How to clean stains off my leather seats?
 

Hey guys,

so i noticed yesterday that my jeans have stained my driver's seat, by the butt bolster.

how do i clean this off? i googled it, and some were saying use a mix of alcohol and water.... but i was always told never to use alcohol on leather!!!

i also looked up some of the leather care products, but most of them are for keeping the finish nice, and didnt mention that it would CLEAN the leather.

interior is umber.

any help please?

try a mix of woolite and water.

:werd:

Thanks. is that just laundry detergent like tide?

Yup.

Also, Lexol makes both a conditioner and a cleaner. No guarantee that it works any better than woolite and water, but it may be worth trying.

I will say that my TSX had a light tan interior and the side bolsters were permanently stained form dye transfer from my black belts. Nothing got it out.

Yep, parchment interior is tough to keep clean. Lexol would not clean the dye transfer.

I tried 303 as well along with a Mr. Clean magic eraser and nothing really worked. I am guessing I would have had to apply a dye matching the parchment color, but I sold the car and the new owner didn't seem to mind.

Ohters have said Leatherique will work - requires 'tenting' seat and letting product ferment to remove stains.

huh. Never tried that...

I wish I knew of a way to seal that area on my current car to prevent it in the first place.

where can we purchase wool lite from?

Grocery store, target, walmart. Look in the laundry detergent section.

:yes::yes::yes:

I had the same question for my TL, this will work!! I guarantee it!!! It worked magic on my "tan" leather. I used about a 4-1 ratio, scrubbed with a standard cloth rag and wiped off with clean water. FYI the water is going to be dark when done! lol :thumbsup:

Use woolite, you will not be sorry! Nothing else would touch the color transfer from jeans.

Can we add using woolite to one of the Stickys for detailing! It would be a great idea.

i usually use tuff stuff and it leaves the seats spotless and finish off with lexol leather care so u can have fun sliding in the seats while driving lol just kidding it protects the seats from sun rays wich usually cracks leather and vinil.But if woolite works i'll try it.

^Yeah Woolite won't protect anything, but Aerospace 303 Protectant is about the best stuff out there that I know of for doing the leather/vinyl/plastic protection thing from UV/Sun (without the super shine of Armorall, etc..)

hmm ok.. i'll check it out next wk when i have time!

thanks guys.

just fyi.. this is the interior. so it's not as light as tan/parchment.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4147/...1660a72f_b.jpg

moar pics here
https://acurazine.com/forums/4g-tl-photograph-gallery-296/wdp-2010-tl-awd-sh-tech-790976/

:)

Nice photog skills :thumbsup:

Why is this more often a problem with Acuras?

^ poor leather quality? :shrug:

I don't know if it matters, but in the Acuras the side bolsters were not real leather. If it's not perforated it's pleather.

thanks!


hmm to be fair though, the colour on my jeans rubs off somewhat easily. i think i need to wash them a few more times. also, the "stain" is only on the side where my ass slides in n out of the car. haha

e) Dye Transfer

Dye transfer (from jeans, leather belts, etc) can be very difficult to remove; the longer it is on the leather the harder it will be to remove. Clothing dye normally shows as a greyish bloom in seat area. This is usually caused by dark dye transferring from clothing. Particularly avoid brand new (i.e. never been washed) denim jeans, damp knitwear etc

Is a common problem on lighter coloured Aniline leathers; on this type of leather anything that is allowed to permeate the leather may stain it permanently as it is not possible to clean out of leather. (See also leather protection products)

Do not allow liquid to soak or ‘heat set’ into the leather, the longer dye transfer remains on the leather the harder it becomes to remove as the dye keeps permeating the finish on the leather. Once the dye has permeated the surface it can be very difficult to remove, but this can be avoided by regular cleaning and the use of a protector. The transferred dye will ‘sit’ on top of the protection and can then be cleaned off by regular cleaning.

If the dye has permeated then the finish should be softened to help release the dye (Leather Master Soft Touch) Using a strong solvent on leather that has a stain or dye transfer will do two things; cause the dye to ‘bleed’ further into the surface making it even more difficult to remove, and it may damage the finish requiring replacement.

As always with stain removal; start with the least invasive first.

• Leather Master Rapid S Cleaner (A-Aniline / Non-Coated) (P-Protected / Coated) is a concentrated cleaner specifically designed for automotive leather (including Nappa and Perforated) that have accumulated dirt, soil, and dye transfer and suntan or body oils.
• Isopropyl alcohol (IPA)
• A 1:1 solvent / detergent solution; d-limonene based (citrus) solvent (P21S® Total Auto Wash) and a slightly alkaline detergent.

If you have tried appropriate leather cleaning products with no success it does not mean that the products do not work simply that the problem is not a 'cleaning' one and the dye transfer is more severe or has been on too long.

The surface may require re-colouring with a very light pigment coating applied to recolor. This would not require a full recolor as long as you had a pigment that matched the leather.

Leather Master™ Protection Cream will provide resistance against this type of stains, spills and provides the hydration necessary to keep the leather soft and supple

Woolite is a delicate washing detergent formulated for fine knitwear like cashmere and silk and ladies lingerie. IMO it’s not a suitable product for cleaning finished leather upholstery with a urethane covering

This is the main reason why I bought the ebony interior! I never have to worry about any kind of dye transfer showing up :thumbsup:

TOGWT to the rescue!

All I can say is, Woolite worked like a champ for getting the leather clean for me. I'd say before spending a ton on some other "stronger" cleaner go for what you can find locally and probably for cheaper.

We need a sticky about cleaning your leather. I always see people ask, but nothing is stickied! ADMINISTRATORS..... where are youuuu...... hint hint!

I wish I was on ANY if those services to give you rep points! I :run: from them!

anyone know how to remove gum off leather seats?

Try this:

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=how+to+remove+g...m+leather+seat

Never gets old...

alright guys..

so i went to the Toronto Home Show, and there was a booth that was demo'ing a leather cleaner/conditioner. Long story short, i bought a bottle ($25). Figured if it didn't clean my seats, i could use it on my shoes. No biggie.

I tried it on the seats today, in some nice -11C weather. lol

stuff is called URAD. It's apparently all natural, made from sheep's wool oil something and carnuba (the edible kind). Made in Italy.

btw, just to be clear. I am in NO way promoting this product. im just saying i tried this, and it works for me. Might not work for you. Don't come back trollin. lol

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._4472828_n.jpg

Before. not sure if u can see the stains clearly or not, but it's there, a bit faint in this pic:
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._2343624_n.jpg

During. you can start to see the difference:
http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._7123765_n.jpg

after. you can see that it took the stains out, the leather looks clearer now.
http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._4718767_n.jpg

passenger side before:
http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._8065176_n.jpg

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._4074252_n.jpg

passenger side after:
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._8348758_n.jpg

you can see the stains more by the stitching on the butt bolster.

you can see the denim came off on the sponge.
http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._4997993_n.jpg

Washes right out!
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._5595958_n.jpg
Note: i just put on gloves cause im going on a road trip right after, and i wasnt sure if my hands would smell like the stuff after or not.

overall, im happy with this stuff. it smells a bit minty out of the bottle, but once applied, it doenst smell at all. It also doesn't leave any residue. I can wipe my finger on it right after i apply it, and nothing comes off.

just glad i saved my leather!!! :)

i have the leatherique cleaner and conditioner at home but havent used it yet.. will this yeild good results on a camel interior? anyone know what the best method is with these products?

thx

i tried looking for woolite at my local target but they did not have any...

There is 1 word on any leather stain wear problem fix ...

SHEEPSKIN !!

would the woolite and water mix work for brownish reddish stains on grey leather?

I use the woolite combo to clean off my red leather couch and it works great for that too. So in my opinion woolite n water will clean probably just about any leather. I love how it cleans my leather! I also use like a 4:1 ratio when I clean dirty leather which does wonders!

Thanks for your input Chayos00, I'm definitely going to buy some woolite today and get this leather cleaned up.

I had some stains on my passenger seat created from someone wearing a black leather jacket. I tried all kinds of cleaners to get the black marks off of my beige interior seats, and nothing would work!! :whyme:

So, I finally hopped on the internet and saw this thread about using Woolite and water. I did a little more research on the internet and it sounded like many people had good results with it.

I'm here to say that Woolite and water (5:1 ratio) worked excellent on the stains that were on my seats. :thumbsup: I did use a small brush (nail polishing brush) that was recommended on AutoGeek's website as well. I think the brush helped out a lot. I used a very slight pressure on the brush as not to damage the leather.

All in all, it turned out great. So now all I have to do is condition the seats to hopefully prevent this from happening again! :wish:

Thanks for the tips Aziners!!