Auto Body Shop Tips for Maintenance of Leather Car Seats

Auto body shops always give their customer some tips in order to make them able to keep the integrity of their vehicles for a long time. One of the components that auto body shops give pieces of advice about is the seats of the vehicles. A tear, a hole or crack in the leather seat of the vehicle will make it look bad. Some people think that they need new upholstery as these damages can’t be fixed.

Of course the best solution is to take your vehicle to an auto body repair shop and let it deal with your damages but what if you don’t have enough money? Now, it is the time for the tips. Auto body shops offer many tips on how to fix and maintain the leather car seats. These tips are approved and reviewed by experts in the field so they are safe to apply. 

1. How to fix tears?
Follow the following steps to fix any tears.
• Choose the best repair kit. The color should match the leather color. The best repair kit is the one that is made by the manufacturer of your car. If not, compare the different kits until you find the best one.
• Clean the seat with mild soap and a damp rag. Scrub gently to remove crumbs, dust, dirt, and grime. Dry it out or let it to dry for a while.
• If there are any ragged edges around the tear, trim them. Use scissors to trim any edges of the tear that curl outward or any threads that hang from the tears.
• Put a piece of backing cloth inside the tear; slide it under the tear then glue. Leave the glue to dry out and watch out that the glue must be around the edges only.

2. How to apply a patch?
The following steps are recommended by auto body shops to apply patches over any kind of damage that you have.
• Choose a perfect patch; the one that matches your seat. The leather that you will choose to patch your seat with must be an exact match.
• The best options are an extra swatch of leather that sometimes came with the car or a piece of the upholstery from under the seat close to the frame.
• If the previous options will not work, choose another piece of leather that has the same texture, dye it to match your seat and use it.
• Make the patch fit the damaged area by cutting it. Use sharp scissors to cut the patch and make it larger than the damaged area.
• Wax the patch to the damaged area and try to hide the wax from being seen.

3. Refinishing the seat with liquid leather:
Choose liquid leather that matches the leather. You can buy it online or from a store and you may find the manufacturing company of the vehicle selling ones that matches your vehicle.  Clean the seat then apply the liquid leather to the tear or the crack with a sponge, let it to work and dry. 

These auto body tips can help extend the life of your vehicle