Hey all,
I have a set of E30 sport seats that are being reupholstered for me. The seller said he's got two Pearl Beige options, one of which being "#343 an original BMW German vinyl." I'm aware that I have leather, and not concerned about vinyl up front on the seats. I'm only concerned about the color matching correctly.
Has anyone here ever done any upholstery work? I'm assuming the #343 will be the closest match?
Not an upholstery expert by any means, so take from this what you will... but it depends? I reupholstered my drivers seat (leather) last year and got samples from different providers, all had different number/letter designations and different tints to an extent, and all were "BMW Pearl Beige". I think over time the pearl beige seat material and all the other interior components get darker to some extent depending on sun exposure, etc. So my advice is to have samples mailed to you and pick the one that is the best overall match to the remaining interior pieces you are not reupholstering. Unfortunately I think it's almost impossible to tell just from comparing photos or by the number attached to the sample.
4DSC wrote: Feb 12, 2025 11:32 PM
Not an upholstery expert by any means, so take from this what you will... but it depends? I reupholstered my drivers seat (leather) last year and got samples from different providers, all had different number/letter designations and different tints to an extent, and all were "BMW Pearl Beige". I think over time the pearl beige seat material and all the other interior components get darker to some extent depending on sun exposure, etc. So my advice is to have samples mailed to you and pick the one that is the best overall match to the remaining interior pieces you are not reupholstering. Unfortunately I think it's almost impossible to tell just from comparing photos or by the number attached to the sample.
Thanks, I ended up with "BMW #343"... I got three different samples in the mail and they were all a varying degree of off. Either via texture or shade of Pearl Beige, but in the end of the day, any of them would have been good enough. The guy I bought them from (who is reupholstering the seats for me) was getting very annoyed at me, but he was making it more confusing than it needed to be.
I'll share a photo when they get here in a couple of weeks.
That was my experience too. Nothing was a perfect match, some were close. I actually ended up choosing one that wasn't the best color match of the set because I preferred the grain. It's funny I didn't really think about it before I had to choose and now I notice all the different shades of the various interior components all the time.
My e30 has pearl beige interior, and from the factory there is some variation in color between the leather seats and door panels so I think that's to be expected.
Got the seats and installed them last week. They turned out better than I expected. Thank god. Posting for the purpose of future generations with the same issue. This is #343 vinyl reportedly from BMW. Not sure if that's just what one supplier calls it or if that's a real thing. These were acquired from @zoomzoomzoom_ing on Instagram and eBay. Adaptors from @massivebrakes, he's posted here but sells them on facebook marketplace.
