jlbsam

Hi all. hope someone has some ideas on what to do with the driver seat in my 07. the "leather" is very shiny compared to the pass. seat, which has hardly been sat in. Is there anything that can be done to get my seat to look like the other seat? (short of buy two new seat covers)

Corvette_Ed

What do you mean by "shiny?" Pics would be helpful.

If I'm guessing correctly, and the leather on your driver's seat has been polished by butt friction of sliding in and out (as well as around) on the seat, no, there's nothing that you can do. If the leather is just dirty, then yes, you can use some elbow grease and a good cleaner to remove the sheen.

Keep in mind that stock seat skins are plastic-coated leather, so leather cleaners and other leather-specific products will do nothing but smear on them, and then will get on your clothes.

jackjohnson_218

You're a sweaty beast.

jlbsam

here's a photo of each seat.
1st one is the pass. seat, next one is my seat

Corvette_Ed

That looks to me like the seat is just in need of a good scrubbing.

919cw313

It's shiny because it's dirty. I've used the Leatherique system on real leather seats with great results. Supposedly it works on the vinyleather **** we have in our cars but I have no personal experience.

jlbsam

so the plastic coating is dirty?

Corvette_Ed

Yes, and very much so. What you have is what looks like several years of dirt and sweat that have been butt-polished onto the surface of the seat.

jlbsam

and recommendation on what to clean it with?

Corvette_Ed

Honestly, if it were me, I'd pull the seat, then pull the seat base out and remove the skin from the base. Then I'd use a diluted mix of Simple Green and a soft brush on the seat skin. Soak first, then scrub.

It might sound like a lot of effort, but it's really not that hard or time-consuming to pull the seat, then pull the base off.

owc6

A damp cloth and a drop (or less) of dish detergent (or other mild soap) is a good way to to clean it. "Rinse" with several applications of damp only cloth to make sure to get all the soap removed.

Make sure your cloth is only damp not wet throughout the process. It may take a bit of elbow grease, but this is safe, and will remove the sheen as well as clean effectively.

Cherokee Nation

Try a damp cloth with some dawn soap.

owc6

I forgot to mention, on dirty Cashmere stitching, you can use a Q-tip dipped in Hydrogen Peroxide (3% in the brown bottle). Makes the stitching look new.

Turbo6TA

Your seat bottom has lots of creases in it and it's shiny.

Do like I did .... Ordered a new driver's side seat bottom cover from GM and installed it myself.

While I was at it, I also installed a 'heavy duty' seat bottom foam I purchased from:
http://www.shop.djmotorsportaccessor...8&categoryId=1

Now both seats look exactly the same.

S.C. vette

and start using Lexol leather products ASAP

Corvette_Ed

Leather cleaners/conditioners do not work on plastic-coated leather.

S.C. vette

Corvette_Ed

40+ years of experience.

Also simple logic. The plastic prevents the solution from reaching the leather, thus it has no effect.

S.C. vette

Turbo6TA

Disclaimer ... I am no upholstery expert
__________________________

With that said, here are my thoughts on all of this:

The seats in the C6 are partially covered in leather, while other sections of the seat are covered in vinyl, so what works on part of the seat may not work on other sections of the seat.

On the sections covered in vinyl, a strong cleaner like Simple Green should clean it up real good. On the sections covered in leather, cleaners and conditioners made for real leather would be your best bet.

A product that softens and conditions leather is really needed to keep the leather soft and supple ... however vinyl (plastic) just can't soak up these conditioners like real leather, and would not benifit from it.

Bottom line for the OP .... His driver's seat bottom cover is cracked, worn, shiny, and basically looks like **** in comparison to the passenger's seat bottom .... Best fix is just to replace that old ugly seat cover with a new one from GM (not expensive either).

.