Driver seat bolster - Leather redye DIY

My 01 360 with 12K miles had a 2 inch wear on the driver side bolster. I repaired it using color-matched dye and instructions from Bespoke Leather. Very pleased with the results and recommend Bespoke to anyone interested in a leather repair DIY. Bespoke Leathering.com

Detailed application instructions at bottom of page here :
Buy Leather Repair Online (I am in not associated with Bespoke)

STEPS:
1. Pop off the seat belt leather cap and send to Bespoke to have the color matched. Alternatively, send your leather fob cover assuming it is an exact match to your seats. It is worth the wait to have a perfect match. Take a "before shot" to compare your final work to - I forgot to and wish I had.

2. Read the instructions a few times before starting and practice on something other than your seat. I redyed my fob first which was in really rough shape.

3. Before applying the dye, I removed the seat which makes it easier to clean, prep and work with. Bright light is an asset. http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/360-430/247697-360-seat-removal.html

4. With seat removed, be sure to remove the center bottom cushion section which is attached with 2 clips at back of seat (see pics), velcro and a plastic metal clip at front. Remove rear clips first, then seperate the velcro bottom then remove front clip. You will be shocked at the dirt between the center cushion and seat. I found tags, coins and other mystery things here.

5. Clean the seat with dishsoap which makes the biggest difference with the stitching. I then used Leatherique cleaner until no more dirt came out (4 rounds of scrubbing). At this point the seat looked like new except for the bolster. I then used 1800 grit and lightly wet sanded the bolster area. It will look worse than when you started which is part of the healing process.

6. I applied the dye as follows using a sponge first - 3x applicaitons in tough areas - 20% dye/80% - then used airbrush - 3x applications 20% dye/80% water to build up a thin base, then 3x 40%/60% and 2x 50%/50%. Most important step here is to ensure each application is dry before applying the next. Working with the seat in late afternoon sun helped a lot.

7. Use this opportunity to clean the carpets under the seat and reinstall.
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Super cool! Thanks for the post!

 

Great Job!!!

After the Leatherique did you wash thoroughly with soap and water to clean off the oily residue?

 

Thanks. I used the Leatherique soap which did not leave an oily residue. After cleaning and before application the seat had a matte finish. Incredible really for a 12 year old seat.

 

Can you elaborate on removing the bottom seat cushion please?
Are they snaps or "U" clips?

Looks so fantastic and easy that you make mne want to do it

 

See above pic #3 above - underside of cushion. You will see the 2 rear seat u clips (black) on left side of the picture. With your seat installed in the car, you can reach these with your hand an unclip them. Give it a try. Hope this helps!

 

Great write up. Its this type of post that keeps me coming back to FChat!

NOTE: Before pictures on this type of cosmetic DIY are priceless.

 

I used Leatherique and here are my before and after pics.
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Give you an idea..my before pic looked similar to this with mild cracking and a 2 inch section along the seam where the tan color had worn off.
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My concern is the fact these seats are urethane coated. How does the dye penetrate through this coating and actually re-color the leather? Most car seat dyes are actually paint since they cannot get through the urethane. Want proof it is urethane? Put a large drop of water on your seat and you will notice it will not absorb. Instead, it just sits there or beads and runs off. Water canot get through the urethane.

 

If you read, the OP wet sanded the seat.

 

Great post!! Added to the DIY sticky. Thanks for sharing!!

 

2 final pics with everything back together. Looks like new and I will definitely be careful getting in and out of the car not to mess it up.
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wow looks great

 

+1 ... great thread thanks for sharing the process and the results.

 

Fantastic results and look forward to trying it on my own car.
How do you remove the seat belt to complete take out the seat?

 

You will see a leather cap down by where the belt is bolted to the seat. Remove it with a credit card and use a socket set. All the best!

 

Really great job !

 

I am beginning this process with my drivers seat. A couple of questions.

How did you determine the damage was bad enough to dye vs. just cleaning and applying conditioner?

My wear mark does not appear as bad as yours, but I am unsure of the threshold to dye or just condition.

Last question, using the Leatherique Clean and conditioner, did you notice any darkening of the seat color?

Thanks for the feedback!

Deiger

 

Suggest you try leatherique first and stop there if pleased w the outcome. I do use leatherique and it is an excellent product.

 

Same process for the headrests? Both of mine are beginning to crack and I was looking to redo them very soon (within a week) but I'm worried about the embossed Cavallino on the headrest itself. If I strip the dye off, will I lose the Cavallino when I redye?

 

Can you post a pic? Cracking headrest seems odd.

 

Picture #1 is the driver seat and the second one is the passenger seat. Obviously the passenger's is much worse.

Any solutions?

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Interesting... I have not seen that before...like a shattered glass window.

I would take the headrests out and to a leather repair shot. The cracks need to be sanded before a re-dye process.

 

Will give a shop a call tomorrow. Hopefully I can have this done by next week!

Thanks!