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What Should I Treat The Dashboard N Seats With

2920 Views 7 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  Real1shepherd
Hey all jus wondering what I should use to treat the interior with. Dont want to use Armor All because I heard over time it can cause the leather to crack. Was thinking of using saddle soap.
Thanks.
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Depending on how much money and time you want to spend, Mercedes sells leather treatment but there are good quality leather conditioners you can buy in auto stores. Google Leatherique if you really want to get serious about leather treatment. As far as the dash is concerned, the best thing you can do is get window shades to keep the sun off it. Armorall or treatments like it will evaporate and leave a haze on your windshield.
I use a product made by Connollys out of England. I bought a kit that includes a cleaner and then a leather conditioner.
I learned about it from the guys at Volo Auto Museum when I lived in Chicago. They use it on all their cars.

I dont recall how much it was but I would guess $20-30 and it works wonderfully. I have used it for several years on the leather in my wifes Murano and my Infiniti M30 convertible and they have held up great and the leather is still super soft and no cracks at all.

Mark


Mark
Wow - a question on Benzworld where I think I can actually help. :)

For plastic and vinyl areas - like the dashboard, for instance - the answer kind of depends on what you want. Do you like shiny? Do you prefer your plastics to look darker, with maybe a bit of sheen to them, but not necessarily glistening? Or would you rather use something that leaves no trace at all? I have tried many, many detailing products over the years. Hundreds of them, probably including a dozen or more interior protectants. Here's what I like.

The most versatile, and best bang for the buck, is Vinylex. It's made by the same people who make Lexol leather products. It's in a light blue spray bottle and you can buy it at most major auto parts stores. It'll go on shiny if you're heavy handed with it. Or, you can buff it off after it has set up, and leave more of a satin look. It's even good on tires, weatherstripping, and under the hood.

A good competitor that's a bit harder to find locally is Autoglym Vinyl and Rubber Care. It behaves similarly to Vinylex, but smells like lime life savers. You might have to buy it online, but I've seen it at Pep Boys.

Prefer something with no "look" to it at all? Try Einszett Cockpit Premium. You'll need to order it online, but it's worth getting. All of Einszett's interior products smell great and work very well. It's a mild cleaner with some small amount of UV protection in it. Not as much as Vinylex or Autoglym VRC, but it's "something."

Recently, though, I've found something I like even more than any of them. Mercedes' own "Cabin Care" aerosol is my hands down new favorite. It splits the difference between Vinylex and Einszett - it'll leave a dry, black Mercedes dashboard looking much more dark and new, with NO gloss to it at all. It's really excellent stuff. I'll be buying a LOT more of it. Worked great on my girlfriend's Camry today, too. I think I bought it for about $10/can at the dealer.

Leather is a whole other topic, obviously. The Mercedes foaming spray seems quite good as a one-step cleaner and conditioner, but, I think there are better pure cleaners and conditioners available. Surf City Garage makes a product called "Dash Away" that you can use to clean lightly soiled leather, as well as any other interior area. It's great, and you can get it at Pep Boys.

Many folks seem to swear by Leatherique, but I haven't tried it on heavily soiled leather. I use pretty aggressive stuff on very dirty leather, made by a local company here in NC. Strong stuff, and not for everybody or every car, but man does it clean.

Finally: when cleaning any part of a car, always use the least aggressive thing that will work. Often, people assume that stronger is better, and it's not. Leather can be a little delicate, especially on an older car, so try mild stuff first for cleaning. I've even used a mixture of 10:1 water:Woolite on leather, with pretty good results. You might even be surprised what straight water can clean.

And don't use a Magic Eraser. They have their place, but leather isn't it.

Hope that helps!
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I've always used Lexol cleaner and conditioner, sparingly, on my leather stuffs, and Meguiars #40 vinyl/rubber cleaner/conditioner on my dashboards and such, its done me OK. I also don't do it very often. I hate shiny/greasy stuff.
303 aerospace protectant on vinyl and mb tex. leatherique on leather.
A lot of collectors use Hide Food for Concours competition and for Connolly Leather especially.

Kevin
I use a product made by Connollys out of England. I bought a kit that includes a cleaner and then a leather conditioner.
I learned about it from the guys at Volo Auto Museum when I lived in Chicago. They use it on all their cars.

I dont recall how much it was but I would guess $20-30 and it works wonderfully. I have used it for several years on the leather in my wifes Murano and my Infiniti M30 convertible and they have held up great and the leather is still super soft and no cracks at all.


Mark
Connolly (Hide Food) Hide Care Leather Kit, Connolly Hide Food Leather Kit, Connolly Leather Kit.
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