Brand New Legacy butt imprints

Speed-Dude

Speed-Dude

New member
Joined
Dec 6, 2008
Messages
275
Reaction score
0
I have a very new 2012 Subaru Legacy with leather seats. It only has about 1100 miles but i've begun to notice the area where my behind rests on the seat to start stretching. Mind you i'm a skinny guy 5'11" and about 155 lbs.

I take care of the seats by using meguiars quik interior detailer every other week as i've read places that conditioner is not totally necessary for new cars? it seems to be finished leather from when i sprinkled a drop of water on it and it just sat there.

I was wondering why this is happening and if it is because i haven't been using a leather conditioner? i tried using meguiars gold class leather cleaner and conditioner liquid and i had problems with it giving a really inconsistent shine where some areas were dark while others were light. I didn't like lexol because it made my seats sticky and i like them being fairly slick. i do however have a sample of pinnacle leather conditioner coming this weekend. Please help?

Driver seat bottom
View attachment 13813

i took pictures of the passenger seat but i can't seem to upload the rest for some reason? is there a better way to add photos lol

also, the crinkles seem to go away slightly when the car sits in the heat for a while
 
Just my opinion, but that doesn't look like normal wear to me, especially because it's really new. I'd take it in to the dealer and check. Have you checked some Subaru forums to see if others are experiencing a similar problem?
 
i think from the last time i tried to look i may have seen something about soft leather. I do know that a lot of people with infinity's seem to have this problem with soft leather stretching?
 
A lot of people complained about this on the new Camaro. Turns out if you are a skinny guy, you put more weight in one area (as opposed to a larger guy who puts weight a little bit more evenly and more distributed over a larger area). This ends up stretching the leather where your butt goes.

You can try to get new seat covers from the dealership, but more than likely they will deny you saying it's normal. (Of course, it isn't normal, car manufacturer's are just using cheap leather covers instead of actual leather seats nowadays)

This has NOTHING to do with leather care.

Btw, I'm 5' 6" and only 130 lbs and I have the same issue on my 2010 Camaro.
 
It's a real bummer to have this and not be able to do anything about it. I guess i'll be switching the driver and passenger seats down the road!

If I do start using a leather conditioner do you think it would help prolong these effects? Or is my routine good enough as it is?
 
Speed-Dude said:
i think from the last time i tried to look i may have seen something about soft leather. I do know that a lot of people with infinity's seem to have this problem with soft leather stretching?
Click to expand...

Yep, I remember people complaining about that on the Infinity fourms when I was looking at Infinity models. If I recall, some got the seats replace under warranty. Have you tried Subaru forums to see how common it is and how the dealer/factory is handling it? How about cars on the dealer lot with leather seats that have a fair number of test drive miles on them? (maybe too many different shaped butts to form a divot ;))
 
Speed-Dude said:
It's a real bummer to have this and not be able to do anything about it. I guess i'll be switching the driver and passenger seats down the road!

If I do start using a leather conditioner do you think it would help prolong these effects? Or is my routine good enough as it is?
Click to expand...

Prolong or prevent?
I think a good generic routine for leather is: weekly, use a damp MF; monthly, use a conditioner (choose a good one, from a reputed brand); yearly, use the Leatherique system.
 
I've heard that if you put a hot damp towel for a few minutes, it will shrink it back to size
 
Speed-Dude said:
If I do start using a leather conditioner do you think it would help prolong these effects? Or is my routine good enough as it is?
Click to expand...

As I said in the post right before you, this has nothing to do with leather care ;) Leather will stretch under weight whether or not it is cleaned and conditioned.
 
RMM said:
Prolong or prevent?
I think a good generic routine for leather is: weekly, use a damp MF; monthly, use a conditioner (choose a good one, from a reputed brand); yearly, use the Leatherique system.
Click to expand...

Oh right I did mean prevent! That's a pretty doable routine I can try that and see how it goes. Should the damp MF be damp with water or a quik interior detailer?

As far as the how damp towel I can try that and see how it fixes it. It does puff back up a bit in the heat.
 
Hey I work at a subaru dealer up in canada. I see this all the time I have used mothers leather cleaner and it helps some... A lot more then the s**t the dealer supplies and there retarded leather protector they sell from first Canadian/ platinum shield as a package to warrent against stains and fading .The leather is soft and they will not do to much other then replace the surface after cleaning it twice and blaming the customer foe not caring for it properly. ( I personaly know this case as its a member of my church and I detail his legacy, his wifes outback and his lexus so I know its bs) the leather is soft and does bunch up. After replacing the seat twice they used aftermarket leather and have had no issues.

Wish you the best in finding a good solution.

Pj Cyr
Lead Detailer at Subaru of Moncton


Sent from my HTC Incredible S using AG Online
 
Also on a side not the hot damp cloth does work to close up/thighten up the leather again. The leather is soft and stretches a lot but can be shrunk with heat.

Pj Cyr
Lead detailer at subaru of moncton

Sent from my HTC Incredible S using AG Online
 
hmm okay well thank you everyone for your help! I will be trying the pinnacle leather conditioner to see how I like it. I'm hoping it doesn't leave a sticky feel to the leather. Otherwise i'll be wiping it down weekly and conditioning monthly hoping the imprints don't get any worse than they already are.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top