John Murray

My beige leather seat has a brown stain in the area where my lower back contacts the seat. It is brownish in color. Does anybody have experience getting rid of this type of stain?

bretfraz

Have you tried a leather cleaner/conditioner?

Are you sure the stain is not where your leather belt is contacting the seat?

For more serious leather cleaning, check out Leather Master or Leatherique.

0Killrwheels@Autogeek

The leather in a Vette is coated or finished and without pictures it is hard to suggest what the damage is or what can be done. Sometimes the wearing of leather seems to break down this coating other times they are stains. I highly suggest Leatherique for leather rejuvination and I use Einszett Leather Care for normal protection as designed for our leather type.

http://www.autogeek.net/leathercare.html

agentf1

I recommend Leatherique.

RaskyR1

+1 for the Leather Masters

Esoteric Detail

If you've got some staining going on, you'll definitely need to go a little more aggressive. Should you decide to go the Leatherique route, here's a tutorial on its usage that you may find helpful: Leatherique How-To

TOGWT

Protected / Coated Leather
(P-Protected / Pigmented / Coated)This is produced from the lower split (by-cast) of the leather hide; it is coated by first melting a type of glue on the surface, then rolling on a film of coloured polyurethane. This type of leather is also known as coated or covered.

Using split leather produced from the lower cut or split of the hide is a relatively new development. It is normally produced in darker colours and when stretched, it lightens. It also scratches quite easily. This type of leather is now coming on to the furniture market, but has been used for automotive upholstery, handbags and belts for some time. As the top surface has a high polyurethane finish, normal leather creams provide absolutely no value (see conditioners).

To determine if your leather is protected with a polyurethane covering; lightly scratch it with your nail, if it changes to a darker / lighter shade, it is unprotected (i.e. how suede changes colour depending on the fibres' orientation). If this has little effect it’s protected. If water ‘beads’ on the surface, then it is probably covered leather. If it soaks in, then it is probably (pigmented) finished leather

This type of automotive upholstery finish should not be considered a natural leather hide as far as care and its maintenance is concerned, but treated as a vinyl, only requiring that you maintain its moisture and protect it from ultra violet (UV) radiation.

A water-based cleaner will permeate the polyurethane covering as its molecules are much smaller (oil has larger molecules than water and are unable to penetrate so oil will just sit on the surface). As the top surface has a high polyurethane finish, normal leather creams should NOT be used.

Reminder; you are dealing with the finished surface coating and not with the leather itself. Meaning, of course, there is absolutely no point to using leather conditioners on Polyurethane coated leather.

Cleaning / Care
Use a 3M delicate duty scuff pad (White) and Iz einszett ‘Plastik-Reiniger’ is an intensive, non-corrosive, non-acidic two-phase deep cleaner, that removes grime build-up thoroughly and effortlessly, these chemicals restore your interiors original texture and resiliency; use to clean all coloured and clear water-based acrylic polyurethane covered automotive upholstery; this product is biodegradable, formalin-free and environmentally friendly.

Maintain by cleaning surfaces with a 10:1 water diluted d-limonene (citrus) based cleaner) P21S Total Auto Wash) to remove stains, then apply a water-based vinyl (303 Space Protectant) dressing that contains ultra violet protection

An extract from one of a series of in-depth detailing articles © TOGWT ™ Ltd Copyright 2002-2008, all rights reserved.