Leather care

[shinerburke]

Anyone ever used this stuff

Connoisseur's Choice

On their leather? I have a new 2007 Sequioa that has leather seats. Looking for something good to use on them. Use 202 on the dash, but not sure about the seats.

 

[moribundman]

I would not want to put anything that contains mink oil on leather. It'll get rancid and will attract insects.

 

[shinerburke]

oops....original post should say I use 303 on the dash

 

[Drew]

Lexol is what I have been using and I have a 15 year old vehicle whose leather seats look brand new. My secret is that I hand rub in the lexol and do not wipe it off. It is very "wet" after application but surprisingly, the leather soaks it all up overnight and makes the leather very soft.

 

[shinerburke]

The regular Lexol or the neatsfoot?

How about for cleaning? Use the Lexol as well?

 

[benjamming]

I like Lexol's pH cleaner very well.
The regular Lexol is what would be used on your SUV's seats. I have also used One Grand Leather Conditioner that was pretty good. I have Meguiar's Medallion Leather Conditioner that I will use once the Lexol conditioner is used up.

 

[martyi]

I'll bet that 15 year old car had natural leather seats. Modern cars (except for maybe a few high end models and Euros) do not have natural leather but rather, coated or "treated" leather. This is a protectant that prevents spills and other accidents from being absorbed by the leather.

Products such as leatherique and lexol, need to "feed" leather in order to be most effective. In other words, they must be absorbed by the leather to work. As long as the "coating" is on the leather and working, very little of the conditioner will in fact be absorbed. The best thing to use on treated leather is a UV protectant that has been approved for leather - just like your 303 which is probably the best product at what it does. Just put it on everything inside, except fabric, and you are set to go.

 

[lexrx3]

What about Maguires cleaner / conditioner? I've been using it and it seems ok. Anyone have any comments good or bad aboutit?

 

[Lost Pup]

I have used the Meguiars and it seems to work just fine. I use the 303 more often.

 

[moribundman]

Quote:

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The regular Lexol or the neatsfoot?

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Neatsfoot oil gets rancid. It also tends to dissolve the stitching and can damage the leather fibers.

 

[shinerburke]

Quote:

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I'll bet that 15 year old car had natural leather seats. Modern cars (except for maybe a few high end models and Euros) do not have natural leather but rather, coated or "treated" leather. This is a protectant that prevents spills and other accidents from being absorbed by the leather.

Products such as leatherique and lexol, need to "feed" leather in order to be most effective. In other words, they must be absorbed by the leather to work. As long as the "coating" is on the leather and working, very little of the conditioner will in fact be absorbed. The best thing to use on treated leather is a UV protectant that has been approved for leather - just like your 303 which is probably the best product at what it does. Just put it on everything inside, except fabric, and you are set to go.

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Thanks...I was under the impression that 303 wasn't all that good on leather.

 

[casper]

Eagle Ottowa...#@$%! they supply leather for the auto industry. If they supply it, they probably know how to keep it clean.

 

[Shelby]

Nothing I've tried can beat z9 and Z10 leather treatments. That is a Zaino product. Go to any detailing site that doesn't censor what you can say and most everyone will agree that for leather this stuff cannot be beat. Leatherique is good stuff but isn't really appropiate for modern coated leathers. Remember, you are really treating the coating not the leather. All you want is something that is going to look/smell good, something that wont attract dirt, and add some long lasting moisture. Zaino has a long lasting product that has a matte sheen and smells just like leather, and the best part is that it is not greasy at all. I am talking about z10 here, and you want to use Z9 as a mild cleaner. If you wanted to save money you could use a 5 to 1 woolite/water mix, but Zaino z9 is a nice cleaner.

 

[Russell]

Duragloss leather conditioner seems fine-bit of a shine. Lexol neatsfoot oil conditioner seems to work well if you let it soak overnight on my 10 year old bmw leather. Leatherique's cleaning and conditioning products seem to work the best. No gloss and leather is soft. BTW, I think the leather is coated.

 

[Chris B.]

I just use the snot from our cows. It's free and works really well to keep the leather supple!

 

[Russell]

Anyone. I see that some claim neatsfoot/Mink oil gets rancid and disolves stitching. I assume this is in reference to "pure" neatsfoot/mink oil and not products like Lexol with neatsfoot oil or Duragloss with Mink oil. I find it hard to believe that these companies would use products that are "known" to damage leather.

In fact, I have used products with these materials for several years and see no evidence of damage. Just my observations

 

[Shelby]

It would be nice to use something that you don't have to kill o poor mink for. There are plenty out there.

 

[Russell]

Ok Shelby, tell us which products (beside Zanio) work well without mink oil. I am always looking for better products. One quality that seems difficult to find is a leather conditioner product that leaves no gloss. My BMW leather from the factory has no shine. BTW, think I will try Zaino.

 

[moribundman]

Reading this thread I realize that giving advice is hopeless, because people will believe or dismiss what they were told as they wish based on capricious notions or desire without doing any actual research. For crying out loud, those of you who think that "mink oil" is actually made from mink have clearly no concept of the lack of truth in advertising. It's usually pig fat with silicone these days.

 

[Ray H]

Quote:

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Eagle Ottowa... ... they supply leather for the auto industry. If they supply it, they probably know how to keep it clean.

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I agree, but I haven't been able to find that stuff for ages. Where do you get it? However, I've found that good ol' saddle soap works very nicely at cleaning and conditioning leather, nor does it add an artificial sheen. Saddle soap is a blend of a gentle fine soap, lanolin, and glycerine. Honda specifically recommends saddle soap for leather upholstery care in its owners' manuals.

(Equestrians and their mounts have concurred for over a hundred years...

)