How do I treat dried out leather?

J

jkrueger2020

New member
I have a 2011 Toyota Camry which I bought in 2013. When I purchased it, the leather had been neglected and was drying out and the problem is only getting worse. I haven't known what to do to fix the problem, and I'm finally getting around to posting about this.


The leather seems to have developed "scales" that are flaking off. The problem appears on the driver's headrest as well as the top of the driver's seat.


Here are my questions:

1.What step(s) should I take to fix this?

2. What product(s) should I use?

Thanks in advance,


Jonathan




Headrest Closeup:






Headrest 2:





Top of Seat (Hard to see):

 
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Thanks! I've purchased some Leatherique and will give it a try. Is it a problem to use it now given that we are headed into winter? I thought I had heard that you should do this when it's warm outside so the leather soaks up more conditioner. Or does it not matter given how bad mine is?
 
do you know if your leather is coated from the factory? many newer car leathers are coated and it looks like the coating is wearing away. not sure if one of the new leather coating systems can help if that is what it is.
 
Jon, you'll get max absorption with heat. You might consider putting a small heater in the car and then covering the seats with a plastic (cleaners style) bag and permit the stuff to dwell for a number of hours. I'd also suggest wearing gloves when using the product.

Steve is correct....it does look like the clearcoat on the leather is fading away. I don't know if the Leatherique process will make that worse. You could contact the owner (George) of Leatherique and ask him for a recommendation so you don't make things worse.
 
Sorry but my opinion is that "leather" is shot, if in fact it's a leather at all. If it's a used vehicle bought from a dealer it may have been re-sprayed and it's always done in a cheap manner to just make it look good for a re-sale.

When you clean it does the color transfer to towel? Thats a good sign it has been re-sprayed.

Anthony
 
Anthony O. said:
Sorry but my opinion is that "leather" is shot, if in fact it's a leather at all. If it's a used vehicle bought from a dealer it may have been re-sprayed and it's always done in a cheap manner to just make it look good for a re-sale.

When you clean it does the color transfer to towel? Thats a good sign it has been re-sprayed.

Anthony
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I agree. It looks like the urethane protective "clear coat" topping the leather is flaking off is the source of your scales. Just like when clear coat starts failing on paint, there is nothing that can be done to remedy it but to remove it and re-apply. No detailing products in a bottle can fix that.
 
You can have the leather re-coated by a professional; which is certainly a cheaper alternative to trading in the car or replacing the factory leather. Or, you can re-coat it yourself.

This involves removing the seats from the vehicle. Coloring leather isn't difficult, the difficulty is getting the sheen / color to match. However, if your doing the whole seat - matching panels on the leather shouldn't be a big issue.

You can get everything you need to recolor the seats for probably ~ $150 or less. It really just takes time and patience. Another benefit is that you will have extra color correct dye for future touch ups.


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Swanicyouth said:
You can have the leather re-coated by a professional; which is certainly a cheaper alternative to trading in the car or replacing the factory leather. Or, you can re-coat it yourself.

This involves removing the seats from the vehicle. Coloring leather isn't difficult, the difficulty is getting the sheen / color to match.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

The color isn't coming off. I think it's just the clear coat. So I shouldn't have to die it, should I?

Can anyone recommend a good leather clear coat product I can purchase to re-coat it with?
 
jkrueger2020 said:
The color isn't coming off. I think it's just the clear coat. So I shouldn't have to die it, should I?

Can anyone recommend a good leather clear coat product I can purchase to re-coat it with?
Click to expand...

The problem will be to just remove the clear coat completely without scuffing or disturbing the color coat. It's like if you burn the clear coat on your paint - and you just want to add more clear coat to fix the problem.

Leather clear coat is (poly)urethane based and is "harder" than the color coat. It's meant to be a protective barrier for the softer color coat.

While it's probably technically possible, it's quite difficult to completely remove a single layer of the top coat without disturbing the lower layer (color coat).

To the best of my knowledge, there is no chemical capable of doing this. Usually when refinishing leather, you "scuff" or abrade the previous coating to an extant that the new coating will bond. The color coat will not survive this step in mint condition.
 
Sorry this had to happen to you..

I briefly found my way to toyota nation, and there are lots of comments on the quality of leather in their cars..

Some say that the only real leather is on the actual seat surface sat on, and the rest is fake leather which would have to by some type of vinyl I believe..

When you took this back to who sold it to you, what did they say ??

Dan F
 
Stokdgs said:
Sorry this had to happen to you..

I briefly found my way to toyota nation, and there are lots of comments on the quality of leather in their cars..

Some say that the only real leather is on the actual seat surface sat on, and the rest is fake leather which would have to by some type of vinyl I believe..

When you took this back to who sold it to you, what did they say ??

Dan F
Click to expand...

Thanks, I haven't taken it back to the dealer I purchased it from as I drove 3 1/2 hours to buy this car (it was a really good price when I purchased it). When I had it at the local Toyota shop they just said use some leather conditioner.
 
Stealership: "Just use some leather conditioner." #idiots. I'd go with option 2 and have a professional handle it but discuss the process.
 
Four to five year old leather should not be peeling like that, even if neglected. Prior owner may have used harsh chemicals to clean or I wonder if the owner or selling dealership applied a repair to cover excessive wear or damage. I'd look to a salvage yard for a replacement skin in the same color in good condition. Lots of Camry's sold so you should have little trouble finding a match. You might also take it to an auto upholstery specialist or leather restoration company in your area for estimates. If you plan to keep the car for a few years it may pay to correct this issue. You might also consider flipping the car now before the condition worsens.
 
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