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Whether you drive every day or just once in a week, you want to keep your car in a proper condition at all times. After all, you’ve invested your time, effort and money into getting it, so nothing should come in the way of you deriving maximum value and return on your investment.
As much as it serves its functional purpose, your car, also, is one of your most prized material possessions. For some, it acts as a statement of luxury more than fulfilling its intended use. Whatever be the case, it is an asset that requires regular maintenance and upkeep.
There are certain things every car owner needs to do, like regularly cleaning the exterior and the interior of the car, and taking the car for periodic checks to the garage. And there are other things, that a car owner can choose to do, to enhance their overall driving experience.
We, at CETUS, insist on exercising that option! Even though today’s cars come equipped with such features and elements that ensure a comfortable driving experience, there is ample scope to take that experience to the next level. This is made possible with the help of aftermarket products and services.
CETUS Automotives specialises in the interior aspects of your car. In this blogpost, we’re going to talk about 12 such car interior modification ideas, which you can implement to crank up your driving experience. After all, it’s the interior where you spend most of your time, with your car.
Let’s jump right in!
The seats of your car occupy more than 70 percent of the whole interior. Seats are that very facet of your car with which you come in contact with, for the longest. It’s therefore very obvious that you want your seats to feel comfortable. Further, customising your seats can instantly upgrade the look of your car’s interior!
You can make your car seats look good as well as feel good, by choosing the right material for their covers. Choice of the seat cover material depends on certain important factors, such as your budget, level of comfort desired, climate conditions of the place you reside, material durability, and aesthetics.
Seat covers are one of the primary aftermarket products available for your car, suiting every taste and budget. If you’re not happy with how your seats look and feel, you can always reupholster them with the material that is right for you. Seat covers come in a range of materials such as Leather, PU, Alcantara, Canvas and Velour.
Price Range: Genuine Leather Seat Covers – Rs. 44,000 to Rs. 76,000; PU Seat Covers – Rs. 9,000 to Rs. 12,600; Fabric Seat Covers – Start between Rs. 2,500 to Rs. 5,000
Customisation knows no bounds when it comes to the interior of a car. Just like the seats, you can reupholster and customise your steering wheel to speak your code, with aftermarket covers.
Steering wheel covers, or wraps, come in different materials like Alcantara, Leather, Synthetic Leather and Rubber. Choose one that suits your taste and offers you the most comfortable yet firm grip, especially if you reside in a place with extreme climate conditions.
In addition to their practical benefits, steering wheel covers also deliver an aesthetic value and let you show off your individuality. While choosing the material, take into account the colour options available, as the colour and tone of your wheel should blend well with that of your seats. A good quality cover will also protect your steering wheel material from wearing out.
Price Range: Alcantara Covers – Rs. 5,500; Leather Covers – Rs. 3,500; Leatherette Covers – Rs. 2,000; Rubber Covers – Rs. 200 to Rs. 600
Floor mats are another prominently visible element of a car’s interior. In addition to adding to the aesthetic factor, floor mats serve a practical purpose of shielding your car’s floor panels from dust and dirt. They are removable and can be cleaned easily, as opposed to the interior panels, which may require a considerable amount of effort.
When it comes to the aesthetics, floor mats allow you to get as creative as you want in customising them. You can have an eye-catchy quilting pattern embroidered, or an image of your favorite F1 racers manifested on the mats.
Car floor mats are made with a range of materials, including rubber and leather, and come in a rich array of colours to choose from. Opt for a material combination that features a feel good factor, along with doing a decent job in trapping the dirt elements. Be sure to check their fit in your car, if you go for readymade mats, or have them made to fit.
Price Range: Rubber Floor Mats – Rs. 600; Leather Floor Mats – Rs. 20,000; Synthetic Floor Mats – Rs. 9,000
You can modify and customise the dashboard, the center console, and the pillars inside your car, to speak your language, tone and personality.
Reupholster these three surfaces in your car with your choice of material, and lend them a fresh new look and feel. The images below showcase these elements of a classic Mercedes, being restored from scrap with Black Nappa Leather and Black Alcantara upholstery, with White stitching.
Some automotive dealers and companies also offer a service called Hydrographic Printing, which allows you to have a myriad range of designs manifested on these surfaces. When applied, your chosen design will lend these surfaces, and consequently the overall interior, the X factor!
Price Range: Reupholstering all 3 surfaces with: Leather – Rs. 6,500 to Rs. 15,000, Suede Fabric – Rs. 6,500 to Rs. 9,000
Although the gear knob, the gear boot and the handbrake together occupy a minute proportion of the whole interior, they characterise a high visibility because of their continued usage. These components can be customised to look different than usual, with an assortment of options as multifarious as those for your smartphone cover.
The choice of the material for the gear knob and the handbrake cover should depend on the feel as much as on the look. Apart from going well with the rest of your interior, the material must be comfortable for you and your grip.
Price Range: Leather Gear Boot & Gear Knob – Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,500; Synthetic Gear Boot & Gear Knob – Rs. 800 to Rs. 1,500; Leather Handbrake Cover – Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 3,000; Synthetic Handbrake Cover – Rs. 800 to Rs. 1,200
Door Panels and Armrests are those facets of your car’s interior, with which your forearm comes in frequent contact. Needless to say, the upholstery on the door panels and the armrests needs to be comfortable for you and your forearm.
Leather is a material that characterises good permeability to water vapour, and thus, is able to absorb and hold high quantities of human perspiration, and dissipate it later. This makes Leather one of the most comfortable materials for the human skin, and therefore, a good choice for reupholstering the door panels and the armrests in your car.
If you desire a sportier look alongside a comfortable feel, you can choose Alcantara for reupholstering your door panels and arm rests. Take them to the next level by having custom embroidery done on them.
Price Range: Leather upholstery on Door Panels & Armrests – Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 4,500; Alcantara upholstery on Door Panels & Armrests – Rs. 7,000
While upgrading the interior of your car, do not forget the roofline that adds significantly to the interior’s look and feel. You can customise the roofline in a manner that blends well with the rest of the interior, either yourself or have an automotive dealer do it for you. There are quite many “How to” videos available online if you want to do it yourself.
For the material of the roofline, you have a range of options such as the luxurious white leather, suede fabric, or a tricot knit fabric. The picture below showcases the roofline inside a Maserati Quattroporte, customised by CETUS, with black suede fabric.
There are multifarious possibilities for the design of your roofline. Choose a design that is delightful to the eyes and adds to the ambience inside your car.
Price Range: Suede fabric roofline – Rs. 10,000 to 18,000
The emergence of LEDs has widened the scope of usage of lights. LEDs infuse a decorative effect wherever they’re installed, and this is no different for the interior of your car. If you’re one of those who enjoys taking the road in the late evening hours, you may want to elevate your experience with LED lights that will create a lounge-like ambience inside your car.
While certain cars, such as Mahindra XUV500 and Toyota Yaris, come with pre-installed LEDs from the factory, most others require separate installation. LED lights come in a wide variety of options, ranging from dashboard strips to under-panel lamps. Remote controlled, these ambient lights allow you to change their colours on the fly.
Complement the mood with the right music, while you enjoy your ride!
Price Range: You can choose from a wide range of LED strips, Neon strips, and Under Dash LED Kits available at Amazon, with prices varying from Rs. 400 to Rs. 1,200.
While driving your car, if your back hurts, then this interior upgrade is a need more than a choice. On Indian roads especially, where you have to drive through potholes and rough terrains, you can end up suffering a prolonged back pain. Most neck pain, shoulder muscle tension and spine problems occur today because of this.
If you drive a long distance to work every day, and have a 9-to-5 desk job, you’re already putting your spine through an awful lot. Uncomfortable car seats can make your driving experience traumatizing. The solution? Car seat massager with heating system.
A car seat massager with a built-in heating function will serve as a best friend to your spine. It massages your muscles while you drive, rejuvenating your back, neck, shoulders and entire spine. It is not only an ideal and comfortable add-on to your car’s seat, but also a long-term cost saving solution as it prevents prolonged spine problems.
Price Range: Grin Health, JSB, Qawacch are a few brands of electric massagers that are suitable for cars. Take a read through this link, for more details on such massagers, their features, and warranty periods. Their prices range from Rs. 8,000 to Rs. 30,000, depending on the brand and the product features.
You should not use your phone while you drive, as it’s both unsafe and against the traffic rules. Yet many seem to ignore this as attending to the phone is seemingly more important to them than their own safety, and the safety of others.
Phone mounts are a solution to this, as they hold your phone in a fixed position and keep it steady, even on rough roads. This does not imply that you can use your phone to call or text people, while you drive. A phone mount comes in handy when you need to use GPS navigation for reaching your destination, or want to listen to a curated playlist of music.
Do not forget to unmount and take your phone, when you park and leave your car!
Price Range: There are several different brands and varieties of Phone Mounts that you can easily avail at Amazon, for your car. These mounts attach steadily with your air vents, dashboard, windshield and rear view mirror. Some of them are magnetic and attach to your phone’s backside. Prices range anywhere between Rs. 300 and Rs. 2,000.
Bluetooth speakerphones are a complete hands-free solution for answering phone calls and engaging in conversations, while on the road. Thanks to today’s ultra-busy life, you want to use your time whilst you drive, to engage in calls and get things done. In such a scenario, you need a bluetooth speakerphone installed in your car.
This device pairs and connects with your phone, and allows you to answer calls directly from its dedicated control buttons. Thus, you can answer calls without having to pick up the phone. These speakerphones come with noise cancellation technology, which allows you to talk seamlessly by dampening the surrounding noise of the traffic.
In addition to answering calls, these speakerphones can play music as well as GPS directions, from your phone. Some of today’s speakerphones also feature Voice Command technology that supports Apple’s Siri and Google Assistant.
Price Range: TANTRA Fluke PRO and Tewtross TT SPK202 are two such popular Bluetooth speakerphones for cars, available on Amazon. While the former features a simple Plug and Play installation (AUX out cable), the latter features a clip-on mechanism and can be easily clipped onto your sun visor or seat belt. They’re both compatible with Bluetooth-enabled phones, and both feature Voice Command. Priced at Rs. 1,499 and Rs. 1,581 respectively, on Amazon.
Aftermarket infotainment units are arguably the most attractive and versatile feature inside modern day cars. Getting a new car stereo today essentially means getting a full package infotainment unit that has an operating system, and an array of pre-installed applications like Bluetooth, maps and GPS navigation, multimedia apps like Netflix, YouTube and Spotify.
These infotainment units feature an HD touch display, WiFi, USB ports, and wireless screen mirroring. They also enjoy seamless connectivity with other car parts like the Rear Parking Camera, Sensors, Speakers and Subwoofers. Using Bluetooth, you can connect your phone with the system and answer calls, texts, and play music directly from its intuitive controls.
Such infotainment units are pre-installed in the most premium variants of some cars. For others, there’s a plethora of aftermarket options to choose from. These units come in different sizes so be sure to choose the one that will properly fit into your dashboard. In some cases, certain dashboard area may be required to be cut, while in others, you may need to attach a separate fascia frame to fit the unit.
Price Range: WOODMAN is a popular Indian brand that is known for its range of 7-inch and 9-inch car stereos. The 7-inch stereos sport a universal design, and require a fascia frame and a coupler specific to your car to be properly fitted. Prices range between Rs. 9,399 and Rs. 15,999. The 9-inch stereos come with car-specific frame and coupler, and look like company-fitted units, thus enhancing the look of your car’s interior. Prices range from Rs. 12,499 to Rs. 46,999. These stereo systems are compatible with both iOS and Android phones. Other brands include GoNec and AUTO SNAP.
So the above were 12 such ideas that you can act upon, if you haven’t yet, to have the interior of your car speak your code and language.
But if you have already, we are curious to know what you’ve done to customise your car interior. Got those luxurious leather seat covers you were longing for? Or customised your steering wheel with Leather and Alcantara to lend it a sportier look? Or upgraded the sound system by installing a versatile, noise-cancelling speakerphone? Tell us in comments below.
And if you’re considering giving your car interior a custom makeover, get in touch with us and we’ll tell you how we can help. CETUS specialises in car interior upholstery. So whether it is your seats, steering wheel, door panels, or roofline, we can help you achieve your desired look and feel in your car.
For the upholstery, CETUS offers different material choices to suit your taste and budget. With a wide array of colours, quiltings, and perforations to choose from, we help you navigate your way towards upgrading your car’s interior.
Check out our Instagram to see some of the projects we’ve completed.
Which part of your car you come in contact with, for the longest? It is not the steering wheel, not the gear knob, and certainly not the music system installed in your car. It is your car’s seats. Yes, whether you are the driver or a rider, it is the seats that predominantly define and control, how you feel inside your car.
While deciding which brand, model and make of a car you should buy, you consider several important factors, such as your budget, size of your family, resale value, diesel or petrol, automatic or manual, fuel economy, safety and comfort features, and of course, your would-be usage and maintenance expenses.
One factor which is generally overlooked here, is the type of seats you want inside your car. To be more specific, the material of the upholstery that is fixed to your car’s seats.
While this may not be that important a feature you look into when you shop for a new car, it is certainly not something you can ignore. After all, it is you who will be sitting on these seats while riding your vehicle. Thus, it’s a question of your own comfort and convenience.
The seats are your first and last contact with your car. They determine not only how you feel inside your car, but also how you feel about your car. And also, how others feel and perceive your car.
The material of the upholstery on your car’s seats and interior, adds significantly to the overall look, touch, and feel of the interior. And when it comes to choosing this material, the popular debate is – Leather vs Fabric.
Leather and Fabric are two broad categories of car seat cover materials, under which other material sub-types, such as PU, Velour or Canvas, fall.
And when you’re deciding which material to choose for your car seats, the question isn’t “Leather or Fabric, which is better?”, but rather, “Leather or Fabric, which is better for you?”
Before we break down to comparing and analysing both these material categories, let us enlist all the important factors that need to be considered, while zeroing in on the type of seat covers.
These factors include,
First is the Price, one of the very initial things we consider before buying anything new.
When it comes to price, Leather will cost you more. If you opt for genuine leather, then depending upon the grade of the material (like bonded, split-grain, or top-grain leather), and the type of car (hatchback, sedan, or SUV), installing new, custom car seat covers can cost anywhere from Rs. 45,000 to Rs. 80,000.
If you choose to go with artificial, or synthetic leather (like faux, vegan, or PU leather), then the price would hover around Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 18,000, including installation of the new seat covers.
Fabric, or Cloth, on the other hand, will cost you considerably less than genuine leather, and usually less than artificial leather as well. The price for fabric seat covers can range anywhere from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 13,000, depending upon the material of the fabric.
However, price is not the only factor you look at, especially when you’re considering upgrading your car seats. So let’s take a dig deeper.
With practically anything material you own, you want to make sure it looks good, and feels good.
Leather, as you may already know, gives off a luxurious and resplendent appeal, on anything that is ornamented with it. Leather upholstery, on the seats and other surfaces of your car’s interior, such as door pads, is actually considered an upgradation of the whole interior.
Fabric is a more plain and practical choice for car seat covers. While it may not exude the premium look and feel that leather does, it is still an aesthetic buy.
The advantage with Fabric is that it comes in a wide range of material options, such as velour, polyester, canvas, neoprene, and more. It also offers you more choices for the colour and design of your car seat cover, than leather.
So with aesthetics, it is up to you what you desire – a luxurious look and feel, or a wider variety in terms of material, colour, and design.
An important factor in choosing your car seat cover material is its durability. Since your seat cover is not something you’d be looking to change frequently, you need to ensure its material lasts sufficiently long.
Leather takes the upper hand here. It is more durable than cloth, and fares better in protecting your seats from the wear and tear of everyday use. It, therefore, saves you money that may go into getting your seats fixed.
Genuine leather seat covers can easily last for more than 3 years, if suitably maintained. Artificial leather seat covers, however, are not likely to last any more than 2 years.
If durability is at the top of your priority list, you may want to stick with leather, genuine or artificial. Fabric seat covers are more prone to damage and getting worn out.
When it comes to climate, fabric seat covers fare better overall, as they are more resistant to changes in weather. This makes them a smarter choice, especially in regions with extreme climate conditions.
Fabric will stay warmer in low temperatures, and cooler in high temperatures, than artificial leather. Artificial leather seat covers are known to get scalding hot in summers, to the extent that if exposed to direct sunlight, they may leave you with skin burns.
While artificial leather is better suited for places with cool climate conditions, it also gets very cold and brittle during winters. Therefore, if you want your seat cover to be comfortable in all weather conditions, you may choose either genuine leather or fabric, depending upon your budget.
If you put climate aside, leather seats are going to give you the most comfortable driving experience with your car. But here again, there’s a catch.
The degree of comfort leather provides really depends on the type and grade of leather you opt for. The high-end variants of genuine leather are naturally soft and distinctly comfortable, while the artificial, cheaper ones are hard and uncomfortable.
As for fabric, it is much softer, to begin with. Add to that, it is a breathable material, so your skin won’t sweat when you’re driving in humid conditions.
While fabric seat covers feel as soft and comfortable as your cotton T-shirt, genuine leather covers will provide a different level of comfort altogether. Therefore, it again boils down to your taste and your budget.
Nobody likes stains that are hard to remove, whether they are on our clothes, or on our car seats. With the latter, there is always the possibility that you may end up staining them.
Fabric seat covers are more susceptible to such stains. While some stains, like those of ketchup or mud, can be wiped off, the stains left by ink, blood, or oil, may never fully disappear from cloth seat covers.
Leather seat covers, on the other hand, are much more resistant to stains. Liquid spills can be spot cleaned right away, while food crumbs and dirt, which get stuck within cloth fibres, can be brushed off very simply.
Leather, therefore, takes the edge here.
Fabric seat covers not only retain stains, but also absorb smells. So if you happen to spill your ice-cream on your cloth seat cover, then your car may end up smelling like rotten milk by the next morning.
While artificial leather is odourless, genuine leather has a pleasant, reinvigorating odour that is unique to it. People actually savour the smell of new leather that exudes a sense of luxury.
Cloth, on the other hand, discharges only unwanted odours that it absorbs, be it the smell of any food you drop, or the stench if your pet pees, on the seats. And being porous, cloth allows such liquids to seep into the cushions, thereby, letting their smells settle in your car forever.
As leather is more resistant to such smells, here again, it wins over cloth.
To maintain your new leather seat covers, and have them looking as good as new, we recommend cleaning with soap liquid, and wiping them with a dry cloth. If you do this every once in a month, and keep dusting them as per the usage and outdoor exposure, they will last sufficiently long.
CETUS Automotives offers genuine leather seat covers for your car, with 3 years’ warranty on the leather material.
Artificial leather seat covers can be maintained by simply cleaning them with a wet cloth, every once in a while. However, as stated earlier, they will not last as long as genuine leather covers would.
As for fabric seat covers, besides being machine washable, they also require only periodic vacuuming, or steam cleaning. Aside from that, you can also apply a stain-guard every few years, to protect your seat covers from sustaining stains that they are prone to.
So as far as maintenance is concerned, leather and fabric seat covers are at par with each other, both requiring cleaning at regular intervals.
While genuine leather seat covers require a bigger investment initially, they also yield a higher return when you resell your car, if they’ve been properly maintained.
The only catch here, is that not many who intend to buy a used car, will be willing to spend those extra thousands for leather seat covers. While leather seats and interior do boost your car’s resale value, the biggest concern for second-hand buyers is to just get a reliable vehicle at a low price.
But since fabric seat covers are more prone to damage, and get worn out after years of usage, they can degrade your vehicle’s potential resale value. Furthermore, leather protects your car seats better, as explained above in Point 3.
Genuine leather car seat covers, therefore, allow you the opportunity to derive a bigger bang for your buck!
As you may have already understood, this is a factor you cannot overlook, while choosing your car seat cover material.
If you have children or pets, or both, who’ll be riding along with you in your car, the better and more obvious choice for your car seat cover material, is leather.
As explained in the aforementioned points, fabric seat covers are much more likely to get stained and damaged. Children and pets are the reason why many don’t even consider fabric covers for their car’s seats.
If your child happens to spill their food, or your pet happens to play around with your food, your seat covers may end up sustaining those stains and smells, if they’re made of fabric.
With leather, your seats and your interior are better protected. So it may make sense to spend more initially on leather seat covers, than to spend more frequently on repairing or replacing fabric seat covers.
Your car can be a bad place for allergies, because of its constant exposure to external elements. The open windows, swirling winds, heat during the summer, all of these can lead to dust and allergens taking abode inside your car.
If you or someone in your family is allergic to dust, dirt, or other such allergens, then you might want to choose leather. This is because these allergens can settle into the cloth fabric.
With leather, however, you can vacuum or wipe the dirt off. Of course, leather upholstery cannot prevent other surfaces inside your car from housing allergens, but is a safer choice, nonetheless.
As there are multiple relevant factors to consider while deciding between leather and fabric, it ultimately boils down to your personal taste and everyday needs.
Thus, if you strongly desire a plush look for your seats, with unmatched comfort at the same time, and you’re willing and able to spend more on their upholstery, you may choose to go with leather. Real leather is that comfortable and durable, giving you a good return on your investment.
On the other hand, if you’re restricted on your budget, and want your seats to feel comfortable at all times, in all seasons, you’d want to choose cloth. Cloth seat covers also come in a wider variety of material and colour options, for you to choose from.
There can be one or more deciding factors for you to choose between leather and fabric.
If you use your car everyday to get to work and drive back home, or have children and pets with whom you go out for picnics, leather shall be a better long-term buy. They are much less susceptible to wear and tear resulting from everyday use.
But if your car remains mostly parked in your garage, and you use it only to take road trips, or to travel to far-off destinations, fabric seat covers will bring you value for your money. They are a low-priced, all-seasons choice.
After weighing in every factor and need, if leather wins for you, how do you decide from whom to purchase leather seat covers, and have them installed on your car seats?
With genuine leather, you’ve got to be extra careful. Being a premium material, there are quite many cheaper, low-grade versions available in the market.
Given the investment you’d make, and the quality you’d expect with leather, you have to place your bet on not only the right product, but also the right vendor. In this regard, you may want to choose a trusted name in the leather industry.
Hence, CETUS. CETUS is the fourth-generation child of BAB Leather, a known name in the Indian leather landscape, with experience and expertise spanning 75 years.
BAB Leather is also certified for its leather manufacturing processes, by the Leather Working Group (LWG), a global multi-stakeholder group that promotes sustainable and appropriate environmental business practices within the leather industry.
CETUS is the automotive division of the BAB Leather group, helping you in customising your car seats and interior, with the right leather material as per your taste, budget, and need. Our USP lies in the unlimited possibilities for the design, that we can craft on your car seat covers.
If you are considering installing new leather covers on your car seats, or are looking to upgrade your seats from fabric to leather, give us a call, or shoot us a mail. We’ll be more than happy to assist you.
