hyundai...stop complainin' and enjoy the friggin ride

NYC2SD

Trev_Daddy

Damn...She can make anything sound sexual

ms.thicknes

[QUOTE]Trev_Daddy

Trev_Daddy

call me sometime LOL

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ms.thicknes

Quote:

Trev_Daddy

speedtrip

I chose cloth seats for my max because it was less expensive and my car is outside all the time. As others have already mentioned the cloth in the maximas is much nicer then the outside carpet most japanese manufacturers use. There is one thing I can't stand about cloth seats. They tend to generate a higher static charge because of the synthetic fibers and you get shocked harder when you touch a grounded surface.

paxus

So are you saying that Nissan's factory stock leather is only leather on the part where you sit, and that the leather isn't a good deal at $1500? Let's assume one purcahses a maxima with cloth seats and one gets an aftermarket leather seat kit. How much does this cost, and how difficult and time consuming is this process?

Basically, is it better to get Nissan stock leather, or nissan cloth seats, and go with aftermarket leather?

[maxi-overdose]

iTrader: (3)

telll u the truth...it is not even leather seats..only the centerparts for leather...the sides are vinyl

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

Yes, only the seating surface on the seats is real leather. A huge waste of $ IMO. There was a Group Deal from www.leatherseats.com. It was somewhere around $600- I think? They provide instructions for you to install it. I don't think I'd try it myself, so then I'd have to take it to someone. That's why I would probably just take it to a local leather place like Katzkin, and have them do the whole package. I was once quoted something like $800-$900 or so.

Just keep in mind that with Nissan, some of the options require other options too.

paxus

Oooh, good point about some of the options depenedence on choosing the leather option. I like the Meridian Edition package (obviously tied to leather package), and I think some other options are tied to leather as well. I forget exactly which options, but if you ever go to nissandriven.com and you try to 'make your own maxima' you will quickly find that many of the options depend on other options. General I know, but go there and see for yourself if you've never visited.

pjalst

Got my seats as part of a group deal @www.leatherseats.com, cost me just under $700 shipped and took me about 2 days to install it. It's not difficult to install,just time consuming. I did most of it in my livingroom in front of the TV drinking brewsky

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

I thought so too, but I spoke with some local dealers. They were able to locate Maximas that had Meridian, but no leather. Apparently the Meridian only comes with Bose, but can come without leather... My problem is, I don't want leather, or the crappy Bose. But I do want Meridian, which isn't possible without Bose.

paxus

I like the fact that these boards aren't totally 100% pro-maxima. Meaning, people can see the flaws in their cars, and make this place a pretty objective site to learn about maximas. Well, as objective as it can be -- it is named maxima.org afterall.

Still love 'em, even after learning about that crappy paint.

Maximam

I agree!!!

KaxMaxSEAE

If you ever examine the dealer stock sheets (the sheets the dealers have of other cars in inventory in other dealer lots in your area) look at the codes at the bottom.

Nissan has "bundled" options, that seem to change all the time. For instance, I wanted cloth seats and the 20th anniversary package. At some point in the manufacturing process, they discontinued cloth seats if you got some other package. (Traction control? I ferget.)

Anyway, the "bundles" seem to change every couple of months. So, at some point Nissan may have offered the package you wanted, but not at the time you bought your car.

Neal728

Um, cloth is WAY better than leather, at least the Nissan leather. My test drive with leather felt pebbly, the signature of cheapness. Plus with cloth I save a grand (which has all gone to mods :-), cooler, easier to keep clean, and I think more comfortable. Plus I am a beach bum, and it's a lot better to sit in a damp towel on cloth seats than on leather. However, I have seen kits from leatherseats.com, and that is a definite improvement. I am totally thinking about that as a far off option.

KaxMaxSEAE

Does Nissan offer the perferated leather option in the 2K2's?

I wanted cloth in my AE Max, after having leather in my Contour. I couldn't get it, nor could they find one. (Should have told 'em I was a vegetarian, but their answer probably would have been "Buy a GXE." Can't get VLSD in a GXE, though... )

So I settled for the Perforated Leather in the Max.

I'm happily surprised. It doesn't get really hot in the summer (I've got the frost interior), nor hard and cold in the winter. It holds me in place, unlike the slippery leather in my Contour. (Caveat: For a driver, the seats in the Contour were superior to the Max. For comfort, vice-versa.)

The perf. leather also looks very cool in the door panels. Something else you non-AE people can try to upgrade to, I guess...

Ghost face Max

You guys have convinced me, I think I'm going with leather after I do a couple of perfomance mods.....

Smokie5s01

I got the cloth seats because I figured that I would redo the inside seats/custom so I wanted to save myself some money

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

You could be right. I actually haven't bought it yet. But hopefully w/in the next week here. I went by a dealer today, and am visiting another one tomorrow.

[maxi-overdose]

iTrader: (3)

keep the cloth, after few performance mods (esp suspension), u will notice that slick leahter seats are not going to keep u in there.

Tanman

That's why you get a racing seat for the driver. Then you can get it re-upholstered in leather. Leather racing seat... mmmm.