Install and review of Land Cruiser Heaven seat cover replacement (1 Viewer)

[Mike NXP]

*Edit 4/4/2022
My goal was to refresh the seat foam as it feels like I'm sitting on metal. I decided to pull the trigger on new leather as well. I ended up replacing my driver and passenger seat leather along with the center console. I decided on Land Cruiser Heaven product. The have a laundry list of bad reviews but they all seem related to people who dropped off their vehicles for LCH to do the repair.

There are a few good YouTube videos out there already so I won't bother writing up a detailed how-to but the focus here is going to be more on the LCH product and if it's worth the money.

If anyone out there has questions on the how-to side of things or just needs pictures let me know as I have a lot of pics of the seat broken down into pieces.



Verdict on LCH Product for 100 Series
Despite all the poor reviews on Land Cruiser Heaven (LCH) , I've had a great experience. Customer service was very responsive but note it did take 2-3 months instead of the estimated 2-3 weeks, I wasn't in a rush so no big deal. They claim the product comes from South America. They handle the import and send it along to the end user in the states. The shipment arrived in great condition and included everything needed to install except the tools.
All and all this is a top notch product and well worth the money. When it comes to leather replacements you get what you pay for. In all reality this product is cheap considering where it comes from and the leg work to get it here to the US.

I went with the 100% leather option and replaced the center console as well. The only complaint I can really think of is the lack of pre fabricated holes for arm rest, head rest, and seat frame.


Resources

• Toyota Land Cruiser: Disassembly - Front seat - Body Mechanical - https://www.tlacruiser.com/disassembly-267.html
  
  
• 
  
  

(Should be right but don't trust my) Part #'s relevant to my 2002 LC
>> Part Diagram Here

• LCH Leather Replacement Here
• Bottom Seat Foam PS- 71501-60070
• Bottom Seat Foam DS - 715002-60090
• Seat Foam Back PS -71630-60160
• Seat Foam Back DS - 71640-60100

General Install Notes
So far what I've noticed is the install really is not that bad, don't pay someone to do this for you! Use the money you saved for hog ring pliers and do it yourself. Most screw ups can be reversed so just go for it. The hardest part so far has just been removing all the plastic bits from the seat and hoping they don't break . Getting the seat pans back into the frame is also a challenge. The seat is sharp so prepare to get sliced open. Get a nice solid table and a buddy to help stretch the leather over the foam otherwise it would be a huge challenge.

• Tools Needed
  > Hog Ring Pliers. Get a good pair like these here
  > Diagonal cutters for removing hog rings. Normal pair is fine but a pair with a longer neck would be nice
  > Clip removal tool and thick flat head screwdriver for getting into tight spots and working the leather and wire clips off
  >> I'm going with 3M #74 Orange instead of their #77 product. The #74 is specifically designed for foam and fabric. You will need this for your seat heater elements along with the vinyl replacement on the back of the seat.
  
  Install Time
  > It ended up taking me 8+ hours per seat!
• Only the plastic side trim pieces and the 8 bolts that hold the seat bottom and back in need to be removed. If you're taking off more hardware stop and take a step back, it probably doesn't need to be removed.
• Take your time with the plastic trim pieces and refer to the TLC disassembly breakdown above. Take pictures along the way and hope you don't break any tabs
• You don't need to remove the thick wire loom from the seat pan.
• The seat heater elements are held in with small pink plastic tabs. Cut them and be careful not to damage the heater element.
• The foam on the seat back usually isn't all that bad. Instead of replacing buy a cheap steamer and watch it come back to life.
  
  
• In most cases the bottom foam is pretty mangled. If you leather has opened up expect it to be nasty in there and the seat foam / metal rods will most likely rip out. If you decide to do this repair plan on changing your seat foam bottom. If you are not replacing your foam be really careful when removing hog rings to not screw up the metal rod that is embedded in the foam.
  
  
• The seat heater element is surprisingly durable however my drive side had a burnt spot. I cut the wire and spliced it back together and hope it will hold up.

 

[Mike NXP]

I finally got the leather installed and everything back in the vehicle. I'll take some final shots from the truck once we get some time. All and all, the LCH product is definitely top notch. You can see and feel the quality right away. LCH sent extra foam so I double downed on my seat foam and I'm happy I did. They are soft soft and plush to sit on now.

The biggest downfall of their product, the holes were not pre fabricated. This took some extra time and attention to make sure I didn't F*** it up. Also, It's hard to explain but they didn't include enough seat material on the sides of the bottom cover. This made it very difficult to get the bolt holes to line up.

The shoulder area does have a few wrinkles but to be fair it was most likely my fault / not installed right. I pulled the crap out of the leather and got it as tight as possible but couldn't get those wrinkles to go away. Is it possible their product wasn't cut right? Maybe...But that being said it was also the original foam. I did steam it back to life but I couldn't get them to go away. The wrinkles don't bother me too much...yet...

I'll add more details and pics to this thread when I have more time but the verdict for now is if you are thinking about ordering, just do it. Do it, and install it yourself. When it's all said and done and your hands are sore and bleeding you'll be happy you did.

 

[Mike NXP]

 

[excessive]

Really curious! I too have read the reviews and very interested to see the product

 

[Mike NXP]

Indeed , as long as they fit I'll be happy . Seem like all the bad reviews are based around their service department and long lead times / poor quality from their installs. Well one shouldn't be surprised if someone you pay to work on your truck doesn't do a good job , unfortunately that's pretty typical with a lot of mechanics

 

[Mike NXP]

Finally got all of this wrapped up. Previous post have been edited

 

[DRoppolo]

I bought my FJ80 seats from them a few years back and it took a few months. It looks like this is still the case unfortunately

 

[Mike NXP]

I bought my FJ80 seats from them a few years back and it took a few months. It looks like this is still the case unfortunately

IShoot.. yeah that sounds about right. In the world of Amazon and instant shipping we are all spoiled. I didn't mind the wait , it would be nice if they said it could take several months instead of the 2-3 week estimate but whatever.

If you think about what they are up against, it's a small business just working order by order. They have to get their contractor in SA to create the product and then it has to be imported and turned around back to the end user. All of that for probably a very small profit on their end, so maybe they wait until they have enough orders to stock up.

Either way the conclusion on my end is the product is solid so far. We will have to see how time treats it but my dog already ran all over them and it didn't leave a mark so that was exciting.

 

[excessive]

They look really nice, great work!

 

[Mike NXP]

They look really nice, great work!

Thanks. I was a little bummed about the wrinkles but I think that was due to my lack of install skill . Maybe they will even out once I ride around a bit.

 

[jsloden]

I put a set on my 80 before I sold it. There were a few wrinkles. I didn't replace the pads in mine though so that probably contributed to the slack and wrinkles. After a couple of weeks in the MS summer heat though it shrank them right up.

 

[Mike NXP]

Is there any way to tell if a material is leather or vinyl ? Yeah. After a few months of wear it seems some parts of the seat are more shiny and smooth feeling ( like vinyl) whereas other parts have a nice rugged leather feel.

 

[Ma son]

*Edit 4/4/2022
My goal was to refresh the seat foam as it feels like I'm sitting on metal. I decided to pull the trigger on new leather as well. I ended up replacing my driver and passenger seat leather along with the center console. I decided on Land Cruiser Heaven product. The have a laundry list of bad reviews but they all seem related to people who dropped off their vehicles for LCH to do the repair.

There are a few good YouTube videos out there already so I won't bother writing up a detailed how-to but the focus here is going to be more on the LCH product and if it's worth the money.

If anyone out there has questions on the how-to side of things or just needs pictures let me know as I have a lot of pics of the seat broken down into pieces.



Verdict on LCH Product for 100 Series
Despite all the poor reviews on Land Cruiser Heaven (LCH) , I've had a great experience. Customer service was very responsive but note it did take 2-3 months instead of the estimated 2-3 weeks, I wasn't in a rush so no big deal. They claim the product comes from South America. They handle the import and send it along to the end user in the states. The shipment arrived in great condition and included everything needed to install except the tools.
All and all this is a top notch product and well worth the money. When it comes to leather replacements you get what you pay for. In all reality this product is cheap considering where it comes from and the leg work to get it here to the US.

I went with the 100% leather option and replaced the center console as well. The only complaint I can really think of is the lack of pre fabricated holes for arm rest, head rest, and seat frame.


Resources

• Toyota Land Cruiser: Disassembly - Front seat - Body Mechanical - https://www.tlacruiser.com/disassembly-267.html
  
  
• 
  
  

(Should be right but don't trust my) Part #'s relevant to my 2002 LC
>> Part Diagram Here

• LCH Leather Replacement Here
• Bottom Seat Foam PS- 71501-60070
• Bottom Seat Foam DS - 715002-60090
• Seat Foam Back PS -71630-60160
• Seat Foam Back DS - 71640-60100

General Install Notes
So far what I've noticed is the install really is not that bad, don't pay someone to do this for you! Use the money you saved for hog ring pliers and do it yourself. Most screw ups can be reversed so just go for it. The hardest part so far has just been removing all the plastic bits from the seat and hoping they don't break . Getting the seat pans back into the frame is also a challenge. The seat is sharp so prepare to get sliced open. Get a nice solid table and a buddy to help stretch the leather over the foam otherwise it would be a huge challenge.

• Tools Needed
  > Hog Ring Pliers. Get a good pair like these here
  > Diagonal cutters for removing hog rings. Normal pair is fine but a pair with a longer neck would be nice
  > Clip removal tool and thick flat head screwdriver for getting into tight spots and working the leather and wire clips off
  >> I'm going with 3M #74 Orange instead of their #77 product. The #74 is specifically designed for foam and fabric. You will need this for your seat heater elements along with the vinyl replacement on the back of the seat.
  
  Install Time
  > It ended up taking me 8+ hours per seat!
• Only the plastic side trim pieces and the 8 bolts that hold the seat bottom and back in need to be removed. If you're taking off more hardware stop and take a step back, it probably doesn't need to be removed.
• Take your time with the plastic trim pieces and refer to the TLC disassembly breakdown above. Take pictures along the way and hope you don't break any tabs
• You don't need to remove the thick wire loom from the seat pan.
• The seat heater elements are held in with small pink plastic tabs. Cut them and be careful not to damage the heater element.
• The foam on the seat back usually isn't all that bad. Instead of replacing buy a cheap steamer and watch it come back to life.
  
  
• In most cases the bottom foam is pretty mangled. If you leather has opened up expect it to be nasty in there and the seat foam / metal rods will most likely rip out. If you decide to do this repair plan on changing your seat foam bottom. If you are not replacing your foam be really careful when removing hog rings to not screw up the metal rod that is embedded in the foam.
  
  
• The seat heater element is surprisingly durable however my drive side had a burnt spot. I cut the wire and spliced it back together and hope it will hold up.

How are these holding up?

 

[Mike NXP]

How are these holding up?

Long story short I think they are a good buy and they will hold up for a while. The leather is good quality but it's weird, certain parts of the seat lack the qualities of leather and seem a little less tough. Of course they told me everything is full leather but I kind of feel like these side bolsters are vinyl. Check out how wrinkly and weird they are when I squeeze it.

Time will tell how long they hold up but look at that material compared to the seat back which has this like tough leather feel and look to it. My dog pops his head over the seat shoulder area there and his nails constantly tear into the seat back area with no effect to the leather.
I feel like if something sharp or whatever pushed onto the side area that material wouldn't be as strong.

 

[Ma son]

Interesting about the bolstering. I wonder if they use a bonded leather or similar on that section. I was wondering about the durability as well considering my dog tends to do the same thing. Any noticeable damage or wear yet?

 

[Mike NXP]

Yeah so for what it's worth they have a build ID and claim they contacted the folks in SA who confirmed it's all leather. But there does appear to be a difference in the sides for sure. Only time will tell how they hold up I haven't had them for more than a year yet.

The weaker looking sides would be my only complaint, otherwise they seem like they will last a while. The stitching was really strong I pulled them with another person as hard as possible during install.

My dog sleeps on the front seat while we camp but I usually put a towel and some other layers down to keep him off the seat. The times he sneaks up onto them it doesn't appear to leave any marks.

Here they are today

 

[Ma son]

They look really good! Thanks for the info!

 

[Greenbean]

Look good bud,
It’s amazing what you can do with a set of strong quality wire cutters and some hot ring pliers.

Bet it feels great to drive again Hugh!?

Did your seat heaters work okay again?

 

[Rudey08]

Sharing my recent experience with LC heaven seat covers. Im happy with the grain, consistency and quality of the kit. I ordered the front and middle row separated by 3 months but with the batch code provided the dying was identical. Probably shouldn't tempt fate but i was over budget. The real kudos go to the installer, (Craft in Myrtle beach). I was concerned with the wrinkling that ive seen posted in some other recovering projects, but after seeing their work im glad i had it done professionally. And the price was extremely reasonable. The installer ended up using the extra material included with the kit to cover the hard plastic seat backs. It was an oversight i didnt ask for that to be done however it turned out fantastic i cant complain. My driver seat bottom foam was replaced using OEM and the rest they plumped up with steam. Does it look OEM? no of course not but its consistent and the hide thickness looks to be durable. Time will tell.

 

[dean06wk]

Sharing my recent experience with LC heaven seat covers. Im happy with the grain, consistency and quality of the kit. I ordered the front and middle row separated by 3 months but with the batch code provided the dying was identical. Probably shouldn't tempt fate but i was over budget. The real kudos go to the installer, (Craft in Myrtle beach). I was concerned with the wrinkling that ive seen posted in some other recovering projects, but after seeing their work im glad i had it done professionally. And the price was extremely reasonable. The installer ended up using the extra material included with the kit to cover the hard plastic seat backs. It was an oversight i didnt ask for that to be done however it turned out fantastic i cant complain. My driver seat bottom foam was replaced using OEM and the rest they plumped up with steam. Does it look OEM? no of course not but its consistent and the hide thickness looks to be durable. Time will tell.




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