Hi guys,

Just wanted to know the condition of your leather seats and if anyone has any tips on maintaining the leather to prolong its life.

My AP1 has 65,000kms and I think its very clean! The seat lower bolster has sagged quite a bit and I am starting to see white on the upper bolster (as if pieces of the red leather have started to come off.

Picture below:



Has anyone else experienced this at such low kms?

 

Those actually look good. Ive seen alot worse. You can get some red leather dye and touch up

 

I Probably ones with much higher mileage I am guessing though. For those in the US thats 40,000 miles that I have traveled.

 

Check these links out (from the Wash and Wax forum):
https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/371...-andor-repair/

Look at page 59 for Leather care:http://home.comcast.net/~michael.coh..._Hand_Book.pdf

 

I am Director of Maintenance for a very high end corporate flight department. Our leather seats (and other things) in the cabin interior must be flawless. I use a company that re-dye's leather. (Pro Leather restoration in S. FL) These guys are absolute magic. They can restore nearly any seat to new condition. Even if small chunks are missing (they fill it in with flexible compound) Then re-dye.

Sometimes they repair just the flaw. Sometimes they will re-dye the entire section. Depending on condition. What's interesting to me is that the re-work actually holds up better and longer than the original finish on the very high end leather in the aircraft interior. Easier to clean too.

So, I had them work on my older Jaguar, which was in terrible shape. The bolster was worn through, there were chunks missing, the steering wheel was worn out, and so on. The result was stunning. And the cost was about $250 to do the entire job.

They use an airbrush, and a heatgun. After the prep and fill, one guy sprays a small section while the other guy heats it and dries it. About 3x3 inches at a time. But they move along at a quick pace and within a couple of hours, the job is done.

 

This tip is simply to prevent additional cracking and to maintain your leather seats better and possibly prolong the life of the seats. This does not guarantee your bolster to be fixed, preserved, or even saved. Please note, I am not liable for any damage you may do to your seats/interior/car. These are steps I take to maintain my seats.

Tools needed:
-Interior cleaner (of your choice), preferrebly something water based/ph balanced.
-Leather conditioner (of your choice)
-Microfiber towels
-SOFT Bristle brush (not necessary)
-Time

1. Spray the cleaner on a microfiber towel and start wiping your seats. If you get the results you want, skip to step 3.
2. If there is still grime, grease, and dirt, get a SOFT bristle brush, spray the cleaner into the brush, and spritz a little cleaner on a small section of the seat. Agitate, in circular motions with the brush. Wipe with a clean microfiber cloth. Work in sections.

3. Get an interior leather conditioner. Apply leather conditioner on CLEAN leather seats using an applicator pad. Do both seats.
4. Using a microfiber towel, wipe off the leather conditioner starting with the seat you applied the conditioner to first.
5. Recheck your work. If there are spots that look a little dryer, re-apply conditioner to that spot, let it sit for up to a minute, then wipe.

Good luck and have fun!

***Your seats should be alittle matte finish. Grease is why leather gets shiney.

 

http://www.leatherique.com/

 

Seat covers really save the finish on your seats. When they're not exposed to sunlight and dirt, they don't break down and wear out. I put Wet Okole seat covers on my car over 10 years ago, and the leather underneath still looks great. The seat covers have faded and have picked up stains over the years, but that's expected.

Another advantage of seat covers like the Wet Okoles: They don't get very hot on sunny days, and they aren't really cold on cold days.