What ruined my leather?

[omgoddard]

Got my truck back from a 2 month stint at the dealership (waiting on parts, tech that couldnt complete the job on time) and this gunk was on my backseat. I cleaned it up best I could but it looks like the leather is damaged/etched.

Any thoughts on what this could have been?

Before and after cleaning it in the pics.

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[Vtur]

What work were done by the dealer? Appears like they may have had stored dirty parts on the seat. Brake fluid maybe?

 

[rharr]

If you don't want to fight the dealer for damage, then i would suggest cleaning the seat with some saddle soap and putting some mink oil on the damage to see if it hides it better.

 

[dlmpsy]

You need to figure out if the finish is ate away, or if it is something stuck to the surface. If it's on the surface, find a good brand leather cleaner and the appropriate brush to help clean the material out of the pores of the leather. If some of the dye is gone, you can buy leather dye specifically for cars, but you never know exactly how good it will match....

The other thing you could do is take it to a place that works with leather in cars, restoration, seats, etc. There was a good place in Winston-Salem, but I forget the name.

 

[omgoddard]

What work were done by the dealer? Appears like they may have had stored dirty parts on the seat. Brake fluid maybe?

They had it for almost 3 weeks replacing the leaking oil cooler.

Hate to throw shade at the tech, but the service advisor was sending me lots of texts about how they couldn't figure out why the tech was taking so long and having issues on the repair. I've since done a one over cleaning the truck and the fender had a scratch, covered in fingerprints, oil, silicone...silicon dripped all over the steering components. SO - my thought is similair to yours, what did they throw in the back seat that fucked up the seat.

 

[OCJosh]

Did the dealership do a walkaround of the vehicle before taking possession from you? If so, did they do one inside as well? If they did and none of the damage was noted, then I would absolutely be down there raising hell because you can show their own people did not see this damage which means THEY did it. If they didn't do a walkaround then good luck, most dealerships will just claim it was there before and it's up to you prove them wrong.

 

[Vtur]

They had it for almost 3 weeks replacing the leaking oil cooler.

Hate to throw shade at the tech, but the service advisor was sending me lots of texts about how they couldn't figure out why the tech was taking so long and having issues on the repair. I've since done a one over cleaning the truck and the fender had a scratch, covered in fingerprints, oil, silicone...silicon dripped all over the steering components. SO - my thought is similair to yours, what did they throw in the back seat that fucked up the seat.

I hear ya. I hates letting anyone working on my vehicles, they always fixed one thing only to damages something else. I nearly got a DUI once because the tech didn't reconnected license plate lights.

 

[chorky]

They had it for almost 3 weeks replacing the leaking oil cooler.

Hate to throw shade at the tech, but the service advisor was sending me lots of texts about how they couldn't figure out why the tech was taking so long and having issues on the repair. I've since done a one over cleaning the truck and the fender had a scratch, covered in fingerprints, oil, silicone...silicon dripped all over the steering components. SO - my thought is similair to yours, what did they throw in the back seat that fucked up the seat.

Harsh reality is people just flat out don't give a . I had issues with a warranty repair as well. Everything functioned but you could tell there was no passion for doing a good job. Every time my dad gets his truck back he always ends up with a new scratch or dent somewhere. It's not just autos. Quality of work and professionalism all around in the US is falling apart.

 

[DBravo]

They had it for almost 3 weeks replacing the leaking oil cooler.

Hate to throw shade at the tech, but the service advisor was sending me lots of texts about how they couldn't figure out why the tech was taking so long and having issues on the repair. I've since done a one over cleaning the truck and the fender had a scratch, covered in fingerprints, oil, silicone...silicon dripped all over the steering components. SO - my thought is similair to yours, what did they throw in the back seat that fucked up the seat.

Hate this kind of thing - some techs care some don't and some are just thrown into the mix without proper training or guidance/mentoring. It's the luck of the draw. If you don't at least send pics to the service manager, nothing will change. I picked up my jeep at the dealer and the next morning, used oil was dripping onto my garage floor. Crawled under and verified it wasn't coming from the drain plug, but the filter housing had obviously not been depressurized and used oil was lying all over the frame and running down the engine. I documented with pictures before I cleaned it up myself - - so that I knew it was done right. When the dealer called me for a survey, I shared with them what happened and asked for a call from the service manager. He called and I told him I was not angry, but i requested that they review the correct procedure with the tech. Haven't had any issues since.

There are a lot of green plumbers, electricians, heating/cooling techs and mechanics coming out of high-priced 1-year training school programs with limited hands-on real world experience - - my 22 yr old included. We need them to replace retiring tradesmen.

 

[jeepers29]

I hear ya. I hates letting anyone working on my vehicles, they always fixed one thing only to damages something else. I nearly got a DUI once because the tech didn't reconnected license plate lights.

Sounds to me, that you almost got a DUI because you were drinking and driving.

 

[MrT]

I have a set of oem black leather covers in the for sale section. It would be easy enough to replace that section. Well it looks like it was deleted, not sure why.

 

[Sandman 4x4]

Got my truck back from a 2 month stint at the dealership (waiting on parts, tech that couldnt complete the job on time) and this gunk was on my backseat. I cleaned it up best I could but it looks like the leather is damaged/etched.

Any thoughts on what this could have been?

Before and after cleaning it in the pics.

Try to clean again using baby oil and micro cloth. Give it a good soaking. Then rub in a circular motion. If it comes as clean as the paint I got on a new leather jacket, you’ll be very satisfied. Good luck! I would still give the dealer some grief over it.

 

[TARHEELKIDD]

It looks like it could be an abrasion. I had that happen to my aftermarket leather seats on my 2014 Silverado. I contacted the company that did the special edition seats, and they sent me the die that was used on the leather. I used the small painting sponge to dab it on. It worked perfectly. I took this route because I was the one that damaged the leather seats. If the dealership did it, I would have pushed them to make it like it was. It is a factory Jeep seat. It should be a simple fix. I would push them to make it right.

 

[JonMN]

Sorry for your seats! While I love my JT, I wish I could get it serviced at my Lexus dealer. I have a minor clicking noise associated (I think) with the driver's side blend door actuator, and stories like this have me thinking of living with it rather than getting it fixed. I hate that feeling!

 

[xcd]

Two thoughts - try chemical guys upholstery cleaner. It may be called multi surface. It’s the clear stuff. Had excellent results with that on white leather and that refused to come clean.
To add to the no techs give a chit. Mostly true but some do. I just picked up my motor home from service. Over $600k motor home and they can’t even wipe the sand they dragged in off the floor and put the cover back on the OBD port they connected to when they tried to fix a lane sense issue they gave up on. Point is : it’s a problem all over, not just here. Fact is : no one cares about your investment more than you do. Do as much of your own work as you are capable of doing.

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