Care of leather seats

[Guest]

Has anyone found a great care product for the leather upholstery? The ones I've used don't seem to make a dent in the dry condition of my seats.

[Guest Stephen Lyons]

The Leatherique/Prestine line of products is excellent & highly recommended. For really dry leather, it may take repeated applications, but the Rejuvenator Oil will eventually restore a good degree of pliabity & softness to the leather.

If you have visible cracking that has creeated a spiderweb effect where the external colorized finish has come off exposing the lighter, undyed raw leather underneath, I have come up with a technique that can go a long ways to making this right again.

First, go to an arts & crafts store & obtain a 2 fl. oz. bottle of acrylic paint - every manufacturer seems to have a hue that approximates the TC's ginger colored leather. These typically cost less than $2 & 1 bottle is enough for about forever. I actually got mine out of the close-out bin for 49 cents. The color was called "golden brown", but I have since gotten another bottle identified as "crown gold" that might even be a smidgen closer to matching the original ginger dye.

Anyway, working on small areas (say, a square inch), you put a drop or two of the paint on your finger & work it into the crack. Then immediately put some Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil on the same finger & work it into the same area. The oil cuts the paint, removing the excess but gets the remainder even farther down into the crack. Both the paint & the oil are non-toxic, & mixed together on your hands, it washes off with soap & water - the paint without the oil would otherwise have to be removed with mineral spirits. 24 hours later, wipe the surface with a damp cloth - some unattached pigment (but not much, probably riding in any excess oil that did not penetrate) will come off, but the bulk will stay fixed in place.

Appearance-wise, the difference this made with one of my TC's was astounding. While not absolutely perfect, it's still a vast improvement, probably adds 10 concours points to the car. What was a really ratty looking front seat is now very presentable, & the repair to this point has proved permanent & not been prone to wearing away.

Things being as they are in life, I suppose that I should make a disclaimer here - I pass this tip simply as something that worked for me. I do not warranty that anyone else will necessarily obtain the same or equally satisfactory results.

[ghostymosty]

I used Lexol spray conditioner when I first got my TC, it seemed to soften the leather from brick hard to having a little give. Then it stopped having any further effect. I tried Zymol cream conditioner and the leather softened a good deal more. Still not really soft on the passenger seat but I don't worry about it cracking anymore.

[TCParts]

I was part of a team for the TC America National meet in Scottsdale, AZ charged with doing a demonstration of the leather restoration process. After almost a year of experimenting we determined that the Leatherique products worked the best on our Italian leather. Color Plus also has some products, but the process takes too long and the results made the leather look a little rubbery.

I do stock some of the Leatherique products.

Larry

www.TCParts.com

[Guest]

It sounds like you already got the answer to your question, but I thought I'd add my two-cents. Perhaps it'll give you more confidence in the answer! I too find Leatherique to work wonders for very dry, stiff leather. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the labor involved in using Leatherique. Although it's definitely worth it, it is quite involved if your leather's in rough shape. Lexol is very user friendly, but doesn't provide the same results. From my experience, Lexol is the best you'll find for not having to do much work. But, if you're willing to spend a little time and energy, Leatherique does wonders. I know you can get both products from Detailers Paradise online. They're into helping customers with specific issues so they might be able to help you with both products. There are also many other places to buy either product. Just do a search online. The Leatherique website is also very helpful and informative. I've never ordered from it, but just last week someone told me they ordered from it several months ago and never heard anything back for weeks. I've never checked Lexol's website, but I'm sure it has more info too. I don't know if you can order from it or not.

Have fun!

[BrotherJohn]

Call the guy who does my interior work. Asked him what cleaned leather, he said to use GoJo the white hand cleaner with a small nail brush. I tryed it on my door panels and they came out great. BroJohn