Leatherique: products, process and before/after pics (1 Viewer)

[labcab]

Got my '05 all oiled up and marinating in the Texas heat. My seats weren't bad, but the leather was getting hard. Just trying to make them last and not split.

Top tip: I was concerned about the rejuvenator oil soaking into the seat belts, especially on the second row seat. I wrapped the belts and latches with Glad press and seal wrap.

Question: I haven't read anywhere to apply or not to apply the rejuvenator oil to the steering wheel. Is this recommended? Hope so, because I applied a thin layer by hand.

The plan is to let it soak for two days before doing the pristine clean.

Keep us posted on the results. I'm interested in how it works on seats that aren't as far gone as mine and well it softens seats with the factory dye.

For the steering wheel, Leatherique sells a steering wheel kit. It only comes in black and does not include the Prestine or Rejuvenator, but I believe their thought is you should already have those. The steering wheel re-dye write-up they posted on their site states this, so I would assume so as well. I've read it also can be used to condition rubber trim. I'm going to try it on my window gaskets that are starting to warp next time I have the door apart.

 

[phippsj]

Got positive results. The hardness and shineyness is gone. Softer with a matt finish now.

Again, my seats weren't bad to start with. Don't know what the seats were like new since I bought the truck used.

Well worth the $ and elbow grease IMO.

 

[labcab]

Got positive results. The hardness and shineyness is gone. Softer with a matt finish now.

Again, my seats weren't bad to start with. Don't know what the seats were like new since I bought the truck used.

Well worth the $ and elbow grease IMO.

View attachment 1285328

What effect did it have on the steering wheel? Any difference?

 

[phippsj]

What effect did it have on the steering wheel? Any difference?

Softer. Looks about the same. Again, if it makes it last another 10 yrs, then it's worth the effort.

 

[2001LC]

Waking up this thread, to asked those that have used Leatherique what they are finding over time and how often are they're using?????

Some back ground:

After reading about Leatherique here in mud, I switch to this rather pricey product. I started using on my restore projects. It seem to do a good job cleaning and was easy to use. The drawback was it took a few days to do the job, basting in the hot sun. This made it a summer use product to get best results.

But I'm not convinced this is a great conditioner, here's why:

After using a few times on interior of project 100 series, I tried out on The King. The King I've had for near 14 years. It is/was well kept and garaged most of it's life. I'd used Lexol leather cleaner & conditioner system a few times over the years. Yes only a few times, but seat leather was/is good and I kept clean.

Anyway as The King was my pride and joy I only wanted the best for it. I decided to go the extra mile and clean leather with Lexol clear first. My thinking here was to open the pores so Leatherique could really soak in easily. I also positioned so windshield faced the sun all day in 90 deg temps, using sun shade to keep direct sun off leather while reflecting into interior on headliner. Each morning for ~4 days I'd go out and rub more Leatherique Rejuvenate on any spots of leather that looked dry. Then followed up with pristine clean after the 4 days. I do really like how pristine clean works, not only on Leather but plastic and vinyl of interior as Rejuvenation is cleaned off.

Unfortunately the Drive seat bolsters looked worst after I was done and leather didn't feel as soft. I thought I must have over-done-it, as Lexol had never resulted in this cracking and removal of dye/paint. This was about 11 months ago.

Not bad for 169K miles and ~17 years, but leather bolster looked better before I cleaned 11 months ago.

Moving ahead 9 months, I used Leatherique on more restore project this year, the last being Snowy. Snowy had seats that leather felt amazingly soft, I was envious. But they did need some cleaning up. So I got out my Leatherique and went to work. I let it soak for a few days in the sun protecting from the direct rays of the sun, then clean as directed by Leatherique. First thing a notice was leather did not feel as soft, just as I noted in The King.

Now moving forward to this month. I sold The King, it was a painful decision to let it go. Before heading to it's new home I cleaned up a bit. I'd not been treating with leather ever 3 months as recommend by Leatherique, that seemed excessive to me. But in inspecting the leather I found it needed a bit of cleaning, stiff and seem to have shrunk a bit. I say shrunk as I could see some threads I've never seen before, as seam was pull on threads. I went ahead and treated lightly with Leatherique only leaving on a few hours then cleaning as directed. This soften leather a bit.

After thinking about my experience, I thought perhaps I must use ever 3 months to keep conditioned. If this is the case I don't like it as that is just to much work & time. I also read about different coating modern leather has, which made me wonder if Leatherique is best for our us. This was a link @abuck99 had provided me Auto Leather Care Guide you can see what @abuck99 had to say here in post # 66 Scored 2006 LC w/58K OMG Clean!

So I emailed Leatherique the Company my experience and waited for a response. It's been 10 days and no feed-back at all from them. This is concerning!

So that brings me here to asked those that have used what they are finding and how often are they using?????

 

[hoser]

I have had good results using Leatherique on my VW. I tried it once on my LX and the results were not so noticeable. I am guessing the LX's leather finish is coated/less permeable and not absorbing the Leatherique oil so easily. But that probably also makes it more water/stain/weather resistant.

Note: Results can certainly differ between LX and LC as the leather does feel different to me.

 

[abuck99]

I continue to use the Lexol Cleaner and also the Lexol Conditioner mainly because I have bottles that are 3/4 full and it will be a couple of years before I use this stuff up. I've never had any issues with Lexol. I know Lexol cleaner is excellent (gentle), and the conditioner is pretty diluted so it makes the top surface feel soft and smooth with out leaving greasy residue. Any "conditioner" is probably not as beneficial on our coated seats as much as the cleaner is. The conditioner won't get through the coating on the seat- it resides on the surface. So getting the cleaner completely removed from the seat before it dries is paramount so its doesnt attract dirt and body oils. Residual cleaner will do that and dry and get hard making it more difficult to get the grime to release. Also I think any cleaner used on leather that is stronger than "Woolite" could have a negative effect on coated leather product like auto seats. Not sure what leathertique is but it sounds industrial strength from the way you describe the drying process. Frequency of detergent cleaning should be limited as well: semi-annual or annual augmented by monthly wipe downs with damp towel.

 

[470SNC]

thats absolutely amazing!!!

 

[ThirdShore]

Any further updates on Leatherique results/durability versus alternative options to refresh or restore seat leather?

 

[2001LC]

I found Leatherique to be a very good cleaner, the best of those I've tried. But best not to leave on to long or it lifts to much dye/paint off leather. So where many of us were leaving in for days, just 2 to 5 hours is probably best.

It also does seem to condition well, but Lexol is proven safe over the long term. So use to get really grimy seats clean, then maintain with Lexol is one approach.

I had one 06LC that had some really nasty stains on carpet. It became apparent to me the interior was professionally cleaned after something red was thrown form end to end. What every that detailer used had the seat leather feeling great, best I've felt. I wish I knew what they used.