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Leather Seat Cleaning...?

kevinyearley

kevinyearley

New member
Hello,

I've been looking at some little Job I can be doing to my S2 with this stinking weather and one of the things I feel letting the whole car down is the condition of the front seats (drivers especially).

They've got 20 years of wear and I couldn't guess when they last had any attention.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend the right course of action to get my seats back up to spec (cleaning and feeding) or whether you recon they're too far gone and will need recovering.

I'm not after perfection just something to make them look less tatty.

Cheers


5778A43801FB454DB3F6ADBC8E44E2B4.jpg
 
There are various colour restoration kits featured in Practical Classics mag each month. They did a feature recently I think on restoring stuff. Have used the Gliptone one before and it worked quite well.
Al Cowan
 
Try here, www.furnitureclinic.co.uk based at Team Valley in Geordieland. Add features a 944 Turbo interior!
Alasdair
 
Just checked out the Gliptone Website, seems pretty straight forward.

When people talk about 'feeding' the leather is that the same as conditioning it....?
 
Look at the leather to see whether it is worn (as in, the surface is worn off) or just dirty.

If it is dirty then it can be cleaned very easily - you can get the stuff to do it at home, and then conditioned (not sure if this is the same as 'feeding' it, although I think it is).

If the surface is worn off then it is a professional job to re-surface the leather I think (although there was a chap on here who recoloured a blue interior to linen, and that looked superb. I think it involved rubbing the surface off as well, so perhaps it isn't a pro job necessarily.)

FWIW, when I looked at having my seats tidied up I found that there were a million different opinions and ways of doing it, different people would regard the different seats as being 'easily home restored' or 'beyond redemption', and the prices quoted varied by several hundred percent.


Oli.
 
Gliptone is very good stuff if the leather is a bit cracked or dried out, also works wonders on your sofa too (if it's leather obviously). If it is badly cracked or flaking then the furniture clinic stuff seems very well thought of. They are local to me and I know a few people that have used them or their products and been very happy with the results.
 
For just cleaning initially, I was advised by the guys who reconditioned my 944T seats to use scalding hot water with some soap flakes dissolved in it and a sponge. Using thick rubber gloves (obviously!) soak the sponge and then ring it out so that it is red hot but just damp and rub the seats. The heat and steam supposedly lifts the ingrained dirt from the cracks in the leather.

Once cleaned and dry, use any good hide food/conditioner to replace the lost oils in the coating. Btw, it is the coating that is being conditioned and NOT the leather itself!
 
I have found Armorall hand wipes to be amazingly good at cleaning the interior in general. I always keep a pack in the glove box just in case of a breakdown etc. but usually end up using them to clean the interior and seats.
 
ORIGINAL: trev260764

How about getting Kelly Brook to sit on it? That would make it look much nicer.
Click to expand...

True, wouldn't be looking at the seats then, although the seats would probably hold a better conversation?![8|][:D]
 

ORIGINAL: kevinyearley

When people talk about 'feeding' the leather is that the same as conditioning it....?
Click to expand...

Its a misleading term, at best, because you cant feed a piece of dead animal skin. Because its a meaningless expression its hard to know wtf people mean, isnt it?
 
I have used Gliptone on my seats. From looking a little tired they now look like brand new and have softened up a treat. On my previous car with half leather, it kept that leather in great shape too.
 
right... I've given the seats a good clean and condition.

It would seem that the worst parts are where the dye/top layer have been worn off.

I am looking to buy a dye kit to touch up these area, could any advise me what colour my interior is.

I think it's linnen but am not sure (it's in a 1990 S2).

Also while I'm here, when changing the oil, can I get away with one 4 litre tub or will the sub hold more than this...?



61D02FE3BFBD4D99BE85F29E4A9CF222.jpg
 
It maybe worth getting the dye colour-matched to your interior tho'. After 20-odd years the colours fade, and they don't all fade the same. To touch up the leather with some touch-up that is slightly off would not look good.

You will need a larger than 4L tub if you are draining your oil. (Certainly do for an S2.)


Oli.
 
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