I took delivery of my '16 LC in December. Right off the bat I noticed a large and deep crease down the side of the driver side front seat cushion (just above the seat controls). I pointed it out to the dealer, who immediately ordered a replacement seat cushion and cover (apparently the latter go for about $800 retail - which I thought sounded silly). Thankfully Toyota picked up the tab.
As I'm a bit anal when it comes to leather seats, I noticed - when I first drove it home with just 20 miles on the clock - that the same front seat leather seemed extremely susceptible to creases; especially when getting in and out of the vehicle. So, with just double digit miles on the clock, I conditioned the seats.... all of them. 3 times. That did a great job of preventing creases from forming on other seats, but the driver side seat was still susceptible, and after several hundred miles the seat was clearly "used"-looking. I was disappointed, but put it down to very soft leather and cushioning, and vowed to continue to condition with a view to keeping the seat looking as good as possible.
Fast forward to last week: the new seat cushion and cover arrived, and the dealer installed them perfectly. Again, as soon as I arrived home, I conditioned the seat. And oddly, it's not creasing.... as in, at all. Not even a tiny crease where I get in or out. It may be my imagination, but the cushion also seems a tad firmer (the dealer confirmed it was a cushion issue that was causing the leather creasing on the side in the original seat).
I did also notice that the texture of the leather - in some places, is not identical. Upon further inspection, the same can be said of all the leather in the truck. I'm not surprised - it's common for imperfect leather matches in all but the most expensive vehicles, but it was particularly apparent on the new front cushion - leather on the left was more grainy than the leather on the right, which is butter smooth.
My conclusion, and long-winded point of this post, is simply that not all leather is created equal. Even supposedly identical swatches of leather are different. The new front seat cover appears to be a LOT more durable than the old one. And while the grain/texture looks different if you REALLY pay attention, I'd take harder wearing leather (and firmer cushioning) over soft and crease-ridden stuff any day.
So fear not fellow LC owners: if/when you switch out your seat covers due to creases/cracks you may be in for a very pleasant surprise. Or not!
As I'm a bit anal when it comes to leather seats, I noticed - when I first drove it home with just 20 miles on the clock - that the same front seat leather seemed extremely susceptible to creases; especially when getting in and out of the vehicle. So, with just double digit miles on the clock, I conditioned the seats.... all of them. 3 times. That did a great job of preventing creases from forming on other seats, but the driver side seat was still susceptible, and after several hundred miles the seat was clearly "used"-looking. I was disappointed, but put it down to very soft leather and cushioning, and vowed to continue to condition with a view to keeping the seat looking as good as possible.
Fast forward to last week: the new seat cushion and cover arrived, and the dealer installed them perfectly. Again, as soon as I arrived home, I conditioned the seat. And oddly, it's not creasing.... as in, at all. Not even a tiny crease where I get in or out. It may be my imagination, but the cushion also seems a tad firmer (the dealer confirmed it was a cushion issue that was causing the leather creasing on the side in the original seat).
I did also notice that the texture of the leather - in some places, is not identical. Upon further inspection, the same can be said of all the leather in the truck. I'm not surprised - it's common for imperfect leather matches in all but the most expensive vehicles, but it was particularly apparent on the new front cushion - leather on the left was more grainy than the leather on the right, which is butter smooth.
My conclusion, and long-winded point of this post, is simply that not all leather is created equal. Even supposedly identical swatches of leather are different. The new front seat cover appears to be a LOT more durable than the old one. And while the grain/texture looks different if you REALLY pay attention, I'd take harder wearing leather (and firmer cushioning) over soft and crease-ridden stuff any day.
So fear not fellow LC owners: if/when you switch out your seat covers due to creases/cracks you may be in for a very pleasant surprise. Or not!
