Leather Seat Repair - How to Repair a Leather Car Seat

Leather car seats add elegance and give a luxurious feel to the interior of your car. Leather car seats are subjected to several types of damages. It could be a crack, hole or just a tear. When you see such type of damage on the leather car seat, you are bound to feel very upset as it looks unsightly. Let us find out how to repair a leather car seat. Here, we have discussed two different methods of leather seat repair.

Cleaning the Leather Car Seat
Leather cleaning plays an important in all kinds of leather car seat repair work. The success of the leather car seat repair depends on how well the surface is prepared. In most of the leather repair jobs, a dye or leather repair compound is used. These materials can bond well with the leather surface only if the surface is thoroughly cleaned.

In a bucket of water, add some dishwashing liquid soap and use this solution to scrub the surface of the leather using a scouring pad. All the cracks and fissures should be given special attention as they tend to accumulate more dirt. Dry up the surface with a clean piece of cloth. It is followed by another round of cleaning with soapy water and scrub pad. This is done to ensure that no dirt and grime is left on the leather car seat. Now, wipe off all the excess water with a dry towel.

Car seats are exposed to various types of chemicals like silicones. To clean up those chemicals from the leather you should use denatured alcohol. Pour a few drops of alcohol on a clean and dry paper towel and rub it over the damaged area of the leather car seat. When the area is still wet, take another dry towel and wipe off the alcohol. In this way, the seat will be free from any kind of chemicals.

How to Repair Torn Leather Car Seat
Firstly, the car seat needs to be cleaned as we have discussed above. Then, lightly sand the area with the help of a 240 grit sandpaper so that the leather repair compound that will be used can bond well with the leather. You require a piece of under patch leather material to cover up the torn area. Cut it into circular shape and make sure its diameter is slightly larger than than the size of the tear. This is because there should be at least half an inch of overlapping with the leather of the seat on all sides. Place the patch over the damaged area and slide its edges into the torn area.

Then, apply leather glue to the overlapped section of the patch and leather seat. Leave it untouched for some time to cure the glue. If the glue seals up the leather, then you need not worry any more. When the patch and the leather of the seat do not adhere to each other, you have to take the help of a leather repair kit. Chose a kit that has a low heat leather repair compound for this purpose. Apply it in a thin layer over the tear and spread it evenly over the surface. Then, heat the repaired area using a heat gun. Keep the gun at a safe distance so that the leather does not get burned.

When the compound has healed up, lightly wipe off the dried compound with a paper towel damped with alcohol so that any bumps of the compound formed will be smoothened. Let the alcohol dry up first, then start applying the protective coat. A number of coats need to be applied on the repaired area and its surroundings, but each layer of the coat should be thin. After each application, wait until the coat dries up before you re-apply the protective coat. Finish the repair work by applying a leather conditioner on the mended area.

How to Repair Scratches on Leather Car Seat
When the cleaning work is done, then the first step of leather scratch repair is to sand them with sand paper. Take a 240-grit sandpaper and soak it in a soapy water and sand the scratches so that the leather dyes of that part can be removed. Carry out the sanding process until the damaged portion becomes smooth. Clean up the seat with a towel and dry up the car seat using a blow dryer. Then, apply a coat of primer on the entire seat as it will help the dye to bond well with the leather of the car seat and will require lesser amount of dye.

Cover up the car seat except those portions where there are scratches, with a plastic sheet. Choose the color of the leather dye that matches with your car seat leather. Spray it over the scratches from a distance of about 10 to 15 inches. The dye should be applied in the form of thin layer. Let it dry and if you want to speed up the process, then use blow dryer. Continue to apply the dye until all the scratches are filled in with dye. To obtain a uniform look you can spread a thin layer of the dye all over the seats. Keep the seat untouched for some hours before you can start using it all over again.

Now that you know how to repair leather car seat, you can start leather seat repair work any time you want. To make the work look perfect, you should carry out the entire task very patiently. If done hastily, the repair may not last for a long time.