Help!!! Rear Seat Bleached!!

[morrisco]

Ok, I had a mishap last year and haven't decided on how to fix it. A bottle of "Soft Scrub with Bleach" spilled in my backseat. It sat soaking in overnight before I realized it happened (never loan your car to a girlfriend). I haven't figured out how to fix this. My only idea so far is to use Kiwi Leather Dye.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd160/morrisco/KiwiLeatherdye.jpg

I'm hoping someone can give me some other suggestions before I use this dye. I've used it on my boots for years and it is a subtle dye that you brush off after dying. I don't want the bleached portion to end up darker than the rest of my seat(although darker would be better than whiter). Here are some pictures of the seat.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd160/morrisco/S5002941.jpg

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd160/morrisco/S5002943.jpg

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

Mo

[MiniStiGuy]

uhhh test it on a small area and see if you like it or not. I'd suggest using the spot under the seat belt buckle to test because it kinda hides away.

[starhm]

also gives you time to make sure this wont bleed on your clothes while you are sitting there...have you tried this dye on shoes before? i would hate to see you mess up clothes as well.

[morrisco]

I've used it on my Army boots (back when we used to have to shine them). It always worked wonders on badly roughed up leather. The key is to apply the dye, let it dry, then brush it in with a horsehair brush. I'm unsure how it will work on the seats. It is a softer leather. I don't believe it will bleed. Once the dye soaks in and dries, it should be 'dyed' and shouldn't bleed. But, that is a good point. I don't know how it will react. If anyone knows of a better product that has been tested and known to work on the seats- I'm all ears.

 

Thanks,

 

Mo

[OCDetails]

Leather dye is the only thing you can use to repair it. The safest and most accurate to factory thing that you can do is get the Leatherique leather repair kit that matches exactly. You have to send them a scrap of leather that you cut from the bottom of one of your front seats to get the most accurate match, but I would imagine they have a standard dye that matches our seats just fine. Then they mix the dye and send you the kit. It isn't as cheap or as readily available as your shoe dye, but it will match exactly and not rub off on your clothes. If you use this stuff first and it doesn't work, then I don't know whether or not the Leatherique will still work or not, but I would imagine it would. Don't just get their leather conditioner or or something either. Look for the dye kits. They have leather repair products that fix cracks and exactly the kind of thing that you have going on there. Leatherique.org is the site you want to go to. I think it is like thirty bucks for a little bottle of standard dye (not the custom color match), but it will look brand new when you are finished. I've seen it fix way worse stuff than that before. You could probably sell whatever you have left to another LGTer when you are done too.

[morrisco]

Thanks OCD,

 

I visited the Leatherique site. I definitely think this is the way I'm going to go. I noticed that you can either provide a 1" x 1" swatch of the leather; or, you can provide the OEM code. I was wondering if anyone knows what the OEM code is for the 2005 LGT Limited (charcoal, i believe) leather. If anyone knows, this seems to be an easier way than trimming off some leather.

It is $65 for 16oz of custom dye. That is definitely worth it if it fixes the damage.

Thanks again for the site.

Mo

[OCDetails]

Check with a dealership to see if they have the code. They have books of color combinations and samples and I can't imagine that they don't have details about the interior material somewhere in their computers. Where is Opie when you need him?

[rao]

I would take the seat bottom out (a 10 second job) and deliver it to a local auto upholstery shop.

[BDII]

I would take the seat bottom out (a 10 second job) and deliver it to a local auto upholstery shop.

 

 

+1

 

You can have that section replaced for under $200.

 

I would shop around for price!

[Levish]

before taking it to the upholstery shop see what letherique says, its more than likely sufficient to prep and dye that seat

[OCDetails]

+1

 

You can have that section replaced for under $200.

 

I would shop around for price!

 

 

Yeah, but the leather grain won't match and it will very likely not cost less than $200. If you can repair it good as new for less than $100 and still have enough left to sort out any other damage that happens in the future, then that seems like a better value to me.

 

However, calling around the leather upholstery shops is a good idea. Many of them are leatherique distributors and may have a fee for doing the job for you. It might cost as much as getting the supplies and doing it yourself (very likely, in fact) but at least you would know it was done right and may have a warranty against staining your clothes and stuff too. It doesn't sound like you have many passengers in the back seat, but you never know.