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Cleaning Leather/Cloth Interiors

130 messages,  Last post on Aug 01, 2012 at 3:18 PM

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What is this discussion about? Interior

Messages Page 10 of 13

#91 of 130 Alcantara Seats by mirde98

Jun 12, 2007 (9:45 am)

Hello there. I have a 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer SE with a combination of Alcantara fabric and vinyl sides. I've look for Alcantara cleaners but no luck. All other products will damage Alcantara. What can i use? Thanks!!!!

#92 of 130 Re: Alcantara Seats [mirde98] by tallman1

Jun 12, 2007 (10:16 am)

Replying to: mirde98 (Jun 12, 2007 9:45 am)
I've never heard of Alcantara but a quick search gave me this: world.alcantara.com
 
There is a section that talks about maintenance and stain removal. You can read my previous posts about my favorite interior cleaner. I have no idea if it will damage the Alcantara but you can call and find out.

#93 of 130 Re: Alcantara Seats [tallman1] by mirde98

Jun 12, 2007 (6:36 pm)

Replying to: tallman1 (Jun 12, 2007 10:16 am)
Thanks alot for the link. Very good. Yeah Alcantara is used on some luxury vehicles and high performance cars like Mitsubishi Evolution for example. It came on the Special Edition version on the 06 Lancer. I used a damp clean towel and let it dry. I though i had to use some special cleaner.... since Alcantara is suede like, cleaners like Tuff Stuff will damage Alcantara/Suede fabrics.

#94 of 130 water stains by gmar2

Jul 30, 2007 (7:44 pm)

I have a 01 Expedtion with cloth seats. I have water stains on them, mostly from rain when the door is open. I have tried all kinds of cleaners but nothing works. I talked to a Ford dealer and they admitted they have a problem with water stains on cloth seats. Has anyone run across this and removed the stains? Thanks for the help.

#95 of 130 Options for protecting new cloth interior? by gypsystar

Aug 27, 2007 (9:22 pm)

Hi, I just bought a '07 Santa Fe SE AWD with light gray cloth interior. Unfortunately, I didn't realize how "light" the gray on the seats and carpet was until I brought it home. I don't have kids or pets, but I still eat, drink, etc in my car and am bound to drop or spill something several times while I own this car. Thus, I've come up with a few ideas about how to approach this. If anyone has any information, ideas or recommendations, it would be greatly appreciated.
 
1) Buying a can of scotch guard and spraying seats, carpets, and all parts of my cloth interior (I've actually already done this, but the question is whether I need to do something more).
 
2) Going to the dealer and having them apply a fabric protector It has a 5 yr warranty; if there is a stain that I can't remove, they will either get it out or replace the fabric as necessary. This basically sounds like an insurance policy to me. And, frankly, it would buy me piece of mind to spill and drop as much as I wanted. I've talked to people at 3 different dealers and have gotten quotes between $300 - $500. They each offer a different product: Xzilon, Resistol, and another. So basically, my question is: should I do this, if so, what are the best products and what's a good price?
 
3) Re-dye the cloth and carpet a darker (charcoal gray) color. Is this possible? Does anyone know if this works? I would really like the seats to be darker. It seems like it would make things a lot easier.
 
4) Getting seat covers - I have side air bags and Hyundai does not recommend that I cover the seats. I have found places that make custom seat covers and claim that they are compatible with airbags, but Hyundai recommended not to do it and it may not be a good idea to play around with something like that.
 
Thanks much for any thoughts, ideas or comments

#96 of 130 Re: Options for protecting new cloth interior? [gypsystar] by tallman1

Aug 27, 2007 (9:46 pm)

Replying to: gypsystar (Aug 27, 2007 9:22 pm)
I think the Scotch Guard was a good idea but I haven't used it in years so I can't say. I thought they had to reformulate it a few years ago.
 
I've never heard anyone say the dealer fabric protectant is a good investment, except for the dealers, of course.
 
I have no idea about dying it a darker shade. You are far braver than me if you choose to go this route.
 
I've heard about the danger with seat covers. I guess you would have to see what they cover so that you would know if the air bag was available to deploy.
 
I may sound like a broken record to some, but you can search past messages from me here about how great the Interior Cleaner from Griot's Garage is. My son drives my old 95 Accord with the tan/beige interior and I was amazed how well this stuff works. You have to use the brush on tough stains (you can buy a kit that includes one but you can use any brush) and I haven't found too many stains that it can't get out... in fact, none on my Accord but a friend who NEVER cleaned her minivan had a couple that were very tough.

#97 of 130 Re: does anyone know..? - leather seats maintenance service providers [mmkat] by fibrenew

Sep 12, 2007 (3:08 pm)

Replying to: mmkat (Apr 14, 2007 8:13 am)
I just started with edmunds so i saw you add I own a company called Fibrenew.com check it out..........we are located all over the earth.i am located in nyc spread the word about fibrenew..........

#98 of 130 Re: Options for protecting new cloth interior? [gypsystar] by jabrams235

Nov 06, 2007 (5:11 am)

Replying to: gypsystar (Aug 27, 2007 9:22 pm)
I have the very same question -- am about to buy a Rav4 and don't want to spend $1500+ on leather just to avoid stains. Did you ever get a satisfactory answer to your question? Can you offer any recommendations on where to look for seat covers and what kind make sense (safety, comfort, aesthetics, etc.)?

#99 of 130 Im new here by thursty_turtle

Dec 14, 2007 (3:54 am)

Hello all,I might be in the wrong place but i was wondering if anybody could tell me if there is a company that makes exact replicas of original seat covers for cars any help is greatly appreciated thank you

#100 of 130 Re: Im new here [thursty_turtle] by jabrams235

Dec 14, 2007 (5:23 pm)

Replying to: thursty_turtle (Dec 14, 2007 3:54 am)
Not sure about exact replicas, but CoverKing makes a number of different seat covers. I understand from my dealer that the Rav4 (and perhaps many other cars) have airbags inside the seats and that one has to be very careful about selecting covers that don't interfere with the deployment of the airbags.

Messages Page 10 of 13

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