Searching for that leather scent ...

My 360 Modena has a distinct leather smell--like a Coach boutique. The leather is in excellent shape, and still smells great. And because it's not the Spider, and also has the leather headliner option, there is ample amount of hide present in the cabin.

So, I went out on a quest to find the best leather conditioner that has that authentic scent the car originally came with. This was not to restore the scent, but more to maintain it. Once your brain has associated a moment with a smell, as in sitting in your Ferrari for the first time, it has made a permanent impression--one that you will never forget. My guess is that most of you reading this will know exactly what I'm talking about.

The first candidate was trusty, old Lexol. It's a fine product and has a decent smell. I first tried it on a beat-up leather chair, and it worked okay. The leather felt more supple, and the scent was acceptable. But it didn't smell like my 360. So, I decided to have another go at it in my F150 Ford truck. The leather on the seats were okay, but could have used a little conditioning. I first started with a rub-down using Lexol's leather cleaner, wiped and buffed it dry, and then applied the conditioner, followed by another buff. It didn't take long to do the bench seat in the front, which is the only leather part other than the steering wheel.

After an hour or so, I took the truck out for a spin to see if I liked the scent better inside a vehicle. I was a little disappointed. The leather felt soft, but had more of a shine to it than before. And I'm not into shine. The 360's leather has more of a matte look to it. And, the scent wasn't what I was looking for. It was okay, but just not the same as the 360's.

So, the next candidate was Griot's Garage Leather Care. It seemed like a fine product, and I'd already seen a lot of positive reviews on this forum about it. I applied it to the chair again to get a feel for how to work it, and more importantly, to examine the scent. This one was closer. Once again, the leather looked and felt better, and didn't quite have the shine of the Lexol treatment. But, about the smell ... it reminds me of the wallet's section at a nice department store. It smells good, and if my 360 originally smelled like that, I would have been happy and applied it in the car. But once again, it wasn't the same scent.

So far, no luck with two fine products. Then I did some Googling and found a reference by some gentlemen from the U.K. who detail Ferraris for a living. They used a product called Insta Finish leather conditioner, and swore by it. So I did some more Googling, found the site, and placed the order. This product was only sold in 1 gallon sizes, and at $60/pop. The shipping wasn't too bad at ~$6, but I suspect it will be a couple of weeks before I get it in the mail. When I do, I'll put it to the test and update this thread with the results.

In the meantime, happy detailing, all you Ferrari-heads!

 

Thanks for the tip. I've just ordered both products and will post a review as soon as they arrive.

 

Not yet--I've just placed the order a couple of hours ago. But you're right in the pun ... This way I can review the most up-to-date products and hopefully help somebody else in the process. Since I live in NC, I can certainly share some Insta Finish (a gallon is a lot of conditioner) with other Ferrari owners here, if it turns out to be what I'm looking for, that is. But, there aren't too many of us out here.

 

Carnut, I couldn't find any bentley hide cream on Google. Maybe it's Connolly hide cream you're referring to?

 

Update on the Connolly Hide Care: Apparently, they used to incorporate animal products into their Hide Food, which is what it was called back then. But not anymore. Their current products use the same lanolin-based stuff as some of the cheaper brands. Plus, their new stuff is supposed to be too thick, difficult to apply, and even harder to get out of the nooks and crannies. So, I've left this one off of my list. But I am excited about the Zaino Z10 that will be arriving shortly. And, the Insta Finish stuff sounds good too, and because I hadn't seen anything on this site about it, I'm keen to be the first to review it (unless of course somebody beats me to that ). Stay tuned for the update on this review, as those products will be arriving within the next two weeks.

 

360racer, have you tried Amazon? Their seller may ship to aus. Also, you can try Google's shopping search (under the More link on their main site). They always come up with a number different vendors. Some of them should be able to ship to your location.

But, you may want to wait until I get the other products mentioned in the mail so I can test them out. After that, I'll update this thread with the results. You may be able to save some trouble and have the unbiased review already done for you.

 

This sounded promising. So I placed an order (Amazon must really love me by now). It wasn't expensive at all--$7.95 + shipping. Of course, before I apply any of this stuff on my baby's leather, I'll try them all out on the old leather chair first, and then the F150. By now, the old leather chair has become very happy--and the F150 truck is feeling a bit confused.

(Don't worry, trusty F150--I'm not selling you ... ever)

 

Update on Zaino Leather in a Bottle: Very easy to apply, and leaves a nice scent. The smell is similar to Griot's--that is, department store wallet section--but a little bit nicer than Griot's. Still, it's not the correct smell that I'm looking for. Maybe Dreaming has a point that the leather smell in the Ferrari isn't from perfumes, but the smell of clean and fresh leather.

Next product to try is Zymol Leather Treat. This stuff smells great out of the bottle. Let's see what it does on the old chair, and then the truck ...

FYI ... None of these products have actually made it to the Ferrari yet. And maybe none of them ever will. The car sits in a garage most of its life, and I don't park it anywhere--it attracts too much attention where I live. So, maybe the leather won't need a lot of conditioning until I find the right product.

 

You shouldn't be sad. Don't most of your cars sit in the garage most of the time? I mean, you can only drive one at-a-time, and you probably don't even drive that one all day.

My car isn't a garage queen. But it does live in the garage. Some people keep their Ferraris in their driveways, so they get a lot more sun than mine does.