Last car to have a velour interior

[ingenieur]

How cars are upholstered matters at lot to me when choosing a car. I thought about how things have changed as I've grown up with cars. In the old days cars often had the options of velour or leather. Plain flat cloth or synthetic leather are the choices these days. Some high end manufacturers offer a real leather option.

I was just thinking I don't really know when they phased out velour and what was the last car you could buy which had it?

[AC43]

ingenieur said:

How cars are upholstered matters at lot to me when choosing a car. I thought about how things have changed as I've grown up with cars. In the old days cars often had the options of velour or leather. Plain flat cloth or synthetic leather are the choices these days. Some high end manufacturers offer a real leather option.

I was just thinking I don't really know when they phased out velour and what was the last car you could buy which had it?

The last car I bought with velour was a 1978 Alfasud Sprint.

The 1986 33 Green Cloverleaf that followed had cloth (as did most of the "sports" versions of cars at the time). Then I was into company Cavaliers, etc (all cloth)

After that, leather all the way from 1995 onwards - 200SX Tourings, C43's, E500's, my wife's Clio and my wife's Fiat 500.

[SweptVolume]

Agree, velour seemed to just disappear 15-20 years ago.

As for the last model offered with it, perhaps something French and comfortable but in a lower spec, like a late Citroen C5 or a base C6?

EDIT:

From the 2008 UK C6 brochure

Edited by SweptVolume on Wednesday 22 March 09:18

[TCEvo]

Pure guess, early '90's entry-level Cadillac/Buick/Lincoln maybe?

[ingenieur]

Potentially was something French I agree. Wouldn't know about the yank tanks... but it's possible.

[vaud]

Saab C900?

[parabolica]

TCEvo said:

Pure guess, early '90's entry-level Cadillac/Buick/Lincoln maybe?

Nah we had a '97 Saab 95 with velour interior. I also still have nightmares about routinely travelling in a 2000 406 taxi to get to an after-school job that had velour seats and they stank of BO - I'd get out to start working my shift stinking of someone else's stink - it was disgusting.

[jeremyc]

I'm pretty sure the good people at Rolls Royce will trim the interior of your new car in velour if you really wanted it.

[Geoffcapes]

My father in laws Saab had velour. I think that was. 54 plate.

Maybe a little earlier.

[Scootersp]

Quite recent Toyota landcruisers (LC3?) have them I think, certainly not all are leather.

edit there is at least a 2011 with it on autotrader

Edited by Scootersp on Wednesday 22 March 09:51

[s94wht]

I don't really know what velour is, but the Mk7 GTI could be specced with "Art Velour" interior

[Scootersp]

2018 (and probably new today) Toyota Century came with velour (the Japanese are not as fond of leather as everyone else seems to be)

[anonymous-user]

Bit like asking the last car to had vinyl seats. If you are driving a car with "leather" seats then your bum is most likely sitting on vinyl. If there is any leather at all in the seats it tends to just be the side bolsters.

[ingenieur]

s94wht said:

I don't really know what velour is, but the Mk7 GTI could be specced with "Art Velour" interior

Looks more like alcantara... which is also available in fake and real varieties I think.

[Byker28i]

I was thinking something 1970's and british, Rover, British Leyland?

[blueST]

I'm fairly sure if you bought a non-leather Rover 800 in the late 80s the seats were at least part velour. I think Ford's with Ghia trim level and no leather had velour into the late 80s/early 90s too.

[Milkyway]

My Dads new ‘78 Viva GLS had lovely & comfortable tan velour seats.
( Traded In for an uncomfortable & checkered clothed ‘Shovit’).

The early to mid eighties BL cars had velour seats... My Triumph Acclaim HLS & the Bosses SD1 spring to mind.
Even the BMW 735 had them... Leather was optional I suppose.

NB: The last cars I had with velour seats were my ‘93 Mondeo Ghia & Laguna which I owned in the early 00’s.

Edited by Milkyway on Wednesday 22 March 12:25

[The Hypno-Toad]

The Nissan Cube definitely had a velour interior option, went on sale in the UK in 2009, I think.

[itcaptainslow]

Club spec Rover 75’s had rather plush velour seats.

[Fastdruid]

ingenieur said:

s94wht said:

I don't really know what velour is, but the Mk7 GTI could be specced with "Art Velour" interior

Looks more like alcantara... which is also available in fake and real varieties I think.

All "Alcantara" is fake by definition, it is a brand name for Faux Suede and other companies make identical Faux Suede (only of course they can't call theirs Alcantara).