my wife and i are looking into a new car for her. we have pretty much decided on the make & model, but now we have to decide on the options.

my wife really wants a leather interior, and i have never seen the 'draw' to have one.

i would prefer a cloth interior, but its going to be her car.

i am curious if anyone can tell me how leather holds up over the long run, and if there is alot of maintance involved if we do decide to go for one.

we have a six year old who will be in the car alot, we also keep our vehicles for many years so we will have it for a long time.

if anyone has any good input on this i would really appreciate the info.

thanks.

 

Leather is an item that typically requires a little more TLC to keep up than cloth. Where they both have their pros and cons, leather tends to be something you need to pay a little closer attention to...

In short, the extra requirements of leather care will be generally cleaning it with a quality leather cleaner and the occasional conditioning with, again, a quality conditioner.

The frequency of this task will vary upon your own individual environmental conditions. I suspect that the little one will accelerate those conditions as well.

My hunch would be that, about every other week, you'd want to go over the leather with a hot/warm terry towel to remove all the surficial dirt. You'll want to pay very special attention to the creases and texture of the leather, as well as the stitching. Once you've done that, about every month or so, I'd recommend doing that and then following up with a cleaner/conditioner (all in one product). About every 3rd month, I'd do a full cleaning and then conditioning.

Products vary out there on the market. I suspect that if you're looking at a car, you're probably looking at leather that is clear coated. Some will suggest that you cannot condtion clear coated leather however, that is very wrong. Clearcoating is very porus (like the clear coat on your car), it requires conditioning and cleaning to keep it in top shape (again, as does your car's finish). If it wasn't porus, why would a marker stain the seating?

Some problems that you may encounter many years down the road would be cracking or deep ground in dirt. Unfortunately, there is little to do about the cracking (with the exception of the aforementioned preventative measures) but, you can get a good deep cleaning to bring the leather back at just about any detail shop.

I'm not sure if I've directly answered your question but, I think you'll be happy with it. Like I said, they both have pros and cons but, overall, I wouldn't go with anything other than leather.

RP

 

We have 3 kids...that establishes my credentials and bona fides on this particular subject: leather seats and kids.<g>

We've had leather seats on our last 4 vehicles, two Dodge Grand Caravans (our traveling vehicle) and a Dodge Intrepid and my F150 KR SCrew.

From my perspective, the leather seats were a lot easier to keep clean than cloth and held up much better. As long as they're maintained, they'll shed moisture and clean right up.

 

I agree with Blanc, we have two kids, and their youth sports teams, that were raised on leather seats. Spills wipe up and don't soak in like cloth. We always used large towels between a childs safety seat and the leather. Vacuum weekly paying attention to spread the seams to get them clean. Clean and condition monthly with Lexol. We have had black, tan, beige and gray in GM, Chrysler, Ford and German products. BTW the clear coated crap in the F 150 is the worst of the lot, both seat bottoms replaced at 30K miles. Mom has a Lincoln with much nicer leather that only gets a professional detail once or twice a year and it always looks good. I learned a while ago not to put anyone, the wife, in a vehicle they don't like, other wise it just causes problems for everyone. Good luck with your decision.

 

thanks for the feedback.

this car will not be a 'dream car', and we are not getting it based on an enthusiasts perspective.

it will be a daily driver that will see snow/salt and whatever a normal family car gets thrown at it.

with that being said, i dont want to get in a position where i have to go out there ever third week or so and treat the interior of the car.

bad thing is i can see this being a p.i.t.a. for me, and something my wife will not understand.

almost wish it was like back in the model-a ford days (you can have any color as long as its black).

thanks.

 

I have always had cloth prior to my supercrew lariat FX4 that I have now. I really like having the leather myself. I do take care of my truck, but that includes USING it too. It goes off road all over the Cascades in Washington, the mountains in Montana, Wyoming, and the high desert in eastern washington. My use includes getting in and out a lot with outdoor gear that has gotten wet from snow and just plain dirty. I try to sit on something, but that doesn't always quite cover it. I also have a Sheltie that has the run of the truck (when my wife is with me). I clean and condition my leather interior every couple of months or so. My truck looks like it is brand new. I'll not go back to cloth myself.

TLeBlanc and Ghz had a pretty reasonable sounding scenarios to me. Not that Rockpick is wrong - he is not, but if this car is not YOUR BABY/hobby then I think you can get away with a scenario that comes closer to TLeBlanc and Ghz.

You'll have weigh out for yourself what letting her have an option that she wants means between the two of you. Maybe you get her involved to the point of - OK if you want leather then you will have to atleast share in the caring for it when it is required. It won't change anyone's life. The impact of having leather is not that big of a deal. It's just nice that's all and pretty tough in the scheme of things.

Tom

 

I usually soak mine with black coffee every 4 to 6 weeks. Wipe it down and have had no problems.

I treat my seats with Volvo learther conditioner - I found a case in a rental house that I own when the tennants moved out. I don't know who makes it or what the cost is but it cleans the leather and conditions it without much effort. I try to clean the seats every 3 to 4 months. My 99 Lariat and 96 Volvo does show some wear but for 5 and 8 year old vehicles they look reasonably well.

 

For what it's worth...Most upholstery shops I've talked to recommend Lexol leather treatment products. They say it's the best.

MR

 

I'd second that opinion. I recently picked up my first bottles of Lexol Leather Cleaner and Conditioner on a recent trip to FL (they don't sell it retail in Louisiana ) and do say that it does make quite a difference in the smell and hand of the leather. It was the first time I could "feel" a difference compared to some of the other products on the market (Turtle Wax, Meguiars, Mothers).

If not for anything else, avoid the all-in-one products as they are not as effective as the seperate cleaner and conditioner products. (Similar to painting an old wall by mixing paint remover and paint together and expecting it to come out looking nice!)

Tony

 

it's been awhile, but we made the move yesterday.

our hearts & heads have been with honda for years, this time we came close to a subaru legacy sedan (for the all wheel drive), but in the end we stayed true to honda. (i cant walk away from a manufacturer thats been this good to us)

we have owned three, and none of them have ever been in the shop.

got a new (2004) accord sedan EX-L.

black (always wanted a black vehicle and never had one), 5-speed, with the tan leather interior.

when we were looking at the vehicles on the lot, i kept thinking of this post and it made me comfortable in the choice of the interior.

thanks for the information everyone.

 

kewl Part of every happy couple is a meaningful negotiation....