Ok.. I'm sold on Pinnacle leather care!

[Custom88]

Remember my post a few weeks ago about how the steering wheel on my 2nd gen was starting to lose its dye already and was turning black? Well, I had one last hope of desperation and spent about 10 minutes working the pinnnacle leather care into the steering wheel's leather. I was amazed to see that the wheel was back to be the original color. I'm sold on this product. plus it just smells so good. ;D

Before:


After:

[Aurora40]

Heheh... Was that the stuff I sent you? It's not actually a cleaner. However, it seems to have worked. That would tell me it wasn't the color failing on the leather, but rather some sort of grime on it.

A dedicated leather cleaner would work better/easier, followed by the Pinnacle conditioner.

I totally agree about the smell, I love that stuff!

[Custom88]

wierd part is that I hardly ever touch that part of the wheel. maybe that's why it's dirty. anyways, I wonder if Steven used it on his car if it'd help or not with him, too. It was the sent you sent me but I plan on buying some myself too.

[auroralover]

Where can you buy that stuff?

[95mushroom]

custom88 said:

wierd part is that I hardly ever touch that part of the wheel. maybe that's why it's dirty.

You probably touch the wheel more then you think. What about when you make turns? You typically grab the wheel harder then you normally would.

[kobalt]

unless of course you have a suicide knob!

[betonthis1]

sweet. im going to have to pick that up.

[oldsauroraman1]

Here's a good source for the Pinnacle Leather products along with some other nice items!

www.autogeek.net/leathercare.html

[betonthis1]

i bought some leather cleaner and conditioner but not that brand. it worked really good but too hot to do the whole interior. one of the biggest problems was the back of the front seats. the owner before me had a son who must of kicked and smushed crayons on the back. i got the cleaner and had to work it hard with a plain towel. got it nice and clean, almost new. is there something else you can use to clean it besides a cotton towel without ruining it?

[oldsauroraman1]

Yeah, try the microfiber towels. They seem to work much, much better in my experience. Whay kind of cleaner were you using?

[stevensolds]

hmm, i didnt see this thread before. generally dont look through these subforums. Anyhoo, i cant say for sure if that would work on my wheel. My guess = Probably Not... most of my wheel there isn't even any leather left -- its down to the wood. I even splintered my hand it is that bad. Im pissed..


Glad to see it worked for you Dan.

[95mushroom]

stevensolds said:

wood.

?

You sure there's wood? I thought it was leather wrapped around the foam rubber, around the metal ring...

[Custom88]

95mushroom said:

stevensolds said:

wood.

?

You sure there's wood? I thought it was leather wrapped around the foam rubber, around the metal ring...

it is. It's leather attached to a rubber/foam material, which is wrapped around the metal frame of the wheel. There's nothing woden about it. If it were, the wheel wouldn't give if somebody did impact it in an accident. If it were wood you'd have splinters sticking out of your head.

[stevensolds]

Ok Ok..i exxagerated about the splinter part, but it really looks like wood. And it feels like it too. Maybe wood/foam lol. Whatever it is its gotta go.

[betonthis1]

oldsauroraman1 said:

Yeah, try the microfiber towels. They seem to work much, much better in my experience. Whay kind of cleaner were you using?

yeah i got some microfiber towels. just had to rub it hard to get some stains out. the stuff i got was Meguiar’s Leather Cleaner/Conditioner. it works good. looking at that site you posted, i might get that leather brush. looks pretty good.

[Aurora40]

betonthis1 said:

i bought some leather cleaner and conditioner but not that brand. it worked really good but too hot to do the whole interior. one of the biggest problems was the back of the front seats. the owner before me had a son who must of kicked and smushed crayons on the back. i got the cleaner and had to work it hard with a plain towel. got it nice and clean, almost new. is there something else you can use to clean it besides a cotton towel without ruining it?

If you have really bad stains, like crayon, you may have to use something stronger to remove crayon. A traditional leather cleaner will be somewhat mild as it's mainly for getting dirt out of the leather. You can try a nylon scrub brush, but just be cognizant of what you are doing. You don't want to scuff or damage the leather. All in all, though, leather is pretty tough. A product like Lexol's leather cleaner is nice for decently tough dirt, because it's a soap. It foams up and you can really work it with a brush. I've also had good luck with diluted all-purpose cleaners. Again, just be careful, and only use it on the bad area, and get it off as soon as the stain is gone.

I usually use cotton towels on leather because of the deeper nap.

Edit: Ok, you are using Meg's cleaner/conditioner. This is way too mild. This type of product is more for maintenance cleaning. It's not a strong cleaner at all. If you want store-bought, Meguiar's makes a Rich Leather Aloe Cleaner, which is their only stand-alone cleaner for leather. Also Lexol can often be found locally. Mother's also makes a specific leather cleaner. I'd try a cleaner for leather first to see how that does.

[auroralover]

I usually take a mild solution of Dawn and water, and gently clean with a brush. Then I put two coats of saddle soap on the seats. Works great, smells great. Leather is soft and supple without being slippery. Anybody else try this??

[Aurora40]

Not Dawn, but I do know a lot of people that do this with Woolite. Apparently some manufacturers like Lexus say to use Woolite in the owner's manual.

[oldsauroraman1]

betonthis1 said:

oldsauroraman1 said:

Yeah, try the microfiber towels. They seem to work much, much better in my experience. Whay kind of cleaner were you using?

yeah i got some microfiber towels. just had to rub it hard to get some stains out. the stuff i got was Meguiar’s Leather Cleaner/Conditioner. it works good. looking at that site you posted, i might get that leather brush. looks pretty good.

I'd get the separate products as they work better yet. I've used the Meguiars, it is nice, but, believe me you'll appreciate the separate products.

They have a nice assortment of helpful products there. And from time to time will also send discounts to you via email.

[betonthis1]

aurora40 said:

betonthis1 said:

i bought some leather cleaner and conditioner but not that brand. it worked really good but too hot to do the whole interior. one of the biggest problems was the back of the front seats. the owner before me had a son who must of kicked and smushed crayons on the back. i got the cleaner and had to work it hard with a plain towel. got it nice and clean, almost new. is there something else you can use to clean it besides a cotton towel without ruining it?

If you have really bad stains, like crayon, you may have to use something stronger to remove crayon. A traditional leather cleaner will be somewhat mild as it's mainly for getting dirt out of the leather. You can try a nylon scrub brush, but just be cognizant of what you are doing. You don't want to scuff or damage the leather. All in all, though, leather is pretty tough. A product like Lexol's leather cleaner is nice for decently tough dirt, because it's a soap. It foams up and you can really work it with a brush. I've also had good luck with diluted all-purpose cleaners. Again, just be careful, and only use it on the bad area, and get it off as soon as the stain is gone.

I usually use cotton towels on leather because of the deeper nap.

Edit: Ok, you are using Meg's cleaner/conditioner. This is way too mild. This type of product is more for maintenance cleaning. It's not a strong cleaner at all. If you want store-bought, Meguiar's makes a Rich Leather Aloe Cleaner, which is their only stand-alone cleaner for leather. Also Lexol can often be found locally. Mother's also makes a specific leather cleaner. I'd try a cleaner for leather first to see how that does.

thanks for the info. i actually got the big crayon stain off the back of the seat. the rest of the stains seem just like regular dirt or food stains. im going to the store and check out some of the products you mentioned just to make the job easier. plus it smells so good and makes the leather so soft.