Leather Seats - Cleaning (mold?) and making softer

[jaguar_XJ6_1985]

I was recently handed down a 1985 jaguar that has been nearly untouched for 10 years (it was rarely used for 3 months a few years ago) and is in excellent condition. I noticed that the leather has become very stiff and has started to crack in the seats. I was wondering if there was a product I could use that would soften the leather and prevent cracking. Another problem is that there appears to be a substance that looks like mold growing on the center console and on the sides of the seats. If there is something you know of that will clean this off please share!



Thanks for the help,

Brandon



P.S. If anybody knows of an easy way to fix tears (cracks) in the leather I would be thankful if you could explain the process. I don`t have any money (I`m 15) so I can`t pay people to do it. Thanks!

[judyb]

The leather will have started to crack due to lack of maintenance. It needs rehydrating with moisture and so you should start introducing this by spraying regulalry with water or a water based protector. Do not use anything wax or oil based as this could make things worse.

Replacing cracked pigment is fairly straightforward as long as the pigments you are using are good pofessional ones and not DIY kits.

We use a pigemnt that is first hand applied and then rolled to promote adhesion as the adhesion of pigments is not as effective if they are sprayed on.



For the mold you need to use an enzyme cleaner that will kill the mold and stop it from returning, cleaning it away is not enough.

[jaguar_XJ6_1985]

Thanks for the info. So it would be safe to actually spray water on the leather?

[judyb]

Water is fine on leather. This is what it needs to keep it in good condition rather than oils and waxes or `conditioning` products. Never oversoak as this will swell the fibres but a wipe over or a little and often spray with water will be fine.