Fabrics for interior trim

Vinyl coated fabrics are now well established as trim material. Their vast superiority over the linseed oil coatings,and later the nitrocellulose coatings,of yesteryear are almost forgotten in the march of progress. Vinyl coatings are nowsufficiently familiar for their merits to be taken for granted; never- theless they continue to provide a material which for durability,uniformity and appearance at a reasonable cost so far remains unsurpassed. The resin polyvinyl chloride,the main ingredient of the coating,became available in commercial quantities in the early 1930s,and now a coating based on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is used for seating material in this country. Although by tradition PVC is produced with a simulated leather appearance,on the Continent and particularly in the USA it is widely used with fancy embosses,and patterns. An extremely wide range of qualities is available,and in recent years there has been an effort to achieve some degree of rationalization. Additional qualities are necessary for tilt covers,headlinings and hoods for convertibles; the material for hooding convert- ibles must be resistant to mildew,to shrinkage and to wicking,this last term relating to the absorption of water on the inside surface of the cloth from the bottom edge of the hood. The characteristics necessary to provide serviceability over the life of the vehicle are the strength of the material under tension and under tearing conditions; adhesion of the coating to the backing cloth; resistance to flexing, and resistance to cracking at low temperatures; low friction,to enable the owner to slide on the seat; colour fastness,soiling resistance and,of course, wear resistance. In the case of the breathable leathercloth,the air permeability of the fabric has to be controlled.