Leather shrinkage........... | FerrariChat

Leather shrinkage...........

Discussion in 'California/Portofino/Roma' started by whatheheck, Dec 29, 2020.

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  1. whatheheck

    whatheheck F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Mar 27, 2006
    4,138
    Seattle, Wa
    Full Name:
    Dan L.
    Myself coming from 360 Spider, then F430 Spider, now 2016 Cali T = I am seeing the big improvements in build quality, increased horsepower & torque, more features and technology applied.

    I love my 2016 Pozzi Blue Cali T.
    I love the body style. I get so many compliments and thumbs up.

    So much fun to drive. In the 7 months I’ve owned it I already put in 7K miles.

    My only complaint is the same as others that owns all models of Ferrari. Leather shrinkage.

    I now have leather shrinkage on the dashboard. And I condition my leather often and put a windshield sun screen when its hot out, and dang dashboard leather still shrinks. Ugh!

    You'd think after building cars for so many years Ferrari would learn by now and extend the leather edges a good inch or two and tuck it in along the edge and corners to account for leather shrinkage. But noooooooooooo.

    I did a lot of reading and I guess you cant stretch the leather back so I guess applying leather touch up dye / paint is the only option I have to make it less visible.

    Other than recovering the entire dash anyone else have any recommendations?

    Many thanks in advance.

    Dan

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  2. artsd

    artsd Formula Junior
    Owner

    May 6, 2009
    280
    Full Name:
    Art
    Thanks for pics Dan. Sorry this happened. I had a 360 whose dash leather looked pretty good except for defroster vent popping. Still had straight seams and wasn’t wavy or pulled away like that. I am just starting to look at early Calis (not T) so good to know what to keep an eye out for.
     
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  3. artsd

    artsd Formula Junior
    Owner

    May 6, 2009
    280
    Full Name:
    Art
    I looked at a 30k mile 2012 Cali today (well actually my sister looked at it for me and then sent me the pictures) and there was no seam pulling but there was a little wavy action going on the top of the dash between the center and the steering wheel hump. The leather on top of the retractable rollbars was also wavy. Other than that, leather looks good.

    Every single button was beyond sticky though. Ugh.
     
  4. jblakesmith_gt

    jblakesmith_gt Karting

    Jan 12, 2020
    79
    Sorry to hear, but seems pretty common on these cars. It amazes me that cars costing this much can't seem to correct or care to correct simple sticky buttons, leather, engine mounts, etc... BTW, what kind of conditioner does everyone use? I've got a bit of waves atop one of the center vents and the piece atop roll bars are coming a bit loose on one end. Thanks.

    Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
     
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  5. adabbagh

    adabbagh Rookie

    Oct 24, 2020
    8
    Full Name:
    Ahmad
    Some detail shops can correct those leather issues.
     
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  6. whatheheck

    whatheheck F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Mar 27, 2006
    4,138
    Seattle, Wa
    Full Name:
    Dan L.
    I have a bunch that I use and they are all good.

    I use Lexol leather cleaner, then leather conditioner, Griots Garage leather care, Chamberlains Leather Milk, etc.
     
  7. jblakesmith_gt

    jblakesmith_gt Karting

    Jan 12, 2020
    79
    Thanks for the input. I already have some lexol cleaner and conditioner, along with maguire 2 in 1. May try them soon. I think I mainly need a conditioner as the leather appears very clean. Thanks again.

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  8. Akajak1

    Akajak1 Karting

    Jun 24, 2020
    82
    UK
    Sorry to hear about your leather issues. Is the main problem a hot climate ?


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  9. jblakesmith_gt

    jblakesmith_gt Karting

    Jan 12, 2020
    79
    Very minor, but I'm a perfectionist. Lol. I just bought, but the car is like new, less than 10k miles, and always garage kept in Atlanta GA area. I'm sure weather is always a factor, but I'm guessing this happens to some extent to all ferraris being how well the rest of the car looks and the inputs from this forum and dealers. We can only maintain, prevent, and hope for the best.

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  10. XSpeed

    XSpeed Formula Junior

    Jan 6, 2019
    408
    Full Name:
    SX
    Do you guys use some leather care kit to protect the leather parts against UV and to moisturize them? I think it prevents shrinkage, too.
     
  11. drcollie

    drcollie Karting

    Dec 15, 2013
    111
    I'm in the leather business and conditioners and the like won't help in these instances, what is happening is too much heat is in the cabin and the glue is releasing that holds the leather to the dash and panels. The inside of the car in can heat from 130 to 170 degrees on a hot summer day and the glue is softening, allowing the leather to de-tension and gap (aka your "shrinkage"). This same thing happens on Porsche 911's on the door panels and they warp badly.

    The fix is to remove the panel and take them to a high end auto re-upholstery shop where they can remove the leather and possible save it for re-gluing. If not, they can usually match it. Don't try fillers or markes into the gaps, you'll just make an unsightly mess of it all.

    How to prevent? Well, if you are going to park your car in the sun, leave your windows cracked a couple of inches which a 5 cm open will help the interior heat by 28 degrees F reduction on a 98 degree day. I would also use a windshield reflector and a dash protector to further reduce the heat. Better idea is to always park in the shade and sill keep those windows open a bit.
     
  12. jblakesmith_gt

    jblakesmith_gt Karting

    Jan 12, 2020
    79
    Thank you for your detailed response. Much appreciated. Although it's the heat, do you recommend a particular conditioner? I've got a custom windshield shade from Amazon and plan to tint the remaining windows. I live in middle ga, so hot here in the summer. Other than driving with air conditioning on, the other sun exposure is if I drive to work it will stay parked during the day with solar loading. I just bought my cali30 about a month ago. Thanks again for the tips in these "parked" scenarios and take care.

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  13. drcollie

    drcollie Karting

    Dec 15, 2013
    111
    I use professional grade leather care products on my car leather interiors, and always hesitate to mix business with pleasure since it can appear I am shilling. I prefer rather than naming a brand to just say don't use one-step products or anything you find at Wal mart / Target / Autozone. Better leather kits are going to run $ 50 and up. At a minimum you need a cleaner first, then a conditioner. In high temp, humid climes renew every 4 months.

    Try to keep those interiors cool in the summer - that's going to keep that glue intact that is holding the leather to the surface panels.
     
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  14. Il Co-Pilota

    Il Co-Pilota F1 Veteran

    May 29, 2019
    6,023
    Hopefully some place nice.
    Full Name:
    A.B
    I would strongly advise you to think twice about any advice given by drcollie. After this thread, his credibility is not worth much
    https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/price-speculation-on-2019-portofinos-for-1st-quarter-2021.632778/page-2#post-147643798
    He does not own a Ferrari, so he has no experience when it comes to treating the leather. We don't know if all his advice is just stuff pulled from a hat.
     
  15. rbellezza

    rbellezza F1 Rookie

    Jun 18, 2008
    2,792
    Henderson, NV
    Full Name:
    Roberto Bellezza
    Unfortunately you can not leave these cars under the sun at all, unless you have a dash cover. Sad indeed.
     
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  16. Mafiaboy1975

    Mafiaboy1975 Formula Junior

    Aug 10, 2019
    258
    South Africa
    Full Name:
    Mick
    I live in South Africa and it gets proper hot here...

    I use a sun shield on the windscreen and always leave the windows open a bit to let heat out.

    I also use Swisvax on my leather. The cleaner and the milk ...so far so good... knock on wood the dash and leather is ok.

    I really like Swisvax.. think it’s the new name for colorlock. I re-did my bolster with the dye too. Looks brand new... you have to use a air brush though to get it perfect and smooth to match the original leather.

    Hope that helps ...




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