Some of the comments appearing here are becoming a bit boring /
confusing. (Take no offense. This is not personal.) Coming from
someone with 28 years in the high-line car trade, I would recommend
the following: READ YOUR OWNER'S MANUAL. With respect to a
re-trim, I believe I would take the advise of the supplier.
Morgan Motor Co. have access to the very best grades of Connolly
hide, as do Rolls - Royce and Ferrarri. On my last visit, Charlie Styles,
Foreman of the "Trim Shop" suggested that I use a light application of
Connolly Hide Food every month or two as needed, WITHOUT FAIL.
Personally, I sell Land Rover, but my Agency also sell Rolls - Royce.
On his last visit I asked the Rolls District Service Manager some similar
questions about the care of top-grade Connolly. As he is a collector of
vintage Rolls cars himself and has been "in the field" over twenty years,
I'm inclined to trust his opinions. He stated that there had been some
warranty issues lately with cracked leather dashes, and that I should,
WITHOUT FAIL, apply some Connolly Hide Food to my leather surfaces
every couple of months to avoid this. (Sounds familiar, doesn't it?) He
also mentioned the Gliptone product as being a good restorative
product for older leathers. (This was mentioned by Martin Barkel
earlier.)
Some hides available to trimmers are silicone-tanned, have no "open
pores", and would not benefit from anything other than a damp sponge.
European leathers are typically "open pore" while American hides are
typically "sealed". With every new Land Rover we sell, a simple leather
care kit is included, and these vehicles have a lesser grade of Connolly.
Draw your own conclusions...
Willie
NAS 4.0 Litre Plus 8 # 1 ,(R-11953)
MSCC # 9096
At 12:00 PM 3/18/99 -0800, Armando Picciotto wrote:
>When I had the interior of my +4 re-done in leather about a year ago, I
>asked the owner of the upholstery shop what was the best oil/whatever I
>could use to protect it. Believe it or not, he passed up the opportunity to
>sell me some expensive spread and told me, without hesitation, that the best
>thing you can do to leather upholstery is to leave it alone. He then
>proceeded to show me a flier from his leather supplier that pretty much said
>the same thing. As a matter of fact, the flier insisted that ANY gunk you
>put on leather harms it in some way or another, some more than others.
>Supposedly, you don't want to interfere at all with the natural oils that
>are already in the leather to begin with. So, I've resisted all temptations
>to apply those lovely smelling, great sounding concoctions and so far so
>good, but it's only been a bit over a year...
>
>Armando Picciotto
>'63 +4
>
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