Gang - Got a bit of a surprise when I picked up this weekend's customer car, a 2004 F-140 Lightning pickup. The seats are made, mostly, of alcantara - the synthetic suede material. It doesn't look bad - mostly just worn - but still, I'm a bit puzzled by how one goes about cleaning alcantara. Certainly not with leather cleaner or conditioner - I'm afraid it will just get absorbed into the material, and make a mess of everything. My first thought is to brush it thoroughly, vacuum it, and repeat those two steps again. If there are stains, I'm thinking maybe the "headliner trick" of foaming some foamy upholstery cleaner onto a dry MF towel, and then rubbing lightly, may be the solution. Of course, I'm open to ideas. Anyone ever work with this stuff? It is, for what it's worth, light gray in color. Thanks! Edit: I did find TOGWT's posts suggesting the Leather Master stuff, but I don't have any on hand. This upholstery took me by surprise - I'd been led to believe it was leather, but it isn't. Edit 2: JL and I spoke and agreed that perhaps the best solution is to try Woolite and water, in a mild solution, if the Alcantara needs a cleaner on it. Anything stronger and I'm fearful that I'll just ruin it. Still...thought and experience are most welcome. I'm sure I won't be the first to run into this stuff...
Steam vapor is my choice but usually a damp microfiber is all that's needed. Don't get the material too wet nor use too coarse of a brush. It's a durable material but once ruined it's pretty much toast. The Leathermaster textile cleaner is a great choice but as you noted not easy to get in a pinch. 1) Thorough vacuum 2) Lightly brush 3) damp microfiber (microfiber is "activated" when wet) Anthony
I use steam quite a bit, I agree with Anthony, a damp microfiber is all that is needed most of the time. I've had good luck with Woolite diluted about 10:1 also.
if you accidentally get the alcantara material wet..... blot as much as you can with a normal or MF towel, and then use baby powder to suck up the rest, the material will stay soft and plushy this way, so it wont get stiff
So far, the simple brushing seems to be working pretty well. I'll know more in the morning when it's light outside again. Just brushing it so it lays all in one direction goes a long way towards making it look nice, but of course, that'll have to wait until I deliver it. Thanks for the tips guys! I'll put them to work tomorrow morning as I'm finishing up.
Well, the owner of the Lightning was thrilled with it. Pictures in Show and Shine tonight or tomorrow. I ended up mostly just brushing it with a "medium stiff" (if you will) brush to get the loose dirt out. That went a long way towards getting them looking nice. After that, it was simply some foamy upholstery cleaner, sprayed onto a clean MF, and them sort of rub away at it. The towel came up dirty, so I know that it worked to some degree, and the seats certainly looked better. There were a handful of little tiny spot stains that wouldn't come up, but overall, I'm pleased with this approach. Especially since it's a workaround for not having the "right" products to deal with this stuff. I'll be checking out the Leather Master's stuff, it's been on my list for a while now. I was taken by surprise by this Lightning - wasn't expecting alcantara seats in a truck. I'd been led to believe they were leather. Much as I like the look of alcantara, I don't think I'd have it on a vehicle I owned. On a headliner perhaps, but certainly not in a high wear area like a seat or a steering wheel. The owner of the Lightning told me when I delivered the vehicle that Ford sells replacement seat covers for $130 or so each, and he was planning on getting a couple just to have as backups. This is his tow vehicle for his race car, so the truck gets used pretty hard, and the interior showed it.
A-HA! There's the explanation. I had a buddy a few years ago who had a Lightning, and I think it had regular old leather seats. Must have been a 99-02. Is what you're saying just for Lightnings, or does it also apply to other SVT cars? Focus, Cobra...
now for someone like me i wouldn't know what alcantara is, so how does alcantara look like and feel like?? is it very similar to leather or suede?... any pictures guys? to the untrained eye, would they be able to tell the difference? how can you tell the difference? sorry for bothering the thread guys. much apppreciated for the asnwers.
Actually none of the Lightnings came with leather, the 03-04 Cobra are half and half. You could get leather in the fox bodied and SN-95 Cobras. As far as the Focus goes I have no idea.
It looks very similar to real suede, but it's a synthetic. You see it on some high end vehicles - first I remember seeing it on was the centers of the seats on a 2000 Audi S4. Some E46 BMWs have it on their steering wheels (ZHP 4-door, comp. package M3), and owners complain of accelerated wear. I've got a friend with an M3 who ditched his wheel for a leather one. Here's an alcantara shift boot for a Mini. Then I must just not be remembering right - thanks for the clarification. Been probably 4-5 years since I sat in a Lightning.
I had an older lightning with a blower on it so I knew they didn't come with leather and big into the mustang scene so that was the easy part of your question. Never into the focus.
Upholstery Surface Testing Before choosing a product to clean or maintain leather surfaces you must be certain of the material used and wither it is protected or covered, as the correct product requirements are vastly different. To test the surface- (a) Protected leather (covered) - by slightly scratching it with your nail, if it changes to a darker / lighter shade, it is unprotected (i.e. how suede changes colour depending on the fibres' orientation). If this has little effect it’s protected. If water ‘beads’ on the surface, then it is probably covered leather. If it soaks in, then it is probably finished leather (b) Natural leather (uncovered) Has a random shade colours and grain pattern; lightly scratch the surface to see if it reveals a lighter colour, water drops will darken its colour (temporarily). (c) Nubuck, Alcantara®- are top-grain cattle hide leather that has been sanded or buffed on the grain side, or outside, to give a slight nap of short protein fibres, producing a velvet-like surface. It is very soft to the touch will scratch or scuff very easily; water drops will darken the leather but it returns to its original colour after drying. Alcantara Cleaning / Care- http://world.alcantara.com/newsite/americas/contenuti/pdf/manutenzione_alcantara.pdf
Your link appears to be broken. Try this one instead http://world.alcantara.com/en/experience/manutenzione/pdf/manuale_eng.pdf
You are correct- my link: We are working for the new Alcantara® website We will come back soon. Appreciate the correction, Thanks
