Quick Leather Cleaners?

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Desertnate

Active member
Is there such a thing as a quick leather cleaner or possibly a quality leather cleaner which comes in wipes?

I`m now driving a BMW with the M Sport steering wheel and a leather shift nob. The leather on these surfaces is much softer than my previous VW and tends to attract and hold on to grime much easier. This leads to a hunt for a light cleaning product or even some form of leather wipe for a fast cleaning after a week of daily driving or a day of sweaty/grimy hands on the autocross/HPDE track.

I have the McKee`s leather AIO (no longer sold) and it works great, but it`s a thick lotion-like product which lends itself better to deep-cleaning sessions and not a fast, light wipe down to simply remove grime. I also have a package of some BMW-branded leather wipes the dealer gave me in a swag bag after buying the car, but despite working quite well, they are REALLY wet and require a wipe down to remove the excess product.

What do you all use for a fast wipe down to clean soft leather? My interior protectant doesn`t have much cleaning ability, and due to the delicate leather on the steering wheel I`m not sure I want to use APC in any dilution.
 
Desertnate- I just use my Interior QD of choice (differs between vehicles).

I got my niece-in-law some Griot`s Leather AIO and people here thought that was a swell approach...never did hear about her experience with it (if she actually used it..). I`d probably go that route myself if I wanted something one-step. As it is, if things somehow got too dirty for the Interior QD, I just do a quick wipe with Griot`s Interior Cleaner (man is that stuff gentle...barely even hurts the dirt) and then go over it quickly with whatever Leather Stuff I`m using on that vehicle (if said vehicle were yours, I might go over the wheel/shift nob with Leather Doctor`s Draggy Feel, which I use on the S8).
 
Thanks! While looking at the AIO on the Griots site, I also saw they have their "Leather Care Spray" which is described as "Speed Shine for leather". That seems to be exactly along the lines of what I`m after.

You might want to hang on to your supply of Draggy Feel. I just searched the Leather Doctor`s site and unless they re-named Draggy Feel or they are out of stock, it is no longer available.
 
Desertnate said:
You might want to hang on to your supply of Draggy Feel. I just searched the Leather Doctor`s site and unless they re-named Draggy Feel or they are out of stock, it is no longer available.
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Huh, wonder what Roger would have to say about it..

Mine oughta last a lot longer than I will since I only use it on the S8 and I`ve kinda mothballed that car :o
 
I’m a big fan of gyeon leather coating on my steering wheel. Leaves the wheel feeling smooth, but not slippery. Best benefit is that it makes the wheel easy to keep clean. If it gets a little sticky or shiny, I can wipe it down with just a damp MF and it feels smooth and clean again.
I do clean with gyeon leather cleaner about every three months and reapply the leather coat.
 
I`m not terribly OCD about my vehicles, but I truly hate a dirty steering wheel. My favorite light interior detailer is Optimum Opti-Clean, which is safe on any interior surface, including touch screens and instrument lenses but it`s not sold as wipes. I got a container of Meguiar`s QID wipes and store a few in a ziplock sandwich bag in my console. Once they`re removed from the container, they dry almost instantly, so also in the console is a small spray bottle of OOC and a small MF towel. Weekly, I`ll dampen a wipe with the OOC and do the steering wheel and shift knob, often when I`m sitting at a long traffic light. You can just let the OOC dry on its own, which doesn`t take long, or do a quick pass with an MF. Obviously, I`ll replace the wipes when they show dirt, but they`re good for multiple uses when done often. The wheel and shift knob in my DD are both tan leather and still look and feel new.

Bill
 
Desertnate: OT, but what’s your new toy? Anything planned for it? BMWs are how I contribute to keeping the family fed; if you ever have any Q’s feel free to PM me.

On topic, I’m with Accumulator and like an interior QD (Griot`s) for steering wheels and shifters. Though detailing wise I’m hanging in your old family (Audi) vs your new. I`ve got a coworker with a 135 that I turned onto the Griot`s Interior Detailer and he`s commented on how much he likes it.

I`m always afraid with steering wheels. I know it`s "just" leather, but it seems so much easier to make them worse than better...
 
Oneheadlite said:
I`m always afraid with steering wheels. I know it`s "just" leather, but it seems so much easier to make them worse than better...
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My BFF utterly *destroyed* the Steering Wheel Leather on my late father`s A6 4.2 (sold it to her when he passed). Somehow the combo of her hand cream/perspiration/whatever and heat from parking outside made the leather not only crack, but peel! Happened in a *very* short period of time, not talking weeks. Replaced under warranty, but maybe only because I handled it for her (my Audi Dealer likes to keep me happy, might`ve told her to [kiss] off).
 
Oneheadlite said:
Desertnate: OT, but what’s your new toy? Anything planned for it? BMWs are how I contribute to keeping the family fed; if you ever have any Q’s feel free to PM me.
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Thanks! I will certianly keep you in mind. I recently picked up a CPO 2016 435i M Sport with 6MT, Track Handling Package and M Sport Performance Pack. I rambled a bit about it on my blog (https://thecargeek.net/hunting-automotive-unicorns/). I`ve got a full write up on the detailing work in draft right now which I hope to share with everyone here soon. It`s a great car, but the paint was in rough shape.

On topic, I’m with Accumulator and like an interior QD (Griot`s) for steering wheels and shifters. Though detailing wise I’m hanging in your old family (Audi) vs your new. I`ve got a coworker with a 135 that I turned onto the Griot`s Interior Detailer and he`s commented on how much he likes it.

I`m always afraid with steering wheels. I know it`s "just" leather, but it seems so much easier to make them worse than better...
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Thanks for the inputs. As I mentioned before, I`m much more careful with the M Sport steering wheel because the leather is so much softer than my GTI. It shows the dirt an you can feel the grime much easier than my old car. The GTI I wouldn`t think twice about hitting with a mild dilution of APC and then protectant. The leather felt much more robust. The wheel on the new car feels fantastic, but the leather seems more delicate and I don`t want to mess up the wheel simply trying to do a quick removal of sweat and dirt.

I really apprecaiate everyone`s tips and suggestions.
 
I`ll check out your link. Should be a fun car!

If the paint was that bad, how did your interior screens fare? I see too many of those poor cars where the especially the iDrive screen is just hammered. :mellow: I swear it looks like people dry wipe the screens with their beach towel (still full of sand)...
 
Oneheadlite said:
I`ll check out your link. Should be a fun car!

If the paint was that bad, how did your interior screens fare? I see too many of those poor cars where the especially the iDrive screen is just hammered. :mellow: I swear it looks like people dry wipe the screens with their beach towel (still full of sand)...
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The screens are in great shape. I have a feeling the previous owner ran the car though an automatic car wash all the time (paint swirled out really bad), but only vaccumed the interior. There wasn`t any debris inside like you`d find in a totally neglected car, but all the surfaces showed the results of not being touched in a long time...if ever. It was a strange combination of being prestine, i.e. no drink splatters or other messes and trash, but neglected. The edges of the windshield had a heavy film on them, the HUD projector was totally hazed over (I think it doubled in brightness after I cleaned the optics), and I`m still trying to get the rear window totally clean and clear. The first time I took a leather cleaner to the steering wheel and seats my rag turned black. It was pretty gross. I have a feeling I jumped on the car before the dealership could turn their "detailers" loose on it. The good news is after several detailing sessions over the last couple of months, the car looks great!
 
If I need a quick leather cleaner or a spot cleaner I grab my bottle of Leatherique Prestine Clean. Yes many of you will say "but wait...thats designed as a two part system" The answer is you use it as a two part system for a deep cleaning but you can use just the Prestine Clean for quick cleaning. Prestine Clean by itself is a very powerful (yet safe) and versatile all-in-one leather product, meaning that it cleans, conditions, and provides UV protection

Here is an article by Todd Cooperider

https://www.detailedimage.com/Ask-a-Pro/leatherique-prestine-clean-product-review/

I have been using it this way for years on all of my cars with leather interior. Every person that sit in any of my cars always comments on how clean and how great my leather smells.
 
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