Alcantara/Suede Trim for 1 Series

[AllFor1]

I really like the look of Alcantara trim, like on the 1M, and really dislike the look of wood trim.

Solution? A few shops in the area quoted me $600+ to wrap the pieces in faux suede (not alcantara) but then asked for even more, or refused the job completely after discovering that they had to remove the entire center console to get to the ashtray trim piece.

I decided to do it myself. It was hard to pick the right color since the interior is two-tone, so after a few choices we decided to go with black. Here are the results:







The project took a total of about one day. The most complex part was having to take out the entire center console to get at the ashtray trim piece, but the final result, in my opinion, was well worth the hours of glue breathing, meticulous cutting and tearing apart of a perfectly good 1 series.

Let me know how you like it!

Next project is covering my 2011 135i's trim in light orange alcantara to match the Z4's hyper orange package.

[BimmerE82]

You should take some wide shots of the interior of your car to better see how the project came out. From the looks of the close ups you did a pretty good job though.

[AllFor1]

Thanks, BimmerE82! I'll take some more shots of the interior and put them up.

[ShocknAwe]

From what I see, looks like you did a great job! I might consider some padding around the center console trim.

[sour97]

look very nice ! can u tell me where can I get the material?
good job!

[derekL]

Originally Posted by sour97

look very nice ! can u tell me where can I get the material?
good job!

+1 on the material! Awesome wrap job!

[RimasRS]

I would love to see whole dashboard wrapped in alcantara though not sure what to do with passenger airbag.

[Tab135]

I've done it

[AllFor1]

Originally Posted by sour97

look very nice ! can u tell me where can I get the material?
good job!

Joann fabrics. I think it was $19 per yard.

[AllFor1]

Thanks for the kind words! So, this past weekend, I got up the courage to do my 135i M package's trim in orange suede. Couldn't find any orange at Joann's so I had to order this stuff online, off Amazon.

Great quality, slightly thicker than the black suede from Joann's, so a bit more difficult to work with, but the fabric has a richer feel to it.



And, of course, the obligatory product placement....

[AllFor1]

The whole project took less than 5 hours. Could've been done sooner but I had to re-do the ashtray trim piece because I wound up dripping a bunch of glue on the fabric part. Quickly running out of daylight, I called it quits and decided to reinstall all the parts the next day. Here are the results:



In my opinion, definitely an upgrade over the wood.



The absolute worst part of the ordeal was getting the center console around the DCT shifter. Since it doesn't slide back and forth like the automatic and the manual, there was veeerryy little room to work with.



Dash and passenger door handle:



Door handle close-up:



Let me know what you guys think!

[Harlequin]

I like the door handles and dashboard but not really a fan of the centre console...

Good work though mate. I know what a bitch it is to get that centre console apart...

[derekL]

was a sq yd enough to wrap everything?

[Stupenal]

.

[AllFor1]

Originally Posted by Harlequin

I like the door handles and dashboard but not really a fan of the centre console...

Good work though mate. I know what a bitch it is to get that centre console apart...

I agree. Now that it's done, I think I would have preferred the center console in matte black/gray like on the 1 Series M. Oh well

[AllFor1]

Originally Posted by derekL

was a sq yd enough to wrap everything?

More than enough. I still have a bunch left over, I could probably do 2 more cars with what I have left.

[AllFor1]

Originally Posted by Stupenal

careful with Joanne suede,I did it on my headliner on my old m3 - and even though the car say in the garage all day ( weekend car) within a year the suede faded and was no longer as black or nice.

Thanks for the heads up. On the 128 with black suede, I'd actually prefer if it faded out a bit, may look more like the grayish alcantara! (Hoping)

[instalher]

the good stuff is sold through the larry dennis company in texas ask for george.. wont fade and is luxurious, but its 87 bucks a yard..