Leather restorer

[Goblinchaser]

Most appreciative for any suggestions for restoring leather seats. No tears rips etc but just a little fading due to the UV. Keen to keep on top of it. Have seen a few products here locally but more general cleaning related as opposed to restoring. Many thanks.

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[DFB5.0]

Most appreciative for any suggestions for restoring leather seats. No tears rips etc but just a little fading due to the UV. Keen to keep on top of it. Have seen a few products here locally but more general cleaning related as opposed to restoring. Many thanks.

First of all, have a read of this post from my thread. I'm using Colour Lock products here, they are one of the better options for automotive leather and even recognize that most "leather" in cars is not actually leather at all and have products to account for that -

(Post #50)
What's In DFB's Cabinet? | Page 4 | 2015+ S550 Mustang Forum (GT, EcoBoost, GT350, GT500, Bullitt, Mach 1) - Mustang6G.com

You will still need to clean the leather before attempting to "restore" or rejuvenate. I would recommend the Strong Leather Cleaner -
Strong Leather Cleaner for car, furniture, bags | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia

Colour Lock also sell dies to restore colour, but I don't think you would need to do that on a car this new. In which case, if the car is less than 3 years old, go for Leather Shield, if the car is older than 3 years, then go for Leather Protector.
Leather Shield conditioning for new leather | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia
Leather Protector condition, protect & nourish | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia

If you are still unsure, post a couple of pics of the condition of the leather so I can have look.

 

[Goblinchaser]

First of all, have a read of this post from my thread. I'm using Colour Lock products here, they are one of the better options for automotive leather and even recognize that most "leather" in cars is not actually leather at all and have products to account for that -

(Post #50)
What's In DFB's Cabinet? | Page 4 | 2015+ S550 Mustang Forum (GT, EcoBoost, GT350, GT500, Bullitt, Mach 1) - Mustang6G.com

You will still need to clean the leather before attempting to "restore" or rejuvenate. I would recommend the Strong Leather Cleaner -
Strong Leather Cleaner for car, furniture, bags | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia

Colour Lock also sell dies to restore colour, but I don't think you would need to do that on a car this new. In which case, if the car is less than 3 years old, go for Leather Shield, if the car is older than 3 years, then go for Leather Protector.
Leather Shield conditioning for new leather | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia
Leather Protector condition, protect & nourish | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia

If you are still unsure, post a couple of pics of the condition of the leather so I can have look.

Many thanks for the link, Not sure how I missed that one. Apologies, I should have mentioned that the car is my daily driver which for the last 7 or so years has sat mostly in a train station car park and quite low miles on it. It is genuine leather on the seats. I’ll jump online and order the colour lock. Most grateful for the recommendations !

 

[BruceTheQuail]

What's the genuine leather like? Mine has the stock '19 seats, I am sure they arent leather although it is a pretty good imitation. I'd be happy to pay decent money for proper leather, considering having them retrimmed or buy the recarros for it but they'd cost a bomb and I dont know how good they are.

 

[DFB5.0]

What's the genuine leather like? Mine has the stock '19 seats, I am sure they arent leather although it is a pretty good imitation. I'd be happy to pay decent money for proper leather, considering having them retrimmed or buy the recarros for it but they'd cost a bomb and I dont know how good they are.

This applies to most of the automotive industry, save for the very highest end of town;

100% genuine leather is not something that is deemed suitable for most people's expectations. As such, car companies use a product called "coated" or "split" leather for durability. This material is used on the bits you sit one or against. Think of this like the clear coat for your paint, as in its a top layer that protects the finish underneath. This pic is of my Falcon, but the concept is the same, the arrows pointing the real "leather".

Other high impact and lesser seen areas are made from industrial grade vinyl. Think seat bolsters, seat backs, gear shift surrounds and door panels. This combination of coated leather and vinyl is more widely used than many people are aware of. This is our Jaguar XE, a brand known for its leather prowess, it too has the same combination of materials.

The "leather" components of a Mustang interior or ok for quality, not exceptional but not terrible. I have said this before, and I don't mean to offend, but Mustang interior materials are on the cheaper end of the scale. Ideally, you want to make sure you are cleaning and protecting these surfaces correctly to preserve and prevent premature aging.

Treating automotive "leather" surfaces with traditional leather lotions, creams or conditioners is really not doing anything other than making the treated surfaces slick and greasy. This is where a brand like Colour Lock comes into the equation. Unlike other detailing companies that sell products to maintain every single car surface, Colour Lock only deal with leather surfaces and as such, take into account that the word "leather" covers a variety of different materials.

Two other brands that I feel take this into account as well are Bowden's Own and NV.

Bowden's Leather Love and Leather Guard are both products that leave a clean, matte finish on automotive "leather". Leather Love is a mild cleaner and protectant, which can optionally be topped with Leather Guard.

If you want to increase the cleaning ability of Leather Love, team it with an upholstery brush.

NV Cleanse and Nourish are similar products, I like how these are largely unscented, products that I am using to maintain my XR8, which still smells new 8 years after it was made.

Remember, shiny or slick leather is actually dirty leather. All of these products I have mentioned will leave the leather surfaces with a clean, soft and matte finish, you may need to adjust your expectations when using these products.

 

[DFB5.0]

Many thanks for the link, Not sure how I missed that one. Apologies, I should have mentioned that the car is my daily driver which for the last 7 or so years has sat mostly in a train station car park and quite low miles on it. It is genuine leather on the seats. I’ll jump online and order the colour lock. Most grateful for the recommendations !

In that case, order the Colour Lock Strong Leather Cleaner. If you can, order their Leather Cleaning Brush as well. The brush will ensure you get the best out of the cleaner.

Leather Cleaning Brush – Only £4.00 | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia

After it's clean, you can then use either the Leather Protector or Artificial Leather Protector, applied with one of their applicator sponges -

Leather Protector condition, protect & nourish | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia
COLOURLOCK Protector / Conditioner for Artificial Leather & Vinyl, 150 ml | COLOURLOCK Australia
Sponges large (90 x 55 x 35 mm), 1 unit | COLOURLOCK | COLOURLOCK Australia

If you have the time, have a look at these video's, they explain the different types of leather in cars and how to tell the difference between real or artificial leathers. Also a good rundown on using the Colour Lock products -

 

[Goblinchaser]

What's the genuine leather like? Mine has the stock '19 seats, I am sure they arent leather although it is a pretty good imitation. I'd be happy to pay decent money for proper leather, considering having them retrimmed or buy the recarros for it but they'd cost a bomb and I dont know how good they are.

Apologies for the confusion I should have been more specific. It’s not my mustang but my daily driver which is one of those unreliable (in my experience) German brands.
I did at one point look to replace the mustang interior with genuine leather but in the end couldn’t justify the potential cost or bring myself to change it from stock. In the 7th gen there may be options in that space in Australia but I would be surprised. Were there options in that space for the UK for the current gen ?

 

[GT 550]

What's the genuine leather like? Mine has the stock '19 seats, I am sure they arent leather although it is a pretty good imitation. I'd be happy to pay decent money for proper leather, considering having them retrimmed or buy the recarros for it but they'd cost a bomb and I dont know how good they are.

G'day Peter it might be worth contacting Katzkins in the US, a few folks on here have them and seem to be quite happy. Just need to make sure any LHD specific control apertures are left uncut (sorry can't check my car atm to see if that actually applies) and dealt with by a local trimmer.

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