I followed the Esoteric video and now have numerous shiny spots throughout the black leather of my car. The tan leather parts are beautiful. I tried to redo the process, in these spots, but they won't come out. What can take these off and give me a consistent finish like I had before? Image Unavailable, Please Login
Since on the black and not the tan leather I would speculate a re-dye (might contain a lacquer), though hard to tell from the picture. I'd recommend calling or sending Leatherique a note to hear what they would suggest. Much better than the odd speculation (even mine).
I have similar sports on a McLaren pre-owned that I bought so most anxious to hear the recommendations.
I sent an email and Leatherique responded. They have never seen this before. He wants better pictures so I will get the car out this weekend and send them in.
I understood the Shiny spots to be impurities coming out of the leather. The Esoteric video talks about this. I reapplied the rejuvenator multiple times over a 48 hour period of time, probably 6-7 times, and these shiny spots disappeared on my seats.
Finally an update. I have not been able to finish the whole interior but 4right is right. Before emailing updated pictures to Leatherique I tried a few products and techniques. The only one that worked was the Rejuvenator oil soak for 2 days, clean then repeating this a few times. When I posted this question I already did the process 2 times with no luck. So the good news is they are coming off --it is just taking forever. My follow up email to Leatherique confirms this. Now the black portions of my interior are no longer matte, they have a sheen. I don't care though. The finish is consistent and the leather looks good. Give me time to post a picture of the finish product. I hurt my back doing this. The Testarossa interior is tight.
I have been in the leather furniture business for over 30 years now and when I see this what comes to mind is that the leather was not adequately cleaned prior to the application of the conditioner. Not knowing your procedure I am just guessing. Best leather cleaner you can use is quite simply plain Ivory bar soap on a white washcloth, same thing you use in the shower. Not too much soap, not too much water. Be sure to get the soap residue off, then come in with your conditioner of choice. You want to avoid applying leather conditioners over dirt or other contaminants that may be on the seat. I have never seen "impurities coming out of the leather" personally in three decades of selling thousands of pieces of leather upholstery. Just an FYI - Duane C.
I appreciate the info Duane. I followed the directions from the Esoteric detailing video on YouTube. I followed it exactly (prep, application, soak time and heat). The previous owners or detailers definitely put some strange products on this black leather. My goal was preventative work but some times that opens up a can of worms like it did here. I will try your suggestion. It is much easier than what I'm doing now.
It may not, I don't know the chemical makeup of what's already on the seats in your vehicle. Anything silicone based, such as Armor-All, plays havoc with things as silicone permeates not only leather, but woods, and you can't really get it out. Then it causes top-coating issues as evenness of a conditioner. I've been to the tanneries and talked to the people that make the hides, and universally they will say clean with plain soap and water, then come back in with a quality conditioner. Most good leather cleaners are simply diluted soap and water sold to you in a bottle with a fancy label for 10x what they cost to produce. Once someone else (prior owner or detailer, etc.) squirts something else on the hides, then you don't know what it is you are dealing with and it can be difficult to correct. Pamela Villagomez at Leather Solutions International in Asheville NC is one of the "Go To" people in the industry on leather issues, she's pretty much one of the top experts in the field and whom the factories go to when they have an issue. I've seen her correct leather than others say can't be done, though it can be something that has to be done on the reverse side of the hides, meaning they have to come off the upholstery and worked from the backside. If you ever get really stuck with a difficult issue, she's the person to contact. I also use/sell only her products in my business. https://www.damagedleathersolutions.com/ Duane
