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Don't assume your leather is getting hard due to the topcoat hardening The topcoat on leather is a micron-thin and flexible urethane coating. What makes leather hard is the hydration level of the underlying leather.
If you have ever used a chamois you would notice that when it dries out it gets hard. Once it is rehydrated, it is again soft. You cannot wet the car's leather as the coating is applied to prevent spills and other liquids from penetrating through and damaging the underlying leather. So how do you make leather softer? You increase the leather's hydration level via a process similar to transpiration. That is, the leather absorbs H2O molecules through the air surrounding the leather.
You can raise the hydration level by doing a frequent wipe down of your leather with a wrung out cotton towel. If your leather is really hard you can place that wrung out towel on a piece of plastic directly under the seat for a few hours a couple days a week until the leather is again properly rehydrated. One important note. Your leather is made soft in the manufacturing process. It cannot be made softer than it was originally engineered to be. Some vehicles have hard leather from the factory.
When leather professionals use the term "conditioning" they are speaking about hydrating the leather, not smearing an oily or greasy cream on the urethane coating. The only positive effect of today's conditioners is that they are mostly H2O and therefore may raise the relative humidity around the leather so that it might absorb some of the water. Most of these conditioners will leave the leather with a film that will change the "hand" or feel of the surface of the leather making it feel either slippery or grippy. It is this same residue that will attract dirt and dust and hold it in contact with the leather. This is not a good thing for leather that you want to last for a long time. Properly hydrated leather should feel soft, dry and silky smooth. Go to a new luxury car dealership and feel the leather surfaces in a $100,000 vehicle. That is what your leather should feel like.
Lastly, be sure you know what is real leather and what is vinyl or faux leather. You cannot condition or rehydrate vinyl or faux leather. It is what it is. It will never get softer no matter what you attempt. Vinyl can harden over time and exposure to the elements.
Your response just blew my mind, im gonna have to try this! Has anyone tried this in their cars?
I do it all the time. When i see the seats getting dirty, i use woolite and warm water on a microfiber towel. The seats look like new on the 13 ES. My 2000 RX looks like new also.
My wife's 2015 RX350 has light gray leather seats. They are pretty dirty and we have not cleaned them since we purchased the vehicle used in 2016. I have read a bunch on CL about how to clean and treat the leather in our cars.
I thought I would try the Leatherique product. It is in the high 80's here todya and 90's for tomorrow so I started the process today.
Applied the Rejuvenator with a small sponge. Used very liberal amounts and worked it into the leather with a small sponge and lots of elbow grease. Next step is to leave the car in the sun and let it heat up for a day and then wipe the leather clean and apply the pristine product.
Product photos and before photos are attached. I will let you know how it works. If I like it, I plan on using it in my LS.
I applied some revuvenator to the steering wheel and then wiped it off with this paper towel, WOW didn't look that dirty.
06-10-18, 07:36 PM
