Cupillac Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 Just wondering how everybody cleans and maintains their comfy seats. My driver seat is really wearing out with cracked lines. (easy to see on black leather). I use Armor-All leather wipes for a quick clean, but on Sundays when I do a complete car clean, I use a leather conditioner a friend picks up from his furniture store. "Cadillac, it's not a car, it's an obsession" -W.Kingdon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentham Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 I've never liked Armor-All.. and I don't really have a reason. I use Meguiars foamy leather conditioner. Haven't really noticed a big improvement - although the cracked lines aren't as visible. Plus, it smells wonderful -Eric Eric 93 Cad Seville 100K 95 Chev Blazer 143K [garaged summers] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marika Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 For heavy duty conditioning, and it sounds like your seats could use it, go to any place that sells shoe polish and pick up a can of mink oil. Follow the directions on the can. Mink oil is probably the best thing to use if a heavy duty conditioning is needed. If you really want to make people safe drivers again then simply remove all the safety features from cars. No more seat belts, ABS brakes, traction control, air bags or stability control. No more anything. You'll see how quickly people will slow down and once again learn to drive like "normal" humans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentham Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 I'll have to remember that - thanks -Eric Eric 93 Cad Seville 100K 95 Chev Blazer 143K [garaged summers] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cpk Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 Every try Leathermagic? It does a great job recoloring seats, or can be used just to dye the cracked lines. They also have a product to actually fill the cracks. I haven't tried the crack filling, but a lot of people on the Allante board swear by it. I used it to redye my entire interior (Allantes get a lot of sun fade). Worked great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caddyman Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 Leatherique, the absolutely BEST stuff in the WORLD. somewhat costly, but NOTHING compares, ultra-supple and that nice deep, new-car look! www.leatherique.com this is all I use, on EVERYTHING leather! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marika Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 Leatherique, the absolutely BEST stuff in the WORLD. somewhat costly, but NOTHING compares, ultra-supple and that nice deep, new-car look! www.leatherique.com this is all I use, on EVERYTHING leather! Watch out for products that cause the leather to become **too supple and soft**. This would lead to stretching of the leather and eventually weaken it. Products that make leather become too supple usually work by breaking down the collagen in the leather. Once collagen breaks down it actually speeds up the process of the leather aging and wearing out which will stretch it and make it fall apart. The best bet for maintaining your leather upholstery is to FEED the leather with plenty of oils and keep it clean with water soluble cleaners. Old fashioned saddle soap is one of the best things to use on leather when you have to clean it. I noticed that Leatherique is safe for equestrian use so I'm guessing that it's probably a mink oil based product and therefore safe to use. As I mentioned in another post somewhere on this board, even high quality skin creme can be good for leather. I use Nivea creme (made in Germany) to condition my driving gloves and other leather items that are made from fine, thin leather. Works fabuous. If you really want to make people safe drivers again then simply remove all the safety features from cars. No more seat belts, ABS brakes, traction control, air bags or stability control. No more anything. You'll see how quickly people will slow down and once again learn to drive like "normal" humans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pushinthelac Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 I've tried all different kinds of brands. Whipes, waxes, lotions, etc.....the best i would say is the good old armor-all. Armor all seems to do the trick on everything else also.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
556393 Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 DO NOT USE ANYTHING THAT CONTAINS SILICONE ON LEATHER. SILICONE IS VERY BAD FOR LEATHER BECAUSE, IT CLOGS THE PORES AND THE LEATHER CANNOT BREATH. THIS WILL CAUSE THE LEATHER TO DRY OUT AND CRACK MUCH SOONER. MAGUIRES MAKE GOOD PRODUCTS AND I LIKE THEM BUT, THEIR LEATHER CONDITIONER CONTAINS SILICONE. I FOUND A COMPANY CALLED LEATHERIQUE.COM THAT MAKE CONDITIONERS AND CLEANERS THAT I USE ON MY `93 ALLANTE AND MY `98 ETC. EVEN IF YOU CHOOSE NOT BUY THEIR PRODUCTS, GO TO THEIR WEB SITE AND LEARN ABOUT LEATHERS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rickster Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Please let's not do the glove thing again. 2001 STS Mettalic Otter Grey, Black Leather, 213,000 kilometers - miles - ? Still running strong! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Raven Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Please let's not do the glove thing again. Hmmm... I'm intrigued and repulsed at the same time! -Mark P. Salem, MA "Refined Sugar" - '96 SLS, 175K "...the Caddy is dedicated to relentlessly -- and comfortably -- converting time into distance." -J.J. Gertler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MotorCityRick Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Caddyman, Thanks for the tip on Leatherique. I checked out their website and I got to believe if they are using this stuff on Bentleys and Rolls Royces, it must be the real deal. Plus, they pointed out the down side to the silicone formulas just as mentioned here at Caddyinfo. It will be a while before I can report back on how it works, but I have an old motorcycle leather that got soaked and is now stiff as a board. I think it will be the perfect test before using on the car seats. If anyone wants to give Leatherique a try, they are running a major sale right now. Pretty significant savings over regular prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky2 Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Have had good luck with Lexol. Use both cleaner and conditioner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BSchlossmann Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 I use hand cream. It's cheap and appears to work O.K. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 I use Eagle Ottawa cleaner and conditioner. These are two separate products. Eagle Ottata is the leather supplier for Cadillac and their products have been working well for me for years now. Seats are nice and soft, no rips, tears, or cracks yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STYES Posted April 3, 2004 Report Share Posted April 3, 2004 BATHE the leather in any of the mentioned substances! You will never regenerate old seats, but you can keep them as is! Old seats might look ugly, but they can feel as good as an old leather jacket. But try selling that on a prospective buyer of your car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msilva954 Posted April 3, 2004 Report Share Posted April 3, 2004 Used Lexol on the Bimmer and hated it, used Meguires the other day on the caddy and wasent extremely happy. Used leather cleaner that the local High end furniture store gave us (El Dorado Furniture) and it worked great, its a concentrated leather cleaner and the conditioner is great too as it doesnt leave an artificial shine. Did I mention I get this stuff for free, just turn in the empty bottle and get a new one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjtjwdad Posted April 3, 2004 Report Share Posted April 3, 2004 My only concern is does any of these products darken your leather seats? Mine are gray and I would hate to stain them. Thanks! Jim White Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RalPh Posted April 3, 2004 Report Share Posted April 3, 2004 What ever you do, DON'T put on Armor All!!! I'ts for vinyl crap.... If you want to "feel good" about something Tecky and New, I guess you could try some of the leather products. For me, a natural sponge & a good saddle soap has kept everything leather I own clean and soft. Go to you local Tack Shop, buy some TATTERSALL soap, and give it a try Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentham Posted April 4, 2004 Report Share Posted April 4, 2004 I used some foamy leather conditioner, I think it was Mothers, and I left it on for about a minute [to soak in] and it left terrible lines/streaks where it was sprayed. I suppose it DID clean it, but it looks funny. -Eric Eric 93 Cad Seville 100K 95 Chev Blazer 143K [garaged summers] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STYES Posted April 4, 2004 Report Share Posted April 4, 2004 My buddy owns his own limo business, and he swears by the stuff he gets at the furniture store. He says he has tried everything, and that works the best. I don't know what it is called, my seats aren't bad. But I've sat in his oldest car, a 2000 with 140 grand, and the seats look nice! Armor All hasn't marketed their regular product for leather, in years. It is too slippery to use on seats, but it still does a good job on them, although I don't reccommend it. Armor All has specific products designed for leather, and they work good too. Armor All is great for all rubber, plastic, and vinyl as well. The idea behind these products is trying to replace the natural oils in rubber, and leather that get dried out because of the elements and sun. I'll even use it on certain black painted metal parts such as window trim, and the moonroof, it works there too. Meguiars has a leather wipe that is good too. Keep any kind of "wipe" away from heat, in storage, and try not to use them on warm surfaces, as they can dry out, defeating the purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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