Color coming off leather when cleaning

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chris11le

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Toady I cleaned the Monaco Red leather seats on my '11 G37.

I sprayed on some Ultima Interior Shampoo, let it dwell for a short time (45-60 seconds) then proceeded to scrub lightly with a slightly damp terry cloth towel.

In some spots of the seat I noticed that I would end up with pinkish coloring on the white towel. Ive never had anything on the seats that would be pinkish or red-ish, so Im assuming this is the coloring coming off the seat.

The car is 5 years old and only has 16K miles on it, but Im guessing this is just normal wear through (some areas of the seat are very prone to wearing when getting in and out of the car, as much as Ive tried to prevent it)

The seat doesnt look like its missing any color, at least not yet.

My understanding is that there was a urethane topcoat from the factory and that seems to be worn away and is what is letting the color come out. Is that correct?

If so, is there anything I can do to fix/stop it?

Thanks in advance.

-Chris
 
Do you know the full history of the vehicle? Did you buy the vehicle new? Have any of the seats ever been refinished? It's possible the leather has been refinished with an aftermarket dye kit that is letting color transfer onto your towel while cleaning.
 
I purchased it brand new so for sure the seats weren't refinished (unless the factory did it)

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What type of cleaning methods have you used in the past? Anything aggressive?

If you look closely at areas such as just beneath-under the headrests/headrests/rear of seats in the right light, you may be able to notice a difference in the leather as those areas would be most likely to still have the factory coating.
 
Eldorado2k said:
What type of cleaning methods have you used in the past? Anything aggressive?

If you look closely at areas such as just beneath-under the headrests/headrests/rear of seats in the right light, you may be able to notice a difference in the leather as those areas would be most likely to still have the factory coating.
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Never anything aggressive. It was either leatherique, optimum leather or ultima.

I'll check the other areas tomorrow but the color was coming off around the thigh bolster area but the nearby seat bottom wasn't losing any color. Both areas look the same still

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They'll look the same until you view it in the right light and are sort of looking for it. IMO it's not the end of the world. I wouldn't worry too much about it because even if that's the case, it won't really effect the way it looks or feels, at least in the short term. I'm not sure about long term, but I still wouldn't worry too much.

Next time you test it, spray on the towel and not the seat. Just spray and wipe easy.
 
chris11le said:
Never anything aggressive. It was either leatherique, optimum leather or ultima.
Click to expand...


Leatherique makes a "Strong Cleaner"
Used with a slightly aggressive brush could result in overkill. Just because it's Leatherique, or any other highly regarded brand doesn't mean it can't damage fine automobile leather. Just sayin.

Same goes for a quality microfiber towel. Anyone can rub too aggressively.. Not trying to say you did, but rather we've all done something similar once upon a time.
 
Eldorado2k said:
Leatherique makes a "Strong Cleaner"
Used with a slightly aggressive brush could result in overkill. Just because it's Leatherique, or any other highly regarded brand doesn't mean it can't damage fine automobile leather. Just sayin.

Same goes for a quality microfiber towel. Anyone can rub too aggressively.. Not trying to say you did, but rather we've all done something similar once upon a time.
Click to expand...

I purchased the standard leatherique stuff... Pristine clean and rejuvinator oil

What's done is done, I was just concerned with fixing it if I could or if it's even necessary
Eldorado2k said:
Leatherique makes a "Strong Cleaner"
Used with a slightly aggressive brush could result in overkill. Just because it's Leatherique, or any other highly regarded brand doesn't mean it can't damage fine automobile leather. Just sayin.

Same goes for a quality microfiber towel. Anyone can rub too aggressively.. Not trying to say you did, but rather we've all done something similar once upon a time.
Click to expand...


Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
 
If it makes you feel better, the last time I cleaned my cars leather with a soft brush and Meguiars D181 Leather Cleaner, the same thing happened to me. I had what looked like a bit of color coming off on my towel. Why? I sure as heck don't know... It's never happened before.

View attachment 39774

But my seats still look and feel great.

View attachment 39775

So everything I said, I say from experience. Every bit of it.
 
chris11le said:
I sprayed on some Ultima Interior Shampoo, let it dwell for a short time (45-60 seconds) then proceeded to scrub lightly with a slightly damp terry cloth towel.
Click to expand...

You allowed it to dwell too long. And then scrubbing further made it more aggressive.

Cut the dilution in half with water and spray it onto your brush and scrub. Then wipe immediately.
 
David Fermani said:
You allowed it to dwell too long. And then scrubbing further made it more aggressive.

Cut the dilution in half with water and spray it onto your brush and scrub. Then wipe immediately.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the info.

So just leave the leather alone? Was just worried this will lead to complications sooner or later (probably later from the looks of the other replies)

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Not much you can do besides refinishing at this point. I would just keep it clean and avoid strong cleaners. Personally, after doings deep cleaning the only thing that really needs to be done is a regular wet towel wipedown.
 
David Fermani said:
Not much you can do besides refinishing at this point. I would just keep it clean and avoid strong cleaners. Personally, after doings deep cleaning the only thing that really needs to be done is a regular wet towel wipedown.
Click to expand...

Thanks.

Will I start seeing color come off on clothing, etc?

I treated it with UIGP after the cleaning went awry and noticed there was no coloring coming off on the cloths I was using to buff off the UIGP. Found that to be somewhat encouraging and odd at the same time!
 
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