TR4/4A Good interior source

[Rut]

Good morning! I'm getting closer to beginning my TR4a restoration in earnest and I've taken advantage of the various half price sales. Moss currently has a 30% off upholstery sale, but I really don't know the quality level or if 30% off is comparable to other companies. I've been pleased with some of their products and I've bought from AH Spares in the UK for an interior for my Bugeye and the quality was so so. TRF appears to have some good products, but their web site is very hard for me to navigate on my iPad and I've not had good experiences with their customer service. All that said I would like to know your experience and advice when looking at a complete period correct interior in black/white trim. I'll also be adding additional parts to my order to take advantage of any available discounts.
Thanks, Rut

 

[Darrell_Walker]

So my information may be dated, since I did this quite a few years ago. The first interior I installed was from Moss. It was fine, except the lines in the door panels were sewn, not heat sealed as original. I also felt the leather seat covers didn't fit quite right, but that could have been partly my fault. Later I installed an interior from TRF (going back to the original black with white piping, I had ordered a tan interior from Moss). The door panels were heat sealed, and the seat covers seemed to fit better, though I had them professionally installed this time. But this was about 15 years ago for the TRF interior, and close to 25 for the Moss.

 

[Rut]

Darrell,
Thanks for the information! I am looking for an original look and will check out the door panels before I order. This TR4a will need everything for the interior...seats, carpet, panels, dash, crash pads, etc. I was able to save the original wooden facia and I also re veneered a couple that I had, one is a stock grain and one in burl walnut, but that's about all I could save.
Rut

 

[Darrell_Walker]

Hi Rut,

I was looking for interior pictures, but I don't have many. Here is one showing the carpet and rear panels from my TRF kit.

-Darrell

 

[BL50]

I recently ordered a complete interior from TRF during their upholstery sale. Everything looks great but I haven't installed anything yet. You might want to check with Desert TR on the other board ... he just completed his seats with TRF kits. I agree that TRFs site can be tedious but it's sometimes worth the hassle.

Brian

 

[charleyf]

Rut,
Over the last 6 years or so, I have reinteriored two TR4's. Both kits came from TRF. In both of these I had to do some special pieces and some mixing of components. As I have TR6 seats in both cars and surrey tops on them. One set of seats TRF ordered special from England to get a TR6 seat cover made up in TR4 midnight blue. I would rate their kits as very good. I would also say their carpet choices are far superior to what Moss offers. I had NO complaints about the quality of what I got from TRF. AS you are ordering black and white your color choices are not a problem, but I see that Moss is rather limited in their other choices. I think that TRF just had their annual upholstery sale or it may still be on. The TRF paper catalog is much easier to work with. On the phone help is also available to determine what they have and what you need.
Charley

 

[Rut]

Thanks guys! I received my Moss sale catalog yesterday and that spurred me to post this topic. I'm in no rush to buy, but don't want to miss out on a really good sale! I did buy a lot of needed parts from TRF during their half price (so called) sale, but must have missed their upholstery sale.
Rut

 

[TR3driver]

Good morning! I'm getting closer to beginning my TR4a restoration in earnest and I've taken advantage of the various half price sales. Moss currently has a 30% off upholstery sale,

You might still want to look into TRF's "Customer Investment Program". 30% off on all parts, every day; plus a good (or very good depending on your risk assessment) return on your investment.

Unfortunately, to really use their web site, you have to have a copy of the factory parts catalogue. Once you've got the factory part number, the rest is easy.

PS, Someday I hope to have a PDF version of the 4A SPC, but I'm afraid it won't be any time soon. After years of "when the notion strikes me", I'm just now getting close to the end of the TR3 version

 

[Rut]

Randall,
Thanks for the heads up on TRFs 'CIP'...I'll investigate. I bought a TR4a parts catalog some time ago and forgot I had it!
Thanks, Rut

 

[Rut]

Randall,
I just did a quick review of TRFs CIP and it looks very favorable at first glance. With the amount that I will spend on parts for two TR4as the savings could be considerable even before the 8% monthly checks. Thanks again for the heads up!
Rut

 

[BL50]

I joined TRFs CIP four years ago when I started my TR4A restoration. I get a great discount on parts and the interest checks arrive like clockwork each month at a very good rate. I highly recommend it if you're buying a lot of parts.

Brian

 

[Popeye]

FWIW, I bought an interior kit from TRF. I have not yet installed it, so I cannot comment on it's quality, other than the box it came in was heavy - wow!

I bought from TRF because they (1) are the only ones who supply wool, and (2) explain the difference between the various carpet options. I went with wool because it was original, and also because wool carpet just sounds "proper" in a British car. For that same reason I bought the jute underlayment as opposed to the synthetic version.

 

[Geo Hahn]

My experience differs slightly from the above.

Though I have high regard for Charles & company and what he does to support restorers and enthusiasts - I was not happy with interior items I got from them.

The grey carpet (TR4s at least all came with grey carpet) had dye issues (possibly due to exposure to UV) that caused a color change to a shade of orange. This was 10 years ago so perhaps the grey formulation is better now. I believe my black TR3 carpet also came from them and still looks great after more than 30 years.

I finally replaced the chameleon carpet with a set of grey from Moss. Not as neatly stitched as the TRF set but has remained color-fast and wears well.

More recently (2008) I got leather seat covers from TRF - said to be made in England by a OEM supplier. They were (in my opinion) poorly made with noticeably uneven seams. TRF took them back and I got a set from Moss which has been fine. Again, this may have been an isolated problem or at least one that has since been resolved.

I have no experience with TR4 door panels and rear trim as those components are still original on mine.

Lastly, I was not aware that wool was the original material for TR4s (4As) but I am certainly no authority on that.

Perhaps the take-away on this is to promptly inspect whatever you receive. The major suppliers are pretty good at standing behind what they sell - but best not to let it sit on the shelf for a long spell only to discover later there is an issue.

 

[Rut]

Good advice all! I have unopened boxes of parts that are several years old and hope that they are correct and serviceable! Since we deal with products that may be made to unknown standards we are at the mercy of our suppliers...the ones that perform well when there's a problem are more valuable to me than a low price. I still look for sales and appreciate a true 'bargain', but the real cost can't be appreciated until after something is installed. I've been happy with the majority of the companies I've bought from and our support helps them to continue providing good products. As I said in my original post I've not had the best experience with TRF and their website is difficult from my iPad, but there seems to be a lot of good experiences. I'll give them a call and go from there.
Thanks, Rut

 

[BL50]

Hey Rut,

I order from TRF on my iPad all the time. It's a bit of a PITA at first but once you get used to it you'll do fine. What I do is just cruise through their online catalog or their weekly specials emails and click on the parts I want to order. Then I add them to my "wish list". That way I can go through them when I feel like I can afford to place the order or wait for a sale. Like I said, once you get used to it it's pretty simple.

Good luck!

Brian

 

[jattr6]

Sadly I missed the TRF sale...not sure what the prices were for carpet/panels/seats.

I am curious about ordering from Rimmer UK. The prices seem a lot better (not sure how much shipping is).
Anyone order from them? I need the Beige interior and Brown carpet (if anyone has experience with that setup).

 

[TR3driver]

Unless it has changed, Rimmers used to insist on shipping via airmail. Shipping can easily run more than the parts! And once I got hit with a $60 "customs broker" fee after the fact.

I've also gotten a lot of parts from them that didn't fit right (tho not TR interior parts). For example, the boot boards I got from them for the Stag were almost twice as thick as originals, and the hold-down hardware (in the same shipment) was not long enough to work with the extra-thick boards. (However, they were useful as a pattern to cut my own, so not a total waste.)

 

[Mink]

I bought mine from TRF and the quality is very nice. TRF sources them from Newton Commercial in the UK.

 

[Rut]

Thanks again for all the useful info! Since it will be awhile before I need an interior I'll wait for the sale at TRF if I don't join the CIP first.
Rut

 

[Marvin Gruber]

Rut,
the TR250 I did last year, all the interior came from TRF.
Marc