AUTO TOPS & TRIM (980) 385-8101 Free estimate
01Auto upholstery

A torn car seat is rarely just a torn cover.

By the time the vinyl or the leather splits, the foam under it has already collapsed and the burlap under that has rotted. We take the seat apart, rebuild what is holding you up, and recover it.

Monroe, NCServing Charlotte, Union County and the SC border townsMon–Fri 9:00–7:00 · Sat 11:00–5:00 · Sun closed

Call (980) 385-8101 Send photos for a quote
A red Ford F1 pickup outside the Monroe shop with a finished black bench seat, red stitching, on the driveway beside it
5.0On Google
Since 198937 years in Monroe
FreeEstimates
Within 1 hourWe reply, shop hours
02Why it splits

The cover is the last thing to go, not the first.

Under the leather or the vinyl there is foam, and under the foam there is burlap stretched over springs. Heat, damp and thirty years of getting in and out break those down first. The cover then has nothing holding its shape, so it stretches, splits along a seam and tears open at the bolster you slide across twice a day.

It is nearly always the driver's seat, and nearly always the outer bolster. That is the corner your whole weight lands on, every time you get in.

Why the quick fixes fail

  • Slip-on seat covers hide a split for a while and slide about on it. Nothing underneath is any better for it.
  • Leather repair kits fill a tear with a coloured compound that sits on foam which has already given way. It shows, and it goes again.
  • Stitching the split shut pulls the tear wider, because the material either side has stretched and there is nothing firm left behind it.
  • A used seat from a breaker is the same age as yours with the same foam in it. You have bought somebody else's problem.
03What we do

Stripped to the frame, then rebuilt

The seat comes out and it comes apart. That is the difference between a seat that is repaired and a seat that has been covered up.

1A seat stripped back to its frame, the rotted burlap and old padding hanging off the springs

Stripped back to the frame

  • Cover and dead padding come off
  • Burlap and springs uncovered and checked
  • Broken springs and frames repaired, not padded over
2A bench seat recovered in black on the shop table, the new panels pulled taut over the rebuilt base

Rebuilt on the bench

  • New foam cut and shaped to the original profile
  • Panels cut and sewn to the car's own pattern
  • Custom stitch spacing and piping where you want it
3A finished bench seat recovered in red, outside the shop

Recovered and refitted

  • Leather, vinyl or cloth, chosen with you first
  • Fitted taut, with no pull marks at the seams
  • Back in the car and checked on its runners
04Before and after

The work, either side of the job

Every photograph was taken at the shop in Monroe.

BeforeA red bench seat in pieces on the workbench with the old covers offAfterThe same bench recovered in new red material on the shop table
The same bench — stripped, then recovered in red
BeforeTwo burgundy bucket seats, one split open down the side with the padding showing throughAfterThe same two bucket seats recovered in burgundy
The same two seats — split and worn, then rebuilt
05Out of this shop

Interiors out of this shop

Real jobs, photographed on the bench and in the car at 4209 W Hwy 74, Monroe.

Tan quilted leather seats with black inserts and matching door cards
A cream leather front seat fitted in the car
The red interior of a convertible, front and rear seats recovered
A black bench seat with blue accent panels, finished outside the shop
A pair of black and magenta bucket seats on the driveway
A black bench seat with red piping, photographed in the shop
Dark pleated door trim and seats inside a red classic
A two-tone red bench seat finished and out on the driveway
A modern truck cab with its seats and console retrimmed
Purple and black seats laid out on the bench outside
The cab of a red pickup with its rebuilt seat fitted
A black bench seat with red and blue piping on the shop table
See the full gallery
06From customers

Nobody has ever left this shop a bad review

5.0 on Google. Every word below is copied straight off the profile.

RDRobert Danneman2 reviews
★★★★★Headliner and console leather
“I had Auto Tops and Trim replace the headliner and center console leather in my 2008 Honda Accord. I was very happy with the quality of the work and would recommend using them.”
CMCharles MonkLocal Guide · 8 reviews
★★★★★Headliner replacement
“Fantastic service. The job was done quickly, while I waited. The price was cheaper than what most people were charging here locally.”
OPOzzie PaganLocal Guide · 15 reviews
★★★★★Sunroof shade
“Mr. Hopton restored my sunroof shade back to new condition. He even allowed me to watch the process. I recommend him 100% for all of your reupholstery needs. Thank you!”
LCLauren Corgan15 reviews
★★★★★Drove an hour
“Excellent work. We drove an hour to get our sunroof fixed and we were very happy with the service. Highly recommend!”
CScharmaine sealey3 reviews
★★★★★Repeat customer
“Excellent service and great prices I'll take back my car all the time”
TLTj L2 reviews
★★★★★Google review
“Great auto shop”
MZMark Zuck2 reviews
★★★★★Google review
“Good work”
07Service area

The shop is on Highway 74 in Monroe

Seats have to come to us — interior work is bench work, and the seat comes out of the car and apart on the table. So it is worth knowing the run before you set off. We are on W Hwy 74 west of downtown Monroe, straight out from Charlotte, and people come to us from across Union and Mecklenburg County and down over the South Carolina line. One customer drove an hour to get here.

Call (980) 385-8101 Get directions
Monroe, NCUnion County, NCCharlotte, NCMecklenburg County, NCConcord, NCGastonia, NCRock Hill, SCFort Mill, SC
Shop
4209 W Hwy 74, Monroe, NC 28110
Hours
Mon–Fri 9:00–7:00 · Sat 11:00–5:00 · Sun closed
Phone
(980) 385-8101
08Before you call

Answers first

Do you do auto upholstery near Charlotte, or only in Monroe?
The shop is in Monroe, at 4209 W Hwy 74, and that is where the work is done — a seat has to come out and come apart on the bench. But Monroe is a straight run out of Charlotte, and a good deal of what we trim comes from Charlotte, the rest of Union and Mecklenburg County, Concord, Gastonia, and Rock Hill and Fort Mill over the SC line. If you are further out than that, send photos first and we will tell you honestly whether the drive is worth it before you make it.
Can you repair one torn seat, or do I have to do the whole interior?
One seat is fine, and it is a great deal of what comes through the shop. Plenty of our work is a single split driver's seat in a car that is otherwise good. You do not need a full restoration to come and see us.
Can a leather car seat be repaired, or does it have to be recovered?
It depends where the damage is. A small burn or a split in a flat panel can sometimes be repaired so you would not find it. A rip across the bolster you slide over usually cannot, because that panel has stretched and the foam under it has gone — that one gets a new panel. We will tell you which yours is before we quote it.
Do you use leather, or vinyl?
Both, and cloth. Modern automotive vinyl wears extremely well and is often the right call on a daily driver; leather is worth it where the car warrants it. We put samples in front of you and tell you what each one will do in a car that sits out in the Carolina sun.
How much does it cost to reupholster car seats?
It comes down to how many seats, the material you choose, and what we find when the cover comes off. Repairing one panel and rebuilding a seat with new foam and springs are very different numbers. The estimate is free and itemised, so you can see which part of it is the cover and which part is what was underneath it.
Do you work on modern cars, or only classics?
Both. A late-model seat with a split bolster is routine work here, and so is a full classic car interior restoration built to your own spec. The shop has been doing both in Monroe since 1989.
09Free estimate
Send us a photo of it

A picture of the tear or the worn panel, plus the year, make and model, is usually enough for an estimate by email.

  • Free, and no obligation
  • Nobody will chase you afterwards
  • If yours needs an in-person look, we will say so

We reply to every request within one hour during shop hours

Or skip the form
☎ (980) 385-8101Call the shop ✉ Text a photoSame number · send a picture of the job

4209 W Hwy 74, Monroe, NC 28110
Mon–Fri 9:00–7:00 · Sat 11:00–5:00 · Sun closed

Call (980) 385-8101 Text a photo