Hi, I just found this forum the day after I ordered my RX-8, typical
It took me ages to make my mind up on the colour but went for red in the end.
What is worrying me now is that I went for the cloth seats,
I am not inspired by the photos I have seen here of the cloth
I am not sure how well the red inserts would wear and wether the black would too dark.
Do you think the leather helps the residual value of the car? Is a car with cloth seats going to be difficult to sell in the future ?
I have convinced myself to spend this much on a car as I hope it is going to hold on to quite a bit of its value.

Mark

 

Hi Mark,

Welcome to the forum. If you do a search you will find that the colour and spec of the car has been subject to much debate, especially in the Euro forum with us Brits.

The majority seem to have gone for leather, but there are some who have chosen cloth as well. At the end of the day it is down to personal choice.

My own thoughts were that Leather suits this type of car and I do like the look of the two tone red/black, as opposed to the all black which I find too dark and oppressive having had it in other cars before.

Also the fact you get heated seats with driver power adjustment and lumbar support means it is not a bad deal. I think leather will be more desirable for resale but you wont get all £1200 back.

Finally, if you want your car early, the cloth are said to be in limited supply.

Good choice on the Red though!

 

Thanks Mark
I am tending towards the black & red leather, I think all black might be too dark. I just wish there was a definate picture of what the cloth would look like, my Brother has a Mazda 6 sport and the cloth seats in that are okay.

I have a silver car now and my brother's 6 is titatium so that swung me towards the red.

I would love the sat nav as well but it all starts adding up badly.

 

If your going to do REALLY hard driving, cloth seats are the way to go (they used this on the last RX-7s because cloth seats hold the driver better, whereas with leather you can slide more in the seats) but you'd probably have to push the car to its limits for it to matter.

 

I had not considered the bum holding capabilties of cloth before .
The main reason for going with cloth is cost. It hurts me to spend £20k on a car, but I love the RX-8 and hopefully it is not going to loose too much value over a couple of years. Basicially I am just a tight a*se. :p

Mark

 

Welcome.

I decided on leather because of the look. It enhances the car as a luxury item. Also, if maintained will not spoil and will smell like leathery for along time. My wife has a rental car at the moment and the cloth seats are making the whole car smell badly. Cloth will retain dirt a lot more and is more difficult to clean, a consideration especially if you intend to carry children in the back.

Additioinally you get all the electronics etc.

I think is worth having considring £22,000 already spent.

rael

 

It is a known fact in the motor trade that leather interior retains the secondhand value of the car better than cloth.

Also, if you're spending this sort of money, you might as well go the whole hog.

Cheers
OILMAN

 

Now just hang on a cotton pickin minute, all you leather fetishists.

I have ordered red with cloth. I have owned one car with leather seats and was not terribly impressed. They are freezing cold when you first get in if the weather is cold (hence the need for heated seats), ridiculously hot when they have been in the sun, sweaty on long jouneys and not great if you are wearing shorts. Yes they are easier to clean but they can also scratch easily. And I do think that cloth holds you more firmly too.

Personally I'm also not a big fan of the two-tone scheme (dare I suggest a bit garish/boy racer?) or of the ribbed texture that is used on some of the seat panels. I'm keen to see a picture of the cloth that will be used in production but they seem to have done a quality job in other regards and I'm sure it will be fine.

So stick to your guns and get whatever you'd prefer for day-to-day use. Don't worry about resale values - used cars will be in short supply (for the next couple of years at least) and I'm sure you'll have no problem selling it. As previously suggested, if you spend the extra money on leather then you'd probably just get the same money back when you sell so you won't be any better off in the long run.

 

Good point Simon. I was told that the cloth may be similar to the Mazfa 6 sports which was a quite a pleasant two tone grey.

Obvioulsy leather has its negative points (as you have mentioned)but I think there is something a little bit more luxurious about a car with leather interior, just seems to finish it off the whole car presentation to a better quality.

May depend what you have been used to as well. I have always had leather (for the last 10 years anyway) and don't find the cold/ heat thing a problem, mainly as I live in the UK and we don't really have extremes. My main cloth gripe is the smell after time but that could be me, I like to retain that new smell in a car and the leathery smell is just my personal association with that.

But nothing wrong with cloth.....if that is what you like.

rael

 

Here in the Colonies, it's not as simple as that. It depends on the quality of the leather, how well it is maintained, and how well it is cared for. If the leather is damaged enough, it might not hurt the "bluebook" value (general value of the car), but remember that that is a general price range, not an assessment of your car. Seats in poor condition will hurt resale value when it actually comes down to getting money from someone.

And yes, I meant "maintained" and "cared for" as two different things. By "maintained" I mean regular leather cleaning and condition, and quick repairs of tears and stains. By "cared for", I mean things like being careful not to stain or tear the leather in the first place.

---jps