Is the walrus material that is being sold today really the same as the original, or is just close imitation?
Below are photo comparisons of my rear seat with the original covering and the second photo is my front seat which has been recovered. The seat covers looked like a match when the top was on. But now the top is off and the sunlight really shows the difference in color and texture. The newer seat covers are lighter in color and the walrus grain is smoother, not as defined.
I really don't want to touch the rear seat cover since it is original and is in really nice shape, but I fear I may have to to get a matching set of seat covers. I talked to my local upholstry shop for repair last year when my drivers seat cover kept cracking and he said the vinyl material that is sold today is nowhere near as good of quality as the original material. He made the repair on the driver seat which looks perfect. He matched the material, dead on. However, he told me the seat covers that were used up front is the type of material found on Fords, not Chevys and that's why my front and rear seat covers don't match.
I just don't want to buy a new set of front seat covers thinking they will match the rears to find I purchased what I already have: A mismatched set of seat covers. How many manufactures are making these seat covers? Did the previous owner purchase "cheap" seat covers, or are all the repo seat covers like this? The center panel texture is where these seat covers really differ.
Comparison
Front seat cover material
Rear seat cover material