jfelbab

To dispel the theory that if your leathers are coated they will not absorb a conditioner, I'd suggest you actually try this test. In an inconspicuous area, put a drop of ink. Let it set for several minutes and wipe it off. Now try and explain away that inkspot as the leather won't absorb anything because of the coating.

The polyurethane coating is permeable.
That said, the most damaging effect to leathers is caused by dirt. Keeping your leather clean will increase it life. You can use any of several leather cleaners on the market or use something like Woolite/water (1:20 ratio) and clean your leather frequently. Don't over wet the seats when cleaning and be sure to wipe with a clean damp cloth to remove any detergent residue, then buff dry with another clean MF.

Lexus recommends:Conditioning will replenish some of the oils that evaporate as the leather ages.

Cleaning and conditioning will help to keep your leather softer and less wrinkled over time. You probably only need to condition a couple times a year.

You might also wish to read the sticky "All about Lexus leather" in this forum.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=115497

UDel

I too am pretty disappointed with Lexus leather, at least the leather in my GS430. It feels stiff, hard, waxy, and does not have the soft supple buttery feel leather should have. My parents Acura 99TL and 03 have much nicer softer leather and they have never really conditioned it over the years, I did lightly once when I was detailing their cars. I have conditioned my GS leather several times with Griots Garage leather conditioner/restorer, Leatherique, Surflex Sofner, and Ziano Z10 and nothing has really softened up the feel of it. The Surflex Sofner may have made it the slightest bit softer and is probably the best product I used followed by Leatherique but nothing really that noticeable. I talked to several leather product vendors and they all seemed to say many newer Lexus cars are treated to a horrible protectant process that clogs up the leather pores and ruins the leather and gives it that rough waxy feeling that gets worse after a few years, it may protect it from stains pretty well but it also eliminates all the positive qualities of leather-soft, supple, able to be conditioned, leather smell. Products to soften leather would be pretty useless once it has this horrible protectant on it since little to none makes it to the already ruined leather but a product that is designed to penetrate and soften the actual protectant as well as the leather would most likely work well but I don't anything is made to do that.

The older Lexus leathers like on the LS400 are not treated with this horrible protectant and can be cleaned with more aggressive cleaners and softened with Leatherique. More aggressive cleaners like Fast Orange and Soft Scrub used on newer Lexus leather will start taking the dye off for some reason.

I have read some places LeatherMasters conditioner/softner may work a little better then Leatherique but very few people have used it so I am a bit skeptical .

15951

You're confusing staining the polyurethane coating with permanent ink with actual absorption by the leather. I can get ink to dye a clear bra on the front of my car as well...doesn't mean I'm staining the surface of the paint underneath. If you don't notice color shift in the leather as a result of applying a "wet" product, it isn't absorbing it - period.

jfelbab

I don't believe that is correct. I have cut a piece of leather from under the rear seat, marked it with ink and then scrubbed the ink blot with a magic eraser until the coating was removed and the ink stain was still in the leather. I tried this on the light tan color leather. After scrubbing, the coating off, the leather was a darker tan color and the texture was also altered so I know the coating was removed. Yet the ink stain was still there in the leather.

The polyurethane coating is indeed permeable.

CK6Speed

iTrader: (1)

Are you talking about the annual safety inspection? If so, when did they start doing it for free? I had to pay for mine on my RX the last time my wife had them do it.

smoothLEX

+1 Yes

I've had cars with leather seats before, and if you don't condition them, they leather can dry up and crack in time. Also, UV rays can damage leather if it is not condtioned regularly.

15951

Interesting...if this is true, then we definitely do have semianiline leather, which is very lightly coated.

jfelbab

Don't just take my word for it, try it for yourself. The place I found some extra leather was under the center console area in the back seat. There is not a lot of excess but I was able to cut a piece about a quarter of an inch wide from that spot to do that test. There is really not a lot of extra leather anywhere on the RX. For ink, I used a Parker Duofild ink refill.

FWIW, here is what the supplier of our Lexus leather recommends.
Also they say: