Leather Care
 

Hi Friends,

I have Benz C 240, Year 2002.

I have got TAN interiors, I want to know how do I clean them. Like the leather of seats has some fine grooves ( patterns or lines ) on it. And that has started becoming black. It is all dirt. I want to clean it how do I do that. Also Do I need to moisturize the leather so that it does not crack etc. Can someone guide, if yes which liquid , or polish do I have to use to clean or moisturize it. And from where would I get it.

Thanks a lot in advance.

regards
RoHitSaGaR

RE: Leather Care
 

I'm sure there will be some hits on this that disagree with me, but I've always cleaned my leather with a damp cloth with just soapy water. As far as conditioning the leather and protecting it (sometimes even cleaning) I use spray silicone. It may sound crazy, but that's what Toyota uses and I also used it on my Lexus, a Cadillac, Miata and a Ford truck with leather. The silicone spray doesn't cause the leather to be slick or greasy. I used to purchase the "Toyota Leather Cleaner" from the dealership and it states on the can that it's just silicone spray so I just started buying the silicone at Walmart and saving some $$

When I bought my 'benz, I used spray silicone on the leather gear shift...I wiped it with a clean dry white cloth and the cloth turned dark brown. At first I thought it was removing the dye, but then realized that it was nothing but oil and dirt being removed, when I finished, the gear shift was an entirely different shade of brown that actually MATCHED the interior :)

The only trick to it is you can't spray it all over the seat and wipe the entire seat down like you would if you were using Armor All of some sort of "other" protectant. The silicone dries so quickly that you need to do sections of less than 1'x1' at a time.

Hope this helps, like I said I'm sure some will disagree with me, but my seats have looked great in multiple vehicles and haven't had any problems with cracking, etc.

RE: Leather Care
 

I would not reccomend using any type of soap or aresol product on leather seats. These products have harsh cleaning chemicals in them that will eventually destroy the finish on your leather. I use the full line of Meguairs Mercedes line that came with my car. Any of the interior or exterior cleaning/care products can be purchased at the parts department of your local Mercedes Dealership. My C320 has Alpaca grey interior which is very light and gets dirty fast. The cleaning cream works wonders with a terry cloth and gets the dirt and grime out of the fine creases in the seats without much effort. I use the conditioner after, and the leather is like new. I even use the products for my Mercedes on my Cadillac CTS. Superior products IMO.

RE: Leather Care
 

I use Armor All leather cleaner comes in a brown bottle works great i use it on my 560 and 300.

RE: Leather Care
 

Most leather seats need wiped regularly with a clean wet cloth. The water is necessary to remove salt which is on the leather and, as we know a cool shower never hurt anyones skin. I use a little dial bar soap to remove stubborn dirt and wipe with a another clean wet towel and dry before using any leather conditioner. I learned this technique cleaning bugs of my riding leathers. They have faired very well.

RE: Leather Care
 

Thanks to all for replies, but noone mentioned the product name , company & cost. Can someone share the name of the product & company & its cost.


regards
RoHitSaGaR

RE: Leather Care
 

If you read my reply you'll notice that the company name is Meguairs. If I were you, I'd make a simple trip to the dealership and use what they use. The line I got from my dealer was the entire set of what they used to protect my car before I took delivery. You can get Meguairs at any auto store. The Meguairs line available at the dealership is supposedly a specific formula made for Mercedes Benz. Price I'm not too sure about, as I got everything for free, but I would imagine $20 for the cleaner and $20 for conditioner. Well worth the investment over using soap on leather.

RE: Leather Care
 

If you read the label on your cleaner, you will find that it is soap with perfume and other solvents, and water. Meguiar's leather care is great stuff and will soften your hands too.:D

RE: Leather Care
 

Well I guess I put my five cents in it.

I basically use the same method as MBZ300SDL mentioned. The owner of my Mercedes used the same product and so do I. The leather feels, and looks as if it was new.

A MILD soap and water is okay, but sometimes it don't remove all of the dirt or people don't dilute it enough causing the leather to become dry and cracked. Then also if you are going to get a strong leather cleaner, make sure it's the right one. When I first got my 1995 Cadillac back in High school, I decided to clean the leather with a leather cleaner. It removed ther dirt, oil and the blue dye. Come to find out, that particular leather cleaner was not made to used for car leather that has been dyed. Luckily the dealership was nice about it and repaired the seat under the warrenty, (Since I did buy the cleaner from them afterall.)

RE: Leather Care
 

I will concede my point somewhat. If you need a special cleaning product, use it. I like using the mildest method possible on unknown materials, so mild soap is usually a safe place to start. After I dry my car when washing, I use the towels to wipe my seats to remove salts from perspiration. Just a habit.