<ALL> Leather Seat Project [#2]

["Richard F. Viehdorfer" <viehdorfer@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I started by investigating sources for a reconditioning and/or re-dying system
which would suit my needs. Remember, I was looking for something that would
halt the deterioration, feed and clean the leather, and prepare it to take
new color in the form of dye. I also wanted something that would be useful in
repairing minor surface defects and would be relatively easy to use (relative
being the operative word).
I asked around, answered emails, gathered opinions, did a few web searches,
and finally settled on products from a company called Leatherique. For those
of you interested in their products, they have a web site. I considered a
number of other companies, including Leathermaster and Surflex. I am  sure
that I probably would have gotten the same, or similar, products from either
of them. If we are splitting hairs, Surflex is more expensive, and they use a
combination of natural and synthetic ( petroleum based) oils in their
'soffener'. Their dye is also more expensive. As for Leathermaster, I would
have spent more money as well. One thing that I liked, and ultimately proved
to be the reason I chose Leatherique, was the 'endorsement' of many Rolls
Royce and Ferrari owners. They swear by these products, and It's arguable that
Rolls Royce owners are the most persnickety in the world. [I also got a
substantial discount as a BMW Car Club member]. My other reason for choosing
Leatherique, quite frankly, was the condition of my leather. As I have
mentioned, I wanted something that was a  systems approach: prep and clean the
leather and get it ready to accept a top-quality dye. I was intrigued by the
explanation given to me by the Leatherique staff about the 'capillary' action
of their rejuvenator oil and the fact that this product does not  contain any
petroleum derivatives, which can be harmful to the leather, in their opinion.
I have been very unhappy with the cleaning and conditioning action of
virtually any product available on the market, including Connollys and Lexol.
They just don't seem to do anything, in my opinion, and I used them regularly.
It was that fact, coupled with the rapid deterioration of my upholstery, that
led me to look for something else. Kristi at Leatherique was very patient and
helpful, explaining all of the ins and outs of the products, and how they
work. Once I had determined that their products were what I wanted to use, I
sent off a sample of my leather to them. I chose to get a qt of their
Rejuvenator Oil, a qt of the Prestine Clean, both of which are used in the
initial prep and condition. I also got a qt of dye (Carmine Red, apparently)
perfectly matched to my unblemished sample taken from underneath the rear
seat, and a qt
of prep for use after the seats have been conditioned and softened, cleaned
and wet-sanded. Yes I did say wet sanded. I am going to do that, since in
places I already have dye lifting from the seating surfaces. I also want to
provide as good a surface as I can for the new dye to bite into. Of course, I
don't want to turn my expensive leather seats into suede, so adequate
instructions were included in my package. I'll keep you posted...

Ideally, I would think summertime would be a better time to do this, since you
do need heat to help the Rejvenator Oil to work. I elected, since it's fall
and gets cool at night, to remove all of the seats from the car and bring them
in. Removing the seats from an e28 was not difficult; the rear seat backrest
was the most difficult, as the clips that hold the upright setback had
probably not been disturbed for a while. Bentleys is not exactly correct about
the screws; there are two more, besides the ones shown in the photos at the
lower end of each corner. There are two located in the middle of the seat
back, one behind the armrest and one below the armrest, at the bottom. Use a
10 mm socket to remove. The front seat are held in place by four bolts, located
at each corner at the front of the rail; 17 mm socket is what's called for. Make
sure that you seat the socket onto the bolt, or it will spin around and you
could round one off. I'm going to reapply them with a little lock-tite to
keep them from coming adrift. They were quite tight, and I don't want to take
the risk of stripping one of these threaded bolt holes. These seats are heavy!
You might want to have help bringing them in.
Once I had the seats inside, I began with a spray bottle of rejuvenator oil
and started treating the seams and creases before moving on to the larger
seating surfaces, working the oil in with my hands. Leatherique recommends 4
ounces per seat so I started with that. One thing I noticed almost immediately
about these seats is the quality of the leather hide used, and the fact that
virtually EVERY surface on the seat is leather, not just where your butt hits.
This is thick stuff too, not like the leather you get on most new cars today.
As I worked the oil into the leather, I paid particular attention to worn
areas, or areas that appeared to be harder than others. Of particular concern
was the top of the rear seats, the top of the rear arm rest, and the outside
ends of the headrests. I paid particular attention to these areas. Once I had
each seat saturated, I noticed that the oil was either disappearing into the
leather (which is good) or evaporating (this is bad). I decided, on my last
application of oil on each seat, to cover the leather with plastic wrap, and I
used a hair dryer to warm the seat slightly (This is recommended if you can't
leave the seats in the car to bake). Then I left them overnight, in my living
room and dining room, with the heat turned up! 
In my next installment, I will tell you what I found the next morning, how
successful my softening efforts were, and my next course of action. By the
way, I used virtually an entire qt of rejuvenator oil on the seats. This is
now a good time to go detail the interior of the car, especially the area
under the seats and along the console, and in my case, pull the center console
and remove the Sony head unit which has developed an annoying habit of
shutting itself off when I touch it. Stay tuned....

Rick Viehdorfer
The Leather Seat Project

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End of bmw-digest V9 #1248
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