i want to know what product do you guys use to clean the your leather? i see people writing abut it in the fourums but none of them seem to have the sc conver. is there a special product i should be using since the leather is for the most part in direct sunlight i dont want to back the leather any help is much appreciated thanks.

 

carb clean
















no dont try that

 

i use lexol, pretty good so far

 

Lexol leather cleaner and conditioner, the only one i have used.

 

i use meguirs aloe gel cleaner (light green color) and meguirs leather conditioner.. i let the condition sit for atleast a day if i can or longer

im even thinking about taking out my front pass seat... so i can do deep clean in the comfort of my a/c home

 

Consider using a windshield sunblocker and put towels on the leather seats when the vehicle is parked. I use Turtle Wax leather cleaner and conditioner. It has UV protection. My leather still looks and smells brand new.... other than the wrinkles from body weight.

 

Your owner's manual has the best suggestion for cleaning your leather: diluted Woolite (6 parts water to 1 part Woolite, I believe). For UV protection, you may consider Aerospace Protectant 303. It's not greasy and leaves a matte finish. It's made for the boating and aircraft industries, and users swear by it.

Remember that most Lexus leather (exept the Ecru leather) is "coated" leather that has a thin plastic color coating. It's not the porous dyed leather that you may find in saddles, handbags, garments, and shoes. Care for coated leather as you'd care for vinyl. Products like conditioners and saddle soaps are for uncoated leathers. They won't hurt coated leather, and but for the nice scent they leave behind, they won't help either.

As for "feeding" the leather with oils and other chemicals, remember that the tanning process removes all oils to prevent rotting. Think about next time you feel like reintroducing oils to "soften and protect" your leather. Good luck.

JB

Edit: I was just browsed the detailng forum and ran into this leather thread sticky that better answers your question.

 

Zaino Z-10 Leather in a Bottle. Great stuff.

 

Dont use anything that is not made SPECIFICALLY for Automotive leather. There are certain chemicals in certain products that will actually break down and strip the clear coat from the leather. If that is the case, you will have just raw leather with no finish that will bake in the sun and be ruined in weeks. I dont know if the Woolite thing works or not, but it is safe to say that anything not made specifically for Automotive leather is not the way to go. Maybe there are some things out there that work that arent for Automotive leather, but the risk is very high.

What I would suggest using is the following...

Daily/Random Spot Cleaning: MILD soap and water
Deep Cleaning: Mothers or Meguiars Leather Cleaner
Conditioning: Mothers or Meguiars Leather Conditioner

(Note: Always safer to go with seperate bottles of cleaner and conditioner. The two-in-one stuff just doesnt work that great.)

Here is a little story about a customer I sold a leather kit to. He bought a Camaro SS leather interior from me and he lives in Michigan. Evidentally there is a really nice/expensive leather furniture place up there that has some really high end cleaner and conditioner products. Well he decided that he should try it on his Camaro and it worked just fine at first, but within a few days of putting it on the finish started to come off and eventually even the color finish came off so what you had left was this "suede" type feel in this one area. Needless to say the seat is ruined and he just had to buy another from us, just recently. The leather furniture place told him exactly the same thing I told you above.

So thats why using things MADE for Automotive leather is always your safest bet.

 

Thanks for the advice!

 

I've tried those but the Zaino leather conditioners and cleaners perform better in my experience.

 

303 Aerospace Cleaner. I use it on everything on the interior, dash, console, and leather. Non-oily cleaner, as well as UV protection. Works great!
Unfortunately, its the only cleaner I've ever used, so I can't compare it for you, but I've also heard that Lexol is just as good. But, only on leather. 303 goes everywhere, all-in-one interior product.

 

Just used 303 for the first time ever last week . I even used it in the engine bay.

 

Dom:

Where can you get this 303? I'd love to be using just 1 product instead the 5 I use now!!!

 

Plenty of choices for the 303 cleaner;

http://www.autopia-carcare.com/303-30553.html

http://www.303products.com/store/mor...?Product_ID=53

http://www.autogeek.net/303aecl.html

http://www.superiorcarcare.net/303aecl.html