# Range Rover Leather HELP?



## LXI 87 (Aug 29, 2007)

Hi recently purchased a Range Rover with Ivory leather and would really like to keep it in top notch. It is a Vouge SE which comes with Windsor leather much softer than the Oxford leather that all others come with. 

Would just like some advice on products for cleaning and protecting, Looked at 3M ScotchGuard bit it says it is not for Car interiors? Is this true if so what other protectors are there on the market that actually do what they say they do?

Cheers


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## Belleair302 (May 9, 2007)

protecting the leather is partly down to you and what you wear / wet or dry clothes / clean or not so clean.

Leather is pretty durable so keep it well conditioned every 6-8 weeks is fair and Gliptone cleaner and conditioner re what many people swear by.


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## judyb (Sep 7, 2007)

Scotchgard cannot be used on leather which is why a water based leather protector was developed.


You need to use a good quality water based foam leather cleaner. With light coloured leather dye transfer from clothing can be a problem although using a good quality leather protector will help inhibit this.

DO NOT use anything containing oils, waxes or silicones. (Most 'conditioners' contain waxes or oils) and furniture polish contains silicones. Many car cleaners/conditioners also contain oils or waxes so it is not a good idea to use these as they may leave residues on the surface of the leather which attract more dirt which eventually leads to damage of the finish and pigment cracking.

BABY WIPES are the worst thing you can use as they will destroy the finish on your leather. They are very strong alkiline cleaners to neutralise urine (acid) on babys skin so they are not the right thing to use on leather.

Saddle soap is too harsh to use on todays leathers.

A lot of leather wipes contain chemicals which will also destroy the finish or leave residues on the leather which will damage it. They are not cheap in the long run as you would need a lot to clean. A bottle of foam cleaner should do your car about 3-4 times.

Fairy liquid contains more salt these days to get dishes clean and this will break the finish down on your leather. This has been verified by the manufacturers (as with the baby wipes).

You should also follow cleaning with a good water based leather protector (not a conditioner - water conditions leather and conditioning products can cause problems - oils and waxes cannot be replaced by the use of conditioners) which will act like a 'scotchgard' and inhibit dirt and stains from being absorbed and make cleaning easier the next time. 

Dry leather needs rehydrating with water and oils and waxes should not be used as the natural oils do not dry out of leather. Wiping over with a damp cloth or using a maintenance product (cleaner and protector in one) regularly will help to do this. 

It is important to maintain a regular cleaning regime cleaning dirt off the surface regularly and inhibiting the absorption of body oils into the leather with a protector is the best way of doing this.

Using incorrect care products is usually the cause of deterioration in the leather as unfortunately most car care products contain waxes and oils or silicones which do not do the leather any good.

We have just returned from the Society of Leather Technologists and Chemists conference who confirmed that many products on the market will now lead to damage of the finish on the leather so care in choice of product is crucial.

Hope this helps

Judy


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## LXI 87 (Aug 29, 2007)

Oh rite its just i was looking through previous posts and people say that flurocarbons are the best protector?

So what companies actually do a water based protector as i am finding it very hard to actually find out which products contain what? 

I don`t want people to think i haven`t read previous posts before posting but in all previous posts its like a chemistry lesson i understand the basics but i am just looking for some advice on what product to purchase. I don`t have much knowledge into every leather car company and on google the search is very limited all i am looking is a few names that i can actually consider and then make my own mind up on based on the very good advice the likes of judy has given me.


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## TOGWT (Oct 26, 2005)

Leather Master Products : US - .http://www.topoftheline.com 
or UK - http//:www.multimaster.com


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## judyb (Sep 7, 2007)

Multimaster do not exist in the UK any more they have been bought out.
Leather Master and Uniters products are by no means the most advanced that there are on the market although in their heyday about 5 years ago they were the best that there were. There have been big advances since then and much better ranges are out there for repair and restoration.


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## TOGWT (Oct 26, 2005)

judyb said:


> Multimaster do not exist in the UK any more they have been bought out.
> Leather Master and Uniters products are by no means the most advanced that there are on the market although in their heyday about 5 years ago they were the best that there were. There have been big advances since then and much better ranges are out there for repair and restoration.


Would you advise us as to who makes these 'better ranges' ?


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## The Doctor (Sep 11, 2007)

AS Leather Cleaner was approved by Connolly Leather before they went bust. May be an option?


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## dominic84 (Jan 27, 2007)

> Would you advise us as to who makes these 'better ranges' ?


Surely you can guess lol!


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## TOGWT (Oct 26, 2005)

dominic84 said:


> Surely you can guess lol!


This week their site was selling Leather Master's product's (which IMHO are one of the better leather products out there)

It always hard to tell what is stated is an honest opinion or merely advertising? Commercialism brings with it concerns of honesty and true representation. In other words, it's difficult to know what is true when someone is motivated by income, i.e. directly targeted at product sales, more so than an unbiased opinion


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## cornish pixie (Dec 4, 2006)

TOGWT said:


> This week their site was selling Leather Master's product's (which IMHO are one of the better leather products out there)
> 
> It always hard to tell what is stated is an honest opinion or merely advertising? Commercialism brings with it concerns of honesty and true representation. In other words, it's difficult to know what is true when someone is motivated by income, i.e. directly targeted at product sales, more so than an unbiased opinion


As a person that makes his living from detailing and leather care, repair and restoration I would have to endorse Judy's comments. There is quite a lot of "urban legend" and popular mytholody in the car valeting detailing world when it comes to leather care. The simple truth is that most of the leather used in cars will rarely, if ever need to be "conditioned" with an oil based cleaner, due to the way in which the leather is finished.


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