Rant about leather care confusion for X350
 

I cannot care for my leather interior because neither Jaguar nor anyone else can explain to me what type of leather (finished or unfinished and what type of finish). In my last car (mercedes) I trashed my interior with a bottle of Lexol cleaner. It stripped off the protective coat and the leather was never the same. It was like new after 130k miles before this.

Does anyone here know type of finish is on the X350? What is safe to use on it? Is the dash finished differently? Please don't tell me what smells nice. I want to know what is safe on this type of finish.

Repeat, I don't care what it smells like. I just don't want to damage the interior. I want to clean it without stripping off the finish. Yes, there is a finish and I don't want to lose it.

Anyone know about these interiors? It looks like it's drying up so I need to clean and condition soon. Rant over.

By the way, I spot tested meguires cleaner /conditioner. I got the combo by mistake. It clearly seemed to dry and crack the leather.

This is the Jaguar recommendation for leather care:

Attachment 65545

(click on the image to enlarge it)


Here is the branded Jaguar Leather Cleaner mentioned in the text:

Attachment 65546

(click on the image to enlarge it)


It is manufactured for Jaguar by Autoglym in the UK.

Graham

Thanks for this. I suspected a damp cloth is usually best.

If the finished leather can still dry out (can it?) don't we still need to condition it?

Does the Jaguar cleaner also condition?

It seems like the dealers do not sell the Jaguar leather cleaner and the autoglyme company that makes it does not sell into the U.S. market.

I guess I'm back to guessing. Anyone have a recommendation that understands that their is a topcoat over the leather that must not be removed?

Maybe all the leather cleaners are supposed to allow for the top layer but they sure don't advertise like it.

Don't mean to overwater my own thread, but after doing a lot of searching I bought the Sonus (sp?) leather cleaner and conditioner on Amazon.

This cleaner was mentioned by people on this forum and... it was the only one in its marketing BS actually mentioned that the leather is coated with a finish that must not be destroyed.

This has been a great mystery to me, too, so I am very interested in the discussion here.

One of the most famous names in leather for prestige vehicles was Connolly.

Although this company has ceased trading, two former employees in their restoration department set up Leathercare Renovations.

Leathercare Renovations

Their website has some interesting information on the current sealed, surface coated leathers and how these must be maintained very differently from the old aniline leather.

Graham

Thanks, GGG. I just look at that site, and my head is spinning. I don't want to be "interested" to continue my rant. I have read all I want to about hide food, "nourishing" my car seat, etc., etc. I'm not even sure who those guys are -- they were Connolly but now they are selling things?

I just want to know what product will not damage my 2004 X350 when used properly. I also want to know how not to dry the car seats out -- if that can happen.

If anyone can explain these issues in three to four sentences that would be a wonderful thing.

OK, so my fears have been realized. I tested the Sonus cleaner out on various areas around the dashboard and front seat. No problems. It lifted some dirt from the side bolster and left the seat undamaged.

I gained a little bit of confidence that no damage Would occur. I applied some more cleaner to my cloth and tried the steering wheel which really didn't need cleaning.

My 2004 xjr has a wooden steering wheel with leather at opposite ends where the hub connects. The leather has a thin shiny veneer looking finish that looks differnt from the rest of the interior.

After application of the Sonus leather cleaner, the finish on the steering wheel completely stripped off. Gone. That side of the wheel is now dull and some of the simulated grain is even removed.

Since the other side is intact I can compare it. It is still shiny and grippy

The stripped side is slippery. Great. I'll never notice this. Right.

I am so frustrated. This was exactly what I wanted to avoid. How can no one else have had this issue? Should we be using gentle soap and distilled water? Are these leather cleaners a big scam?

Here is a link to an exchange on Ferrari chat about these same issues. Maybe other readers will find it useful.

Caring for leather seats...my personal experiences! - FerrariChat.com

Another thought I have had is that the reason the auto manufacturers don't tell us how to care for our urethane-coated seats (presuming they are coated with something) is that they don't want to admit that they are coated and that the leather grain is not real but stamped on or painted on.

My personal opinion is that they should tell us exactly what they are and what to use. The recommended cleaner is not available here. It is remarkable that such expensive products come with so little direction for their care. The companies that make the products have incentive to confuse us even more to sell their miracle potions.

Once you cut through the protective layer of urethane or whatever, you WILL need to figure out how to treat the "leather." Sometimes you can't get it looking like it is supposed to like what happened to me on my previous car.