GiGAS

ive noticed that leather gets wrinkly after some use. my dads porsche and my brothers audi both have this worn wrinkle look to the leather after being seated on for so long. is there a way to prevent that? maybe some kind of leather care product that keeps it nice and firm?

jfelbab

All natural leather contains imperfections. The raw hide has creases, uneven grain patterns, color abnormalities, scratches, scars, insert bites, wrinkles and other blemishes. Look at your own skin and tell me that you don't see any imperfections, LOL, and we live indoors most of the time. If you want zero imperfections get vinyl naugahyde.

All these defects are covered up pretty well with pigments and urethanes during the tanning process but keep in mind you are just looking at a painted surface coating and not the actual leather under it. Nearly all of our automotive leather is (P) Protected leather. This type of leather is used as it makes the leather more stain resistant, wear resistant and impervious to most spills. It also makes the leather look better and more uniform in color and grain. Yes, even the grain pattern you see is not real.

About the only thing you can do to minimize these imperfections from becoming more apparent over time is to keep your leather clean and hydrated and avoid temperature and humidity extremes. This isn't always possible with a car so if you have leather you will see creases and wrinkles. They were there prior to the tanning and will be there until the car is junked.

If you want your leather to look its best keep it clean and hydrated. You can get fancy and use a product like Meguiar's Quik Interior Detailer which leaves some UV protection on the surface. But avoid using products that will seal the leather so that it can no longer breathe (transpire moisture vapor).

Two to four times a year I'd suggest a deeper cleaning and protecting of the surface. I personally like Leather Masters Leather Cleaners and Protection Cream for this purpose. The protection cream is a water-based fluorocarbon protectant, similar to applying a sealant to your paint except it doesn't close up the coating's pores so your leather can continue to breathe. The Protection Cream will prevent dye transfer so for lighter colored leather, it is a must, IMO.

Other frequent causes of poor looking leather are the prior products used for caring for them. Using harsh detergents and/or not removing all traces of the detergent after cleaning will degrade the surface. Using oily or waxy conditioners, meant for unfinished leather, will cause the leather to look old or blotchy as it leaves a film that will collect and hold dirt which then acts as an abrasive. Using abrasive products like Magic Eraser or scouring pads or stiff brushes can also degrade the urethane paint coating. Even a cheap microfiber might be too abrasive to clean leather. Also not cleaning the leather frequently enough will cause abrasion and wear which will result in the leather looking old.

The single most effective thing you can do to keep your leather looking good for a along as possible is to keep it clean. This will remove any abrasive dirt and re-hydrate the leather at the same time.

Timothyj

Good advice Jim, I keep a towel on the front seats of my 04 ES while at work, and keep the windows cracked a little in the summer. Your music is too cool, reminds me of Stanley Clarke and Issac Hayes. very good.

Tim

GiGAS

thanks for the advice! i read another thread and already ordered this hopefully its comparable to meguiars.

Timothyj

Been using lexol on my car since new. Very good product.

Just a FYI, Lexol is no longer showing their leather conditioner in their Auto Care section. They are recommending only a cleaner and a three-in-one product now.

thark01

If your leather gets impressions from a child seat or some other object you can use and iron, terry cloth, water spray bottle, and a little technique to remove the impressions.

TOGWT

Wrinkle’s - similar to a paints clear coat, upholstery urethane is classified as a semi-solid permeable membrane, being a thermosetting polymer (elastomers) it remains flexible while retaining its tensile strength, to enable it to expand and contract, following the temperature fluctuations (elasticity) of the substrate and is therefore subject to show wrinkle’s.

These can be lessened by using a damp (microwave heated) towel, which will cause the urethane to contract slightly. The foam, leather hide and its urethane covering are subjected to compression (the weight applied by people sitting on them) which causes them the stretch, which in turn produces creases (wrinkles).