MadHungari

Beautiful Spring weather; time to do a little detailiing of the SC (2003). So, what parts of the interior are leather, and what parts (if any) are a really good imitation of leather? I want to avoid using a leather conditioner on vinyl, and a vinyl conditioner on leather. Thanks.

Yes

there was a post on this a while back. if you use the search button, you can probably find it. there's actually a lot of good fake leather in our cars. rather than try to remember which is fake (most of the trim) i use 303 aerospace protectant on all of the trim. it's fine for both leather and vinyl. it's actually the best thing you can put on vinyl. then i use lexol leather cleaner and conditioner for the seats. works great all around. you can also use 303 aerospace on the wood trim. or some people use pledge.

tromly

, excellent advice, I would include Zaino leather products, worked out well for me.

iolmaster

iTrader: (1)

303 does absolutely nothing on the wood. It is sealed. The manufacturer says only for porous materials.

Yes

i just read the label. it doesn't say that at all. it doesn't mention wood, but two of the recommended uses are plastic and chrome. neither of which have pores. the sealant on our wood is in fact a plastic.

iolmaster

iTrader: (1)

I was in the sailboat business in the 80s when this was introduced. For many years it was a marine product. I even had the rep come to my place of business and do demos. I have been using 303 since about 85. You can certainly put 303 on anything and it will shine for a while. The rep was very specific that only porous materials will retain the benefit for any length of time. Use on chrome is just marketing. The rep even said painted surfaces had little benefit from 303. The wood trim is most likely coated with polyurethane and is not very porous.

Yes

nothing you put on your trim is going to last long term. it's going to get dusty and you'll want to clean it. i clean my interior about once a month. i've lived in the desert for about 4 years with no fading or sun damage whatsoever. so it seems to be doing something right.

MadHungari

Thanks for the replies--I am not unfamiliar with 303 but had not thought of it after all these years. Placed my order today.

FYI: The company has a "Free Sample" offer for a half-dozen or so of their products (mostly trial-sized) for $7.00 S&H. Looks like a good deal.

tfischer

Zaino Leather Conditioner is the best thing out there for the leather, and probably for the faux leather also. Excellent protection and it smells great.
303 is the best thing for the top of the dash and the other similar black vinyl surfaces (top of doors, etc.) - it looks good and blocks the UV rays which harm it.
As for the coated wood, many professional detailers use Pledge on these surfaces - it cleans it without scratching and looks nice. Given the thickness and nature of the coating, there's probably not much you can do to either harm it or protect it, as that surface is pretty well impervious to everything.

Yes

personally, i wouldn't use a leather conditioner on vinyl (that's all "faux leather" is). they always claim that it's good for vinyl, but vinyl won't absorb it the way leather will.

over time, residue tends to build up. when i first bought my sc, i thought everything was leather and used lexol conditioner on the trim. after a few times, i noticed residue. i did some research, discovered it was vinyl, switched to 303 and had much better results.

also conditioner doesn't block UV, so it won't do much to protect your dash.