Leather Wrinkles Pics?
01-30-2003, 08:38 PM
#1
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Leather Wrinkles Pics?
Can people who have pics of their seats with wrinkles please post. I am curious to see the differences in leather colour and wrinkles.
01-31-2003, 08:00 AM
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leather wrinkles/cracks suck.... I get in and out of my car like and acrobat simply because I dont' like to wrinkle my leather...Yeah, I'm anal.
The only leather I've seen that does not wrinkle (or at least, hardly), are Benz's. Their leather is the bomb.
The only leather I've seen that does not wrinkle (or at least, hardly), are Benz's. Their leather is the bomb.
01-31-2003, 09:52 AM
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the trick is, don't let it get "shiny". Whenever you get a new car w/ leather, you'll notice that the leather is not shiny, instead it kind of has a smooth matte looking surface (some have deep grains, others are very smooth). You can keep it from getting shiny by: not eating in the car, not getting oily stuff on it, like basking yourself in suntan lotion and then getting in the car.
01-31-2003, 11:02 AM
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Another thought is to get in and out "dukes of hazard" style...if your a midget! Or you could just not drive...ever! Or make your car a show car and get those ricey sparco seats. That's the best way to preserve your leather.
j/k...that's just the smarta$$ in me speaking!
j/k...that's just the smarta$$ in me speaking!
01-31-2003, 02:25 PM
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I'm anal about my car, but I've already accepted the fact that the seat is going to get wrinkled. Adds character in my opinion. Not to mention, seats are a wear item.
01-31-2003, 02:37 PM
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I clean mine with zaino leather cleaner and treatment about once every 3 months. They still look pretty good after 9,000 miles. I don't think the entire seat is leather, only the preforated part in the center, why I do not know
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01-31-2003, 03:40 PM
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This is long, but you may just learn something...
The S2000 Leather seating areas are all leather, the side areas just have a thicker finish resulting in a more vinyl like feel. Yes, some cars do have vinyl on the non-seating areas to cut cost, but the S2000 at least, on the front side is all leather, I have yet to really search the back. My father has a 2000 and I have a 2002, his leather is much softer than mine, so maybe Honda changed manufacturers or the leather type itself in past years.
As for caring for your leather seats, there is no need to "buff" them, a simple application of a good conditioner will do the trick. The actual key here is to get the most surface dirt off the seat prior to putting the conditioner on, but remember the harder you scrub, the more you wear the top coat off the leather, thus the shininess... Never use any dish detergent or anything of this calibur, only a specially formulated leather cleaner with a proper pH. You never want to apply silicone based products as they too can ruin the finish in a hurry.
The shiny appearance that develops after a decent amount of use is due to the wearing off of the protective top coat that is applied. The top coat is traditionally rolled or sprayed on and gives it a little bit of texture, but when you wear it down, the texture disappears and thus you get a shiny surface. Under the top coat is a pigment finish, so if you go through both of those layers, you will expose the actual leather surface.
I work for The Leather Institute, member of The Townsend Leather Group, so I am not just some ameteur giving my 2 cents, this is what the OEM manufacturers recommend doing. A proper cleaning and conditioning will make you leather last for years to come, in many cases 10 years or more, you just have to know what you are doing.
The reason Mercedes leather does not crease is that first of all the leather is sewn on tighter on most applications, also the finish is much thicker on M-B which gives a longer life, but tends to take away from aesthetic beauty that is inherently in leather. In the leather business, automotive grade leather is known as basically the bottom of the barrel, tons of finish, not much true leather feel. We also have a Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, it has leather seats, but they are more like vinyl than leather because of how much finish is put on. Of course there are expections, I know Audi has put out a Baseball Glove interior for the TT that is unfinished leather, feels great, but I don't know how it holds up to the elements.
Please feel free to go to either site, www.townsendleather.com
or www.leatherinstitute.com for more information about what products are available, the different types of leather available and what type of service can be provided to make your leather look like new once again. Please feel free to pm me with any questions or concerns you may have, I am always happy to help out.
P.S. - Rick's Leather consoles, headrests, shiftknobs are all Townsend Leather, so you may already be using our leather and not have known.
The S2000 Leather seating areas are all leather, the side areas just have a thicker finish resulting in a more vinyl like feel. Yes, some cars do have vinyl on the non-seating areas to cut cost, but the S2000 at least, on the front side is all leather, I have yet to really search the back. My father has a 2000 and I have a 2002, his leather is much softer than mine, so maybe Honda changed manufacturers or the leather type itself in past years.
As for caring for your leather seats, there is no need to "buff" them, a simple application of a good conditioner will do the trick. The actual key here is to get the most surface dirt off the seat prior to putting the conditioner on, but remember the harder you scrub, the more you wear the top coat off the leather, thus the shininess... Never use any dish detergent or anything of this calibur, only a specially formulated leather cleaner with a proper pH. You never want to apply silicone based products as they too can ruin the finish in a hurry.
The shiny appearance that develops after a decent amount of use is due to the wearing off of the protective top coat that is applied. The top coat is traditionally rolled or sprayed on and gives it a little bit of texture, but when you wear it down, the texture disappears and thus you get a shiny surface. Under the top coat is a pigment finish, so if you go through both of those layers, you will expose the actual leather surface.
I work for The Leather Institute, member of The Townsend Leather Group, so I am not just some ameteur giving my 2 cents, this is what the OEM manufacturers recommend doing. A proper cleaning and conditioning will make you leather last for years to come, in many cases 10 years or more, you just have to know what you are doing.
The reason Mercedes leather does not crease is that first of all the leather is sewn on tighter on most applications, also the finish is much thicker on M-B which gives a longer life, but tends to take away from aesthetic beauty that is inherently in leather. In the leather business, automotive grade leather is known as basically the bottom of the barrel, tons of finish, not much true leather feel. We also have a Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, it has leather seats, but they are more like vinyl than leather because of how much finish is put on. Of course there are expections, I know Audi has put out a Baseball Glove interior for the TT that is unfinished leather, feels great, but I don't know how it holds up to the elements.
Please feel free to go to either site, www.townsendleather.com
or www.leatherinstitute.com for more information about what products are available, the different types of leather available and what type of service can be provided to make your leather look like new once again. Please feel free to pm me with any questions or concerns you may have, I am always happy to help out.
P.S. - Rick's Leather consoles, headrests, shiftknobs are all Townsend Leather, so you may already be using our leather and not have known.
02-01-2003, 09:24 PM
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Originally posted by psyco6string
I'm glad to see that i'm not the only one !!!!
I wont even hit the door panel with my feet..............And GOD forbid my girlfriend hits the console when trying to buckle the seatbelt!!!
I'm glad to see that i'm not the only one !!!!
I wont even hit the door panel with my feet..............And GOD forbid my girlfriend hits the console when trying to buckle the seatbelt!!!
People always tell me that when they get a car, they'd pick leather over cloth..."..leather is BETTER because it 'lasts' longer...blar blar blar..." But honestly, leather sucks because you have to constantly take care of it (and i'm not even talking about the acrobat stuff, just the regular cleaning and conditioning), and how in the world does it 'last' longer anyway? If you don't condition it, or take care of it, it gets old, DRIES out, cracks, and in the worst cases, crak open and all the foam underneath is exposed. And man, when leather gets old, it looks terrible, all wrinkled and cracked. Cloth requires minimal care and it just gets worn down (..and only after a lot a lot of usage), but doesn't crack and split open and all that. And it takes a long time before it even looks like its been worn.