Restoring Leather Seats

[Chrisgoesflying]

My Comanche has beautiful brown leather seats. Well, they once were much more beautiful but age made them look a little tired. See photos below. They have no rips or anything, just look very used, worn and discolored in some places. I checked in with two interior shops to see what they can do. One never answered, the other quoted me $2,000 and he won't be available until around Christmas time. The plane will be in annual this August so I thought maybe I can work on the seats as they have to come out anyways. How do I restore them to their old glory? Any tips, tricks and links to products that could work their magic on these seats?

 

[455 Bravo Uniform]

Those are beautiful.

I’m the meantime, I would buy a high quality 2 step leather cleaner and conditioner. The conditioner may bring some of those various shades of wear closer together. They’ll also protect the seats until you’re ready for the shop. Or you may find that they’ve cleaned up nicely and look good enough.

That’s what I do to mine, but mine are a lighter tan.

 

[robin ardoin]

https://autoleatherdye.com/pages/about-us

I use Leather Master products on the leather seats in my road vehicles and in my 182 and they perform extremely well. I found out about them when, in a moment of insanity ten years back, I bought a Bentley convertible and the regional rep told me Leather Master products are recommended by Bentley for proper interior care. I’ve got about 45K miles on it, mostly with the top down in the Louisiana sun, and the seats look and feel like new. The link above is a site that will also educate you and provide products to re-dye and restore your seats. Then use the LM products for maintenance. On another note, if you want to search for the care products DON’T enter Leather Masters in the search bar unless you are in to that sort of thing.

 

[Bell206]

Any tips, tricks and links to products that could work their magic on these seats?

Another option I've used in the past is to pull the seats and take them to a local reputable leathersmith or upholsterer for restoration, if available. It will definitely cost more than the DIY route but results have always been great in my experience.

 

[BrianM]

While I haven’t used them myself Leatherique has a very good reputation in classic auto (especially classic Porsche) circles. I would purchase their products and follow their instructions.

http://www.leatherique.com/

 

[flydave]

+1 on the Leatherique, I used to use it on my BMW's interior. I think I used their Pristine Clean. I remember it worked especially well on the leather steering wheel that had gotten all grimy with time, and this restored it to a nearly factory-new matte finish (the car was only a few years old so I imagine YMMV on much older leather).

Test it on some inconspicuous surface first like with all these things (should be fine!). I used a bristle brush to work it in and scrub out the dirt. It took a good bit of elbow grease!

It's very very thin stuff, and a little goes a long way. I'd probably start with the 16oz bottle and see how it goes. Car detailing forums would be another good place to look for suggestions.

 

[455 Bravo Uniform]

We will need a small deposit to the POA escrow account that will be refunded once you post before & after pics to close out this thread.

 

[SoCal 182 Driver]

I've used Leatherique products with great success on leather seats in a nearly 40-year-old Porsche. One trick I picked up is to apply the Rejuvenator product and then cover the seats with plastic garbage bags and let the car sit in the sun with the windows closed all day. By the end of the day, the gunk that has come out of the seats is unbelievable. Then, apply the Prestine Clean product as directed. The stuff works miracles. They also sell color kits if you need to dye the seats. http://www.leatherique.com/

HTH!

 

[Chip Sylverne]

We just use a good quality saddle soap and Lexol. When you have horses, you clean a lot of leather.

 

[Racerx]

I wouldn't let an upholstery shop screw those beauties up. Especially at that price. All they're gonna do is clean em anyway.

I'm jealous.

 

[Llk]

Huh? OP is high. Those seats are great.

Another plus for leatherique and letting the product sit for the gunk to come out.

I sew. I reupholster but it’s not my strong suit. I own a paint shop so luckily I have minions who help (not minions - awesome employees)

What shops do often to make $$$ is charge for foam, but really all that goes into it is this:

Remove the hog rings on the covers.

Remove the foam glued to the seats, which is tired and compressed at this point.

Replace / glue with 1” or typically 2” foam. Refinish the seat frames with paint if you want. Reinstall the beautiful seat covers. Stare on glee.

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