Page 2 of 3 FirstFirst 123 LastLast
Results 16 to 30 of 31
  1. #16

    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    Huntington Beach, Ca
    Posts
    127
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    I like Leatherique. Used it and don`t mind the process. The most important thing to do is figure out if you have coated or uncoated seats.
    Coated seats will derive no protection from Leatherique. I spray Leatherique on the seats and spread it around to cover everything with rubber gloves.
    Make sure the windows are rolled up, the outside temperature is at least 80° and leave car parked outside in the sun for at least 4 hours.
    I might add more after a couple of hours if it`s really getting sucked up by the finish. I consider Leatherique a very good cleaner.
    Clean up the leftover with Prestine Clean and MF`s so that the finish has a kind of Matte look. Ideally, use it twice a year. YMMV.

    I`ve used Lexol leather products and been unimpressed.

    BTW can`t tell from the picture whether it`s the coating that is cracked or the dye on the leather is fracturing from the leather drying out and flexing of that area causing it.

  2. #17

    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    9
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Leatherique rejuvenator oil has been applied. My seats actually have alcantara on the seat cushion and backrest and there is no leather on the rear of the seat. I know the instructions say roughly 4oz of oil should be used per seat but taking into account the way my seats are constructed, I only used 1 oz of oil per front seat and it appears to have a good coating of oil on the leather. I used a small spray bottle, a foam sponge and my fingers. Sprayed the oil on the sponge and worked it into the leather. After the whole seat was done with the pad, I sprayed the oil on my hand and rub it in while leaving a fair amount on the leather. There is a good amount of oil on the seat now but I`m wondering if i should use more?

    This is what my seats look like


    This is what they look like with the oil on it. Should I apply more?

  3. #18

    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    9
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Leatherique didnt do anything Does that mean its time for dye?




  4. #19

    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    LI
    Posts
    4,442
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Keeping the leather clean will go a long way in decreasing wear and tear. Dirt is abrasive and acts like sandpaper on leather surfaces, prematurely wearing the factory Coating on the leather.

  5. #20

    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    NE Ohio
    Posts
    86,975
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Quote Originally Posted by JSFM35X View Post
    Keeping the leather clean will go a long way in decreasing wear and tear. Dirt is abrasive and acts like sandpaper on leather surfaces, prematurely wearing the factory Coating on the leather.
    That`s how I`d approach it too. No way you can tell yourself it`s "patina" and live with it? You might want to skip the light colored interior next time as that`s sorta the nature of the beast IMO.

  6. #21

    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    Huntington Beach, Ca
    Posts
    127
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Seems like a wear and tear effect. Since the bolsters are only being leaned on the flexing, over time,, seems to have caused the coating or dye to crack.

    Never looked like the bolster was dirty because there was no change in appearance after using Leatherique.

    Only thing to do is redye and or recoat. Other option is just live with it knowing you`ve done what you can .

  7. #22
    tropicsteve's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    Land O Lakes, FL
    Posts
    5,395
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    if you are thinking about doing a dye job yourself, check out youtube for a bunch of good videos on what is involved, such as cleaning prep, sanding, filling, dye application, sealing, etc. there are numerous repair kits out there.

  8. #23

    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    9
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    I think dye is the option now. Its not actually cracked, well it kinda is but its so small that I think filling those little crevices with the dye will make it much less visible. I don`t think its at the point of filling and sanding.....at least I hope not.

    Decided to go with Leather/Vinyl Recoloring Kit for a dye kit. 59.95

    They had the oem color in stock. How-to video is as easy as it gets. Clean, apply dye, let sit for 24 hours before use...will post results

  9. #24

    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Posts
    1,273
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Benz -

    Personally, if you`re going to coat it, let a pro do it. They don`t work out of kits and have a van full at their arsenal.

    IMO, leave it alone. You`re leather texture looks smooth. Which is to to your advantage, as with texture leather, coating makes the area more smooth than the OE texture. The lines in your original seat are already worn. It only ~gets worse~ over time. Kinda like crinkles in your skin ya know.....

    Anyhow, by coating it, it`s kinda like a ~glaze~ for the root issue. It will mask it, it will hide it. Will your new coated seats color match the rest of the leather in the rest of the car after redye with your kit ? And or you planning to dye the entire front so there`s a level of consistency in color. Over time, with just the usual wear-tear, the *cracks* will telegraph through your new topcoat. It will not show as much, but eventually it will show....

    When you do a water wipedown, you can kinda see the cracks more pronounced.. YMMV.

    Leather coating is similar to polishing. There is only so much you can do...

  10. #25

    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    9
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Appreciate the info. I got in touch with a mobile leather repair service that came highly recommenced. After sending them pics and the info of what I already did, their recommendation for service was to dye it. They come to your home and match the color in their van. They wanted 150$ to dye both those sections. I`m not sure if that was the whole seat or just the problematic areas that get the dye. I decided to buy to the leather dye kit myself for 60$ and just try to "touch-up" the cracking areas. I don`t expect a miracle, just hoping for the cracking to be less visible

  11. #26

    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Posts
    1,273
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Don`t touch up the cracking areas. Either coat the entire bolster sectionally It`s like body panel paint...except even in this, you don`t blend...good bodyshops also paint match. Not just grab the color code and spray.
    If you can live with a color mismatch, then do as your please.....

    If you can`t LIVE with a color mismatch, that at least make the fronts uniform and dye all the leather in the front. DS/PS
    I guess it depends on how golden your eyes are....

    Again, over time, sooner rather than later, the cracks will transfer-transference and will under the new coat.....

  12. #27

    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Posts
    1,273
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    OP. What color is the stitching on the passenger side on all that beige leather...
    Is it brown or a mix of brown and beige.
    If it`s ALL brown (whereas in your original DS, it shows brown and beige), that`s a telltale sign your seats have been sprayed prior to sale...

    That might shed some light on how it looks now from the time it looked good before the wear shows again

  13. #28

    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    9
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Quote Originally Posted by mobiledynamics View Post
    OP. What color is the stitching on the passenger side on all that beige leather...
    Is it brown or a mix of brown and beige.
    If it`s ALL brown (whereas in your original DS, it shows brown and beige), that`s a telltale sign your seats have been sprayed prior to sale...

    That might shed some light on how it looks now from the time it looked good before the wear shows again
    Super late reply...the stitching on the seats is supposed to be white acutally but it has gotten dirty and now its browinsh..yuck

    I tried the leatherworldtech dye kit. Cleaned the area with the prep cleaner and pad, applied 4 light coats of the dye with the sponge (about 30 minutes apart) waited the 24 hours to buff if it out and didnt even notice a difference. Almost like the dye wouldnt adhere to the cracks. I will say the dye is perfect match to the oem color.

    Called leatherworldtech and they said that I probably need some filler so they sent some for free. They suggested adding a little bit of dye to the filler to help with blending later. They also suggested that I should wait 24 hours between coats.

    Maybe Im being to picky here and Im not expecting perfection but I just wanted those spider cracks to appear less visable.

    BEFORE


    AFTER PREP CLEANER


    24 HOURS AFTER 4 LIGHT COATS

  14. #29

    Join Date
    May 2010
    Posts
    111
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    how did it end up when you were done?

  15. #30
    LGHT's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
    Location
    Irvine, CA
    Posts
    135
    Post Thanks / Like

    Re: leather cracking? - need advice

    Not sure if the OP is still responding, but I had the same problem with my CLS-550. Basically the seats have heat / cooling and are made with tiny holes so they breath. Over time "leather" gets very hard and brittle and lexol etc etc, couldn`t get them back after they started cracking. They eventually got a small tear that lead to a big tear. The quickest and easiest fix was to just buy some replacement sections from ebay as the back, bottom, and sides all come out in pieces and can be replaced pretty easily.

 

 
Page 2 of 3 FirstFirst 123 LastLast

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Leather Seat Cracking
    By screeby in forum Car Detailing
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 04-30-2013, 02:15 PM
  2. New car - Is it even POSSIBLE to keep the leather in THIS condition? Need advice
    By Frankieplus in forum Car Detailing Product Discussion
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 03-28-2012, 07:45 PM
  3. leather advice.
    By erics00ls in forum Car Detailing
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 03-31-2010, 06:47 PM
  4. Leather Cracking ~sigh~
    By Tim L in forum Car Detailing
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 06-23-2008, 08:26 PM
  5. Help/Advice on leather care...
    By Vyrus in forum Car Detailing
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 05-26-2004, 02:32 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •