Leather Care - What do you use?

[BSM]

Think I'm going to remove the seats from the 360 this winter whilst giving the car a really thorough clean and treatment inside and out

Main objective is a good clean, condition and protect newly 'Restored' leather.

So what do you use / recommend treatment wise and what about brushes, sponges/applicators and cloths?

Not sure if the colour will effect recommendations but the car has Racing Seats finished in Sabia, lower half of the dash and door cards etc... also in Sabia. Dash top is finished in Nero.

I've done some reading and it seems Leatherique may be a good option but happy to hear first hand experiences and recommendations from other Ferrari owners :thumbsup:

Ben.

 

[Mike01606]

I’ve only used Gliptone cleaner and conditioner. Worked out for me but I find you get limited penetration of the leather conditioner due to the factory colouring/coating.

 

[Garvin]

Depends how dirty the leather is.

If it’s pretty grubby then Leatherique is a good option especially if you can leave the trim for a few days for the first treatment (Rejuvenator Oil) to do its business before finishing off with the second treatment (Pristine Clean).

If just requiring a good clean and condition then the Gliptone (Liquid Leather) cleaner followed by the conditioner does a good job.

The cleaners work by ‘pulling’ the dirt out of the leather so need time or a couple of treatments to do their stuff.

If the leather is new and fully treated/sealed then baby wipes may be all that is required.

Regarding brushes etc. - nothing special. For really soiled bits use a soft nail brush to agitate the cleaner but don’t use the cheap nylon bristle brushes, they can damage the leather. For cloths use towelling flannels or microfibre.

 

[BSM]

Thanks for the replies gents.

With this forming part of my winter 'to do's list, the seats being out of the car for a while isn't an issue. I guess the best way forward is to get them removed and then see how soiled they really are before deciding on how much cleaning is going to be required and this may aid the decision on either Leatherique or Gliptone...

Even though the lighting in our garage is pretty damn good, I'm sure them being out of the car and less shadows being cast upon them will make assessing the overall condition and soiling of the leather much easier

 

[BSM]

Thanks for the input when originally posting this thread and query, I went ahead with the Leatherique in the end and have applied the rejuvenating liquid today so the seats are now 'soaking' in the house, will monitor the progress and re-apply as required before moving to the cleaning and finishing stage on Saturday morning all being well

It does look like the seats may have had some colour applied previously in areas where the leather is creased through use though.

Due to this I'm wondering if anyone has any recommended products for re-treating/re-colouring these areas?

As previously mentioned, the seats are Sabbia.

Thanks in advance,

Ben.

 

[Nosevi]

I’ve always used Scuffmaster from Liquidleather to keep my seats looking good and to get rid of marks and got very good results. If the seats are out anyway the best thing to do is send them a snip of leather from under the seat and they’ll exactly match the colour and sheen.

https://www.liquidleather.co.uk/scuffmaster-m36

 

[BSM]

I’ve always used Scuffmaster from Liquidleather to keep my seats looking good and to get rid of marks and got very good results. If the seats are out anyway the best thing to do is send them a snip of leather from under the seat and they’ll exactly match the colour and sheen.

https://www.liquidleather.co.uk/scuffmaster-m36

I knew I would get a sound recommendation from the collective on here, thanks Pete :grin:

With the seats being the Carbon Racing variant, there didn't appear to be much excess for collecting a sample from them...

I'll take another look today when I check to 'Dwelling' of the rejuvinator and see if I need to get any more on there... Any idea innthe minimum sample size they need or any other areas from the interior I may find some excess to collect a decent size sample to send them?

 

[Nosevi]

With the seats being the Carbon Racing variant, there didn't appear to be much excess for collecting a sample from them...

Sorry, had forgotten they were the Racing seats. Quick glance at your avatar picture would have given me a bit of a hint ........ :laugh:

I'll let someone more familiar with the model chirp in with suggestions of where to get a sample from. All I can say is when I went down this route after trying to mix my own dye from other brands and attempting to get both the tone and sheen perfect (without a lot of success - in certain light it always showed up) Liquid Leather got it absolutely perfect for me. Of course, it could be I'm just totally inept at mixing dye pigments, but it was frankly easier and better to get someone else to do it.

 

[BSM]

Just a quick update on this, I have now sent the passenger door arm rest off for color matching following Pete's recommendation for Scuff Master.

I'm back to work again soon so will look forward to having it sat at home waiting for me getting back for a month off next time :thumbsup:

 

[Nosevi]

Just a quick update on this, I have now sent the passenger door arm rest off for color matching following Pete's recommendation for Scuff Master.

I'm back to work again soon so will look forward to having it sat at home waiting for me getting back for a month off next time :thumbsup:

Hopefully it'll be a good match, always has been for me........... just to clarify, it always has been with Scuff Master, when I tried to mix stuff myself it was bloody awful :laugh:

 

[BSM]

Fingers crossed Pete.

I must say they were very helpful and informative when I called to discuss sending the arm rest through to them for colour matching.

Looking forward to getting the seats finished now as the leatherique clean and conditioning of the went well and I am really pleased with how they come up :grin:

 

[Mark Blanchard]

I’ve always used Scuffmaster from Liquidleather to keep my seats looking good and to get rid of marks and got very good results.

Thanks for the information Pete. I'll buy some.

 

[MWStewart]

I have an F430 which has seats finished in what is effectively paint - a waterproof layer - hence conditioning isn't required for this era of car. I normally use a damp cloth to keep them in order, or if they require a clean then very dilute APC.