I recently bought my Max and it has leather interior. I have never owned a car with leather before and have read different posts about how to care for it.

What is the best product to use? Should I buy separate cleaner and conditioner or get both in one bottle (ie Meguiars)? Is the leather in the '02 Max more of a stiff, grainy leather? That's what mine feels like, although it looks new (the car only has 36,000 miles). I ask because I have friends that have leather in their cars and their leather feels softer (None of them have a Max though).

Any input on products or care techniques would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

Buy the Lexol interior kit from here: http://www.properautocare.com/
It comes with Lexol cleaner, Lexol conditioner, and Vinylex for the plastics/vinyl/rubber.
Those are GREAT products to use.

 

The leather is stiff because it requires conditioning. Zymol leather cleaner and conditioner work very well. Also, there is always the best....leatherique (but its a tad time consuming)

 

For cleaning, I've never had good luck with Lexol cleaner. In fact, I have almost a half gallon of it sitting in my shop and its been there for a couple of years now, untouched. I use Scrubby Bubbles (pretty much my all purpose interior cleaner), which is a greenish can of foaming cleaner that is usually used for bathrooms and such, with a green scrubby pad. I spray the entire seat down real good, then lightly scrub with the scrubby and wipe off with a towel.

For conditioner, I would suggest Lexol, but I've heard good things about Leatherique.

 

Leatherique, I just ordered that yesterday, I can't wait to try it
BTW, here is a link shows you how to use it http://forums.mbworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=19805

 

You will need to have some trash bags and a sunny day for it to work best.

 

When ordering Leatherique, do their leather colors match up pretty well with most leather seats? For example, will using beige Leatherique on my tan leather change the color at all if it doesn't match exacty, or is it more of a guideline so you don't use say, black Leatherique on a tan or gray interior?

Also, does anyone know what the best kit (size) is for a typical sedan like the Maxima/I30 so that there is enough product to do the entire vehicle? Thanks.

 

Cleaning: water & microfiber cloth (I bought a pack of 6 from Costco, which it says for kitchen and bathroom).

Conditioning: Aerospace protectant 303 every car wash & Lexol every 6 months or so.

 

Another thing that can be used to clean leather is.....Woolite. Sounds strange but it's highly effective.