You can definitely tell when a series 3 door card has been re-upholstered at the top - the grain of the vinyl never looks right.
If the vinyl is cracked, it is actually possible to get the cracks "glued" back together . I don't know about your neck of the woods, but I've found restoration specialists in Australia who can do this, eg:
https://newliferepairs.com.au/products/vinyl/ They'll even re-dye the vinyl colour matched back to original if it has faded.
The other problem with the 1st gen door cards is that the top vinyl is stretched over a metal support then glued onto the back. Over time, the adhesive fails and the vinyl shrinks causing it to bunch up. A good upholsteror should be able to stretch the vinyl back over using heat then glue it back using a modern adhesive.
I hope this helps.
Don't throw these door cards out - they can be saved!