Color Restoration - Lexus ES350

This simple repair on a 2010 Lexus ES 350 with Light Gray interior was accomplished by:

Cleaning the seat thoroughly with Simple Green cleaner. New dye will not adhere to contaminants in the seat.

Loading the leather dye onto a lint-free paper towel and rubbing into the cracks.

That's honestly about it. Excess dye was buffed out after the final application using a damp paper towel. This took 3 applications, giving plenty of dry time between coats.

Similar results can be achieved using a foam paint brush.

Do you want to touch up the seats in your Lexus? Check us out here:

https://www.seatdoctors.com/lexus-leather-dye

Color Restoration and Car Tire Stain Removal - 2004 Acura TL

This poor car owner had some tires replaced on his 2004 Acura TL, and the tire shop left the tires on the back seat baking in the sun for barely a day. When the tires were removed, rubber stains remained, and the customer despaired.

Fortunately, we have an exact match for Acura's Parchment leather. The customer cleaned the seat as much as possible, but the tire tracks were fairly ingrained. He followed with 4 super light coats of Acura Parchment leather dye using a Preval Sprayer, giving a half hour between coats. 2 hours after the final coat, he buffed it a damp microfiber cloth.

Leather dye works fantastic for damage such as this. If you are looking for advice on how best to tackle a dye transfer like this, rest assured that Seat Doctors leather dye can help restore your leather back to like-new condition.

Color Restoration -- 2008 Ford Fusion Passenger Seat

Believe it or not, this is the same car! The leather color had been stripped from water damage, but the leather was still in good shape.

The seat was cleaned and prepared by first scrubbing with diluted Simple Green water-based cleaner and a Blue Non-Scratch Scotch-Brite pad, then with some diluted Denatured Alcohol and a lint-free paper towel.

The color was matched to the VIN as "Camel Beige", and sprayed on in 6 light coats. A hair dryer was used to quicken drying between coats, using low or no heat.

This seat is ready to be sat on immediately, but will cure fully in about 48 hours. I use a Badger airbrush system, but similar results can be attained using a Preval Spray Gun. 

Need leather dye for your vehicle? Click here to order now!  

Making Custom Leather Dyes

It's been a busy last couple days! I mix the leather dyes as they're ordered. I have over 2,600 formulas and counting! 

Steering Wheel Restoration - Toyota Avalon

This steering wheel was worn and some of the plastic discolored from UV Damage. Here's the process to do this yourself:

• Clean the area to be restored thoroughly. If you're planning on re-dyeing the entire steering wheel, just give the whole thing a very thorough scrub with a Scotch-Brite pad and some water-based cleaner. 
• Prep the steering wheel leather with some denatured alcohol -- this will make the existing finish slightly tacky and ready to accept new leather. Make sure to mask off the surrounding area, as dripping alcohol can discolor plastic, vinyl, or leather that didn't need restoring.
• The steering wheel may need some light sanding with 400 or even 600 grit sandpaper to smooth out any damaged or pitted areas.
• Mask off very thoroughly the areas that won't be receiving new dye.
• The best results will come from either airbrushing new dye or using a Preval sprayer. Some customers have had good success with a paint sponge, but it takes quite a bit more patience.

Please note that if you're wanting to pick up new dye for your steering wheel, it can be very difficult to match if the steering wheel is not the same color as the leather seats, as trim documentation is far less thorough than leather seat documentation. If you do have a matching steering wheel and want to touch it up yourself, navigate to our direct purchase page by Clicking Here, and make sure to note that this is a steering wheel application in the "additional comments" field.