How should I clean my car's leather?

Question

I have a 98 Avalon XLS and the leather is tannish-gray. The seats are actually still in pretty good condition, with few cracks. However, I'd like to further prevent cracking and remove some of the dirt that is on the seats. The dirt isn't coming off with just water and a towel. I also park my car on the driveway which is in the sun, so what should I use to clean and condition my leather and how often should I do it?

Answer 1

You need to use a good quality water based foam leather cleaner. Strong cleaner or Maxi Cleaner if it is very dirty. With light coloured leather dye transfer from clothing can be a problem although using a good quality leather protector will help inhibit this.

DO NOT use anything containing oils, waxes or silicones. (Most 'conditioners' contain waxes or oils) and furniture polish contains silicones

BABY WIPES are the worst thing you can use as they will destroy the finish on your leather. They are very strong alkiline cleaners to neutralise urine (acid) on babys skin so they are not the right thing to use on leather.

Saddle soap is too harsh to use on todays leathers.

A lot of leather wipes contain chemicals which will also destroy the finish or leave residues on the leather which will damage it. They are not cheap in the long run as you would need a lot to clean. A bottle of foam cleaner should do your car about 3-4 times.

Fairy liquid contains more salt these days to get dishes clean and this will break the finish down on your leather. This has been verified by the manufacturers (as with the baby wipes).

You should also follow cleaning with a good water based leather protector which will act like a 'scotchgard' and inhibit dirt and stains from being absorbed and make cleaning easier the next time.

Dry leather needs rehydrating with water and oils and waxes should not be used as the natural oils do not dry out of leather. Wiping over with a damp cloth regularly will help to do this.

It is important to maintain a regular cleaning regime cleaning dirt off the surface regularly and inhibiting the absorption of body oils into the leather with a protector is the best way of doing this.

The alternative is a brand new product on the market called Lazy Leather. This is the latest technology in cleaning and combines an effective cleaner with a protector. It is quick and easy to use and should be used as a maintenance product once your suite has been cleaned or from new if you have just bought it.

As your leather is already slightly cracked it may be an idea to have this fixed now. If you leave these areas they will get worse over time even if you start looking after them now. LTT can supply pigments for restoration matched to the right colour. Using incorrect care products is usually the cause of deterioration in the leather as unfortunately most car care products contain waxes and oils or silicones which do not do the leather any good.
Source(s):

www.LTTsolutions.net
Leather care consultants to the furniture and cleaning industries

Answer 2

You will need to use an enzyme cleaner to deal with this problem. This will kill any bacteria that may be causing the odour and help with to neutralise it. Use one that has been tested on leather such as Em Clean. Products from the pet store or household products that have not been tested on leather are likely to damage the finish on the leather and probably will not deal with the problem. One problem that you may have is that the urine may have gone through the leather (via the seams and stitch holes) and penetrated the insides of the seats in which case these areas would need to be cleaned as well - this may be quite difficult if you cannot get access to them. Hope this helps

Answer 3

If you clean the leather then spray it with a thin coat of clear-gloss polyurethane, the coat will prevent cracking and protect the leather from sun damage.

Answer 4

Baby wipes are brilliant for cleaning leather. You need to get a good leather conditioner cream though to stop cracking, particularly as you are parking in sun. Most car accessory places do a good one.

Answer 5

well when i had my leather seats in my camaro the only thing i used on my leather was Meguiars Gold Class Leather Cleaner. Stuff worked great and left the leather soft and smelling great.

Answer 6

Use Lexol leather cleaner, then use Lexol leather conditioner. Instructions are on the bottles.
Those are the best leather care products on the market.

Answer 7

in all seriousness no armoral.... use a leather cleaner then condition it with olive oil

Answer 8

Try Lexol:
http://www.lexol.com/auto.html

Maybe once every other month should be fine.

Answer 9

http://armorall.com