Most leather seats are not "real leather" but coated. You can think of the coating as a clear coat of paint. So when it comes to cleaning, it is the same as hard plastics for the most part, except for leather like the Ford's King Ranch seats, which is real.
In most cases, since the leather or vinyl is coated, we are cleaning and caring for that coating itself. It is still essential to take care of and help our seats last for years to come!
Cleaning Leather
1)Find a suitable leather cleaner or APC. Even though our seats are not genuine leather, the excellent thing about leather cleaners is they can be more gentle. This is important since the seats will get more wear than most other car parts due to us sitting and moving on them. If using an APC or all-purpose cleaner, use one meant for cars, and be sure to dilute it properly. Another good choice is using an automotive interior cleaner like Owners Pride Spiffy. These, just like leather cleaners, are more gentle for various surfaces. You may use an APC, but we recommend using a mild cleaner and only using APC for really dirty areas.
2) If you use an APC, do not spray directly onto the seats. One of the biggest mistakes people make with using cleaners on leather is they spray the seat, and the solution will run down and quickly leave behind marks that can be very difficult sometimes to remove. This is why we prefer a leather or interior cleaner. Then use a gentle brush or Scrub Ninja scrub pad and scrub the seat. Spray onto your brush, and scrub pad, and use light pressure as some seats. No matter if it's a high-end or low-end vehicle, some can start to flake if they have some wear on them. Also, work one section at a time.
3) Wipe up with a microfiber towel and inspect. Depending on how dirty or when the last time a seat was clean, it could take more than one time to get them clean.
Protecting Leather
The old saying is true, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and so is the same in protecting our leather seats. During routine maintenance, grab your favorite leather/interior dressing and apply it to your leather seats after cleaning. It doesn't take long to perform this and should be done a few times a year. We love Owners Pride Dash Guard+ for this. You can also get an interior or leather coating for your seat that offers more durable, extended protection. Some will even help to reduce friction for a while, which is excellent since the bottom side seat bolsters are the first to wear. Other coatings will help make them easier to clean and reduce jean transfer, which is very important for white leather seats like those found in Teslas. We offer this as well and highly recommend it for Brand New Vehicles.
Let us know if you have any questions or if you would like to have us clean and protect your leather, fill out our forum today!
