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Teresa,
You seek the answer to one of the million dollar questions. How long
will the original fabric last? No one can provide you a guarantee to that
question. SMS does sell both reproduction and NOS fabrics for many
cars. The quality is good. I have used them for my own
restoration. Some fabrics are inherently stonger than others (this can be
atested to by the long wearing Herculon on mother's sofa!) Longevity can
be dependent on the size of the yard, the weave of the fabric, and the
underlying support of the foam and batting in the seats. I would suspect
that the NOS fabric would stand up to the type of us you will be placing on the
car. Most of us are not using our Imperials or vintage cars the way there
were first used when new. They tend to be a lot more pampered.
Ultimately you will have to decide if originality is worth the price to pay for
the fabric and the care you will take to preserve the interior. The
original cloth is still in great condition in my 60 New Yorker coupe. The
problem with this interior is the deterioration of the seat foam. The car
came from Washington which has helped to preserve the interior. I have
another low mileage 60 New Yorker sedan with the broadcloth and snowflake insert
interior. This one is toast as it spent the majority of its life baking in
Oklahoma. The foam and the wool broadcloth are disintegrating right before
my eyes! I tend to like originality so I would encourage you to get the
NOS fabric.
Carpet for your car is going to be more of a challenge. Most of the
current auto carpet and carpet sets out there today do not have the correct pile
type and length of pile for later forward look Imperials (and Chryslers).
I have been searching most of the summer for someone that offers something
reasonably close to replace what is in my wagon. As an example, for 1960
the Imperial and the Chrysler use similar carpeting which has a longer than now
offered yarn length and a much higher density. I have found nothing from
an automotive carpet supplier that is close to correct. All I found was
the standard short cut pile nap that in no way offers the same luxurious texture
and feel required to make the car look correct. I ended up ordering a
residential carpet which is going to be made into the carpet set. If
anyone has information on where to obtain correct carpet I would love to
know.... and I know of several others that would too!
So Teresa, I would not be afraid to go with the fabric from SMS. It
will make the car look great and once the work is done you will be
pleased. The new foam and seat materials will also help to ensure long
life to the new upholstery.
Happy Motoring.
Dale
68 Crown Coupe
60 New Yorkers (wagon, coupe, sedan)
78 LeBaron T&C
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