Leather care advice from our Chemists

A couple of years ago we sat down with some specialised industrial chemists who have worked in the leather manufacture and care industry for over 35+ years. They were a lot smarter than us (not that hard really) in understanding what the ideal product is for maintaining the leather surfaces in cars. When researching what was being used currently, we sadly found a variety of products that simply were not suitable for the current auto leather.

For the reason of dollars rather than sense, nearly all the array of products contained oils, silicones, paraffins, waxes, petroleum distillates, or a lethal concoction of these. All of which ARE NOT SUITABLE FOR POLYURETHANE (PU) COATED LEATHER, as used in nearly every-car since the mid 1980's. If used on a regular basis they can damage the PU top coat of the leather. Most actually do the opposite of what they claim, by damaging the coating, and making it vulnerable to accelerated wear and even de-laminating. So it initially feels nice and soft on the outside, but it is being killed by the products permeating into the coating and disrupting the structure. So, let's explain the dramas you can face with these 'leather care' products.