Elara

Spray-on Leather-New liquid glycerin worked fine on my seats- didn't even change the color while it was wet. Haven't tried the bars yet, and I think I probably won't because of your above points. I've never had a problem with Neatsfoot oil discoloring any of my saddles, so I may try that eventually (but on a small, hidden spot).

rx8gator

My wife got a Coach leather purse for her birthday, and they sold her THEIR leather conditioner. I have confiscated it because it works great. Its available at any Coach leather store for about $8. Very easy to apply, and makes the black leather look awesome.

MD8

My 2 cents:

Lexol conditioner for the leather. Vinylex for all plastics and vinyl...
(I did a lot of research on this last year when I got my first car with leather (Acura TL). No smell or discoloration issues.

Do not use Armor All on dash, etc. - apparently having a silicone base is really bad (I do not remember the reasons).

Cheers

emailists

I have the black/chapparel interior- Since my car seldom sits in the sun- why do I need a leather conditioner at all?

Also since I got my car a few days ago- when would I first have to start worrying about treating the leather with anything?

mikeb

I use meguiars leather spray once a week

why not start to protect your leather now

don't what till it starts to look bad

Elara

You need at least a leather cleaner occasionally, to get the grime off it. Even though it looks clean, believe me, it isn't. I've cleaned my blact/chapparel seats twice now, and the amount of ickiness I've gotten off them has been crazy.

casual

I have a small black mark on the door panel in my chapparl leather. I've tried the meguiar's leather spray but it hasn't completely come out. Any other products that clean better. I love the color but if it were all black inside I would even see the mark.

RX4+30Years=RX8

When I first got my 8 I Saddle Soaped all of the real leather. Then I use Meguair's Rich Leather Wipes (lint free) with conditioners and aloe to keep them looking good.

The neat thing is that the wipes also take extremely good care of the black plastic, vinyl and interior door pieces that get all those scuff marks on them. I use it for everything black in the car which means everything but the headliner and sun roof cover.

I have used the Saddle soap once a year on every car with leather I have owned for the last 30 years. This is the real key to keeping it soft and preventing cracks. Be prepared for the first time because to properly soap up the leather will take the better part of a day or two if you break for things like food. It is a very labor intensive step because you have to rub it in extremely well for it to last. After that wait at least a week before you do anything else to it.

I have been using the wipes in one form or another for a while as well. I prefer the Meguiar's wipes because they protect from spills and UV and their car care advice hotline is called the Rx Hotline. Sounded to me like it was made for an 8.

RX-Nut

Isnt the piece on the door a faux leather?

Carolina8

Lexol products. They make a cleaner and a conditioner, both of which they say have the proper pH balance.

They made leather care products for horse tack for years, so they should know what they're doing.

As to using saddle soap and oil, I wouldn't suggest it... modern leathers are treated and clear-coated. Saddle soap etc. is designed for "raw" leather.

My $0.02

guy321

I use lard.. Crisco works in a pinch too.

Squidward

eeewww

Nubo

Ha! I've been struggling to get just the right amount of "tack" into the leather steering wheel. I just realized that chicken fat would probably do it :p

bowman

I am trying to decide between leather and cloth. I have some experience with leather products, but never leather upholstry. Most of the leather products that I am familiar with leave a greasy residue.

91vert

I have tried about every leather conditioning product out there over the past 10 years, and I have found that most products I've tried have either left the leather too shiny, too sticky, too slippery, changed the color of my chapparal interior to a brighter orange color, or they smell like ***. Those Meguiar's wipes are the worst when it comes to odor.....UGHHH! I bought a container of those things, used them once, and then threw the whole thing away. Smells like bacon grease mixed with Ralph Lauren Polo cologne or something. Smelled like some pimp was driving my car around for a month or something.

I have found that using "The Tannery" spray is the best. It is super hard to find, but I happened to stumble across some at a local drive through car wash/gas station. I've never seen it at an auto parts store. It comes out of the can in a foam and you just work it around on the leather with your hand.....smearing it into the seams and working it in really good. Let it sit for about 15 minutes or so to soak in, and then wipe off all of the excess with a soft towel. The leather is soft, not sticky, no extra shine to it at all, and it smells great. Makes your car have that wonderful smell of a new leather jacket.....and it seems to last a while too.