Need something that will get my leather back to factory finish

I

iDetail

New member
Hey guys. I have an 05 G35 coupe with stone leather interior (creamy tan). And although I like the way the light leather looks it holds onto dirt like no other. I have used pretty much every leather cleaner/conditioner pep boys has to offer and none of them do the job even fairly well. I WANT THIS LEATHER PERFECT! Its not like im trying to restore leather that has been dirty for 15 years, this is a fairly new car, its only got 55,000 miles.



So what should I look for? I want something that wont bleach or discolor the leather, but still something strong enough to get this leather looking new.



Thanks,



Adam
 
iDetail said:
Hey guys. I have an 05 G35 coupe with stone leather interior (creamy tan). And although I like the way the light leather looks it holds onto dirt like no other. I have used pretty much every leather cleaner/conditioner pep boys has to offer and none of them do the job even fairly well. I WANT THIS LEATHER PERFECT! Its not like im trying to restore leather that has been dirty for 15 years, this is a fairly new car, its only got 55,000 miles.



So what should I look for? I want something that wont bleach or discolor the leather, but still something strong enough to get this leather looking new.



Thanks,



Adam
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50/50 woolite solution followed by 303 to protect. G35 leather is coated so leather specific cleaners really won't benefit it too much. I would stick with this though; I used a Mr. Clean eraser and it removed the coating. I have a similar interior color and have also used Lexol and have been pretty happy with the results if you want to use specific leather cleaner products.
 
Asad_A203 said:
50/50 woolite solution followed by 303 to protect. G35 leather is coated so leather specific cleaners really won't benefit it too much. I would stick with this though; I used a Mr. Clean eraser and it removed the coating. I have a similar interior color and have also used Lexol and have been pretty happy with the results if you want to use specific leather cleaner products.
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Yea, I have Lexol in my cabinet and it works, but not perfectly. Maybe I havent scrubbed long enough. Its hard though when you scrub and scrub and scrub and you cant see that big of a difference.



I was reading about steamers. Could that be a possible option?
 
I have discovered that the "factory new" look of leather cannot be achieved. I, personally, have never seen it. Even leather that is spotless, not faded, torn, cracked, or in otherwise perfect condition, still, does not look "new". The leather in my car is in flawless condition and it's spotless, but it doesn't look new. New leather has that look that can only be seen when the car is new. I've been searching for the holy grail of leather care that can duplicate this look. It doesn't exist. I've seen every single C&B on this board and have never seen a conditioned leather seat look like "new" They all have that "sheen", no matter how slight, that new cars just don't have.



Still searching.
 
I have seen damaged leather coatings even on cars as old/new as yours. The dirt you are seeing may be cracks in the coating. It is probably not possible to make it new again. The key is to maintain it properly from the time it is new.
 
You do need to clean and protect your leather from new to keep it in that new state. Using most 'conditioners' will leave a residue on the surface which will often add a sheen.



Quality cleaning and protection products will always leave the leather looking as it was when it was new and will not change the appearance or add a sheen to the leather.



Any inground dirt or dye transfer (on pale leathers) will not be removed by most standard auto leather cleaners and will need a specifically formulated cleaner to remove it.

Leather cleaning is very easy and straightforward when the correctly formulated products are used and the correct cleaner is used for the problem you have.



The key to keeping leather in good condition is to keep it clean. Dirt and body oils together with friction are the big enemies of leather finishes. Remember you are cleaning the surface coating and not the leather. No products will actually reach the leather itself no matter how long they are left on or how much agitation or heat is applied.



The process should be as follows:



New leather - Protect straight away to inhibit dirt and body oils from attacking the finish on the leather, this will also inhibit dye transfer on pale leathers.

Maintain with a maintenance product which can be used as often as you like and will only take 5-10 minutes to do.

Deep clean with a water based detergent foam cleaner once every 2-3 months (more often if you have pale colours) These products will work effectively and quickly and do not need dwell time or heat to enable them to work.

Reprotect after deep cleaning.



Older leather - Clean with a water based foam detergent cleaner using stronger cleaners if inground dirt or dye transfer are present.

Protect with water based protector

Maintain with maintenance product

Deep clean etc. etc.



Doing the above processes which are quick and easy to do will keep your leather in good condition and make cleaning easier. It should always leave your leather as it was when new (ie. matt if it was matt)



Hope this helps
 
judyb said:
Quality cleaning and protection products will always leave the leather looking as it was when it was new and will not change the appearance or add a sheen to the leather.
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Judy, I know you're the leather expert, here, but I have to disagree with this statement, simply because I've *never* seen it. As I said earlier, even an impeccably maintained leather seat has that sheen, however slight, that gives it away. It's difficult to describe the look of brand new leather but one thing is for sure, it has absolutely zero sheen. It's about as shiny as toilet paper. :chuckle:



Actually, I have seen new looking leather on used cars but only on garage queens that rarely get driven.



But I have to say, if you know of some product or special process that will actually make my already flawless seats look brand new again, I don't think money would be a factor. I would pay almost anything. :help:
 
The sheen that you see on used leathers is often caused by dirt and friction.

If this remains when the seats have been cleaned they are either not cleaned properly or have been cleaned with products that leave a residue on the leather.



If the leather is maintained correctly from new this sheen should not appear at all.

Leather finish will always wear to a certain extent and the leather will stretch also which will alter the way it looks. Trying all sorts of different products will not do it any favours.



Hope this helps
 
iDetail said:
Yea, I have Lexol in my cabinet and it works, but not perfectly. Maybe I havent scrubbed long enough. Its hard though when you scrub and scrub and scrub and you cant see that big of a difference.



I was reading about steamers. Could that be a possible option?
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Yeah; I know exactly what you are talking about. Did you moisten the applicator pad? I got some foam action going on when it was wet but it dried fairly quickly. Lexol does leave the leather feeling much softer which I do like (never seem to have achieved it with Eagle 1 Leather Cleaner). My leather is in tip top shape except for my driver seat which had dirt in the grooves and I ended up messing up even more. Leatherique is one I want to try out but I will need to wait till my seats get dyed to correct my original mistake.
 
Leather care is actually quite complicated. So many types of leathers out there. You have to be really careful with all the products out there. So many products are designed for REAL un-coated leather that you see in very high-end cars (Lambos, Ferrari's, etc.) the problem is most leathers in more common cars (sub $100k) don't have this level of leather. Most of the standard leathers we see are coated and treated leathers and some are not even real leather!



I would HIGHLY recommend this article for anyone who is interested in properly cleaning and treating leather.

Techniques & Methods - DetailingWiki
 
Ok, so i read the whole spiel on Detailingwiki about automotive leather and why water based products are good. So my question is; What is a good water based product(s) that will safely clean and protect my automotive leather and keep it very healthy for years to come?
 
I don't think a whole lot of people understand what I'm talking about when I talk about leather "sheen" and how it makes leather look *not* new. New leather is pretty matte in finish and texture. This picture was taken by ES350 on the C&B forum. It's a 1 year old Lexus LS460. The photo on the left shows the one year old leather. The photo on the right is my PhotoShop rendition of what the same seat looked like when it was new. (actually, new leather has even less sheen than my rendition) Still, I believe that there is no product or process that can make the leather flat again. I think Judy was correct when she said that the sheen comes from dirt and friction. The dirt we can do something about, the friction, well, good luck with that one. Short of scrubbing the leather with a Scotchbrite and Tide powder there is no physical way to get the leather to look new again.



299072643_REVPL-M.jpg
 
mborner said:
I don't think a whole lot of people understand what I'm talking about when I talk about leather "sheen" and how it makes leather look *not* new. New leather is pretty matte in finish and texture. This picture was taken by ES350 on the C&B forum. It's a 1 year old Lexus LS460. The photo on the left shows the one year old leather. The photo on the right is my PhotoShop rendition of what the same seat looked like when it was new. (actually, new leather has even less sheen than my rendition) Still, I believe that there is no product or process that can make the leather flat again. I think Judy was correct when she said that the sheen comes from dirt and friction. The dirt we can do something about, the friction, well, good luck with that one. Short of scrubbing the leather with a Scotchbrite and Tide powder there is no physical way to get the leather to look new again.



299072643_REVPL-M.jpg
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Yes, this is my car. You are right that the picture on the left shows my seat right after application of OPP. However when my LS460 was brand new, my leather still had more sheen than your picture on the right. You need to remember that the level of lighting hitting the seats and the exposure of my pic will determine how much sheen you see.



My car is lightly used and well maintained. The OPP that I applied to the dash and leather does give the interior slightly more sheen than nothing applied at all. I can make my seats look absuolutely "new" by cleaning them and NOT applying a conditioner like OPP. I just like the look of the slight sheen better. If I wanted a completely matte product, I would choose Zaino Z-10.



I recommend that you view all the interior pics to judge the level of sheen. You can find more pics of my interior and exterior here... http://www.autopia.org/forum/click-brag/105859-1st-c-b-my-ls460-1-year-mark.html
 
es350 said:
Yes, this is my car. You are right that the picture on the left shows my seat right after application of OPP. However when my LS460 was brand new, my leather still had more sheen than your picture on the right. You need to remember that the level of lighting hitting the seats and the exposure of my pic will determine how much sheen you see.



My car is lightly used and well maintained. The OPP that I applied to the dash and leather does give the interior slightly more sheen than nothing applied at all. I can make my seats look absuolutely "new" by cleaning them and NOT applying a conditioner like OPP. I just like the look of the slight sheen better. If I wanted a completely matte product, I would choose Zaino Z-10.



I recommend that you view all the interior pics to judge the level of sheen. You can find more pics of my interior and exterior here... http://www.autopia.org/forum/click-brag/105859-1st-c-b-my-ls460-1-year-mark.html
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es350, I must apologize, I know my PhotoShop skills aren't that great. I have to disagree, though, about the sheen on new leather as I'm practically standing here looking at a brand new LS460 on our showroom floor and it is as matte as matte can be. Even under harsh showroom lighting, the leather in this car has absolutely *zero* sheen. The point I was trying to make was that in all my 44 years, I've never seen anybody, *Ever*, re-create the look of new leather using any kind of product or process.

This is not, in anyway, taking away from anyones talents, here. It simply can't be done. The leather in my car looks much like yours does. It's not faded, torn, dirty, dusty, oily, split, cracked, worn, or wrinkled. The *ONLY* thing that makes them look not new is the sheen that cannot be removed. As I said earlier in this thread, if anybody can show me a product or process that will completely remove the sheen from my seats, money would not be a factor. I would be willing to pay almost anything.
 
mborner said:
es350, I must apologize, I know my PhotoShop skills aren't that great. I have to disagree, though, about the sheen on new leather as I'm practically standing here looking at a brand new LS460 on our showroom floor and it is as matte as matte can be. Even under harsh showroom lighting, the leather in this car has absolutely *zero* sheen. The point I was trying to make was that in all my 44 years, I've never seen anybody, *Ever*, re-create the look of new leather using any kind of product or process.

This is not, in anyway, taking away from anyones talents, here. It simply can't be done. The leather in my car looks much like yours does. It's not faded, torn, dirty, dusty, oily, split, cracked, worn, or wrinkled. The *ONLY* thing that makes them look not new is the sheen that cannot be removed. As I said earlier in this thread, if anybody can show me a product or process that will completely remove the sheen from my seats, money would not be a factor. I would be willing to pay almost anything.
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We can just agree to disagree and move on.
 
Let's face it, things are new once. After that they can be made to look like new. A newborn baby has the softest skin when they're a baby. Afterward it's called aging. I really don't get the fuss about sheen.
 
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