r129 Leather restoration

[AndyRan]

So when i got my R129 the seats where not in great shape. A few worn stitches and seams coming apart but still solid. The leather was very dry and disgustingly dirty.

I had the seats re-stitched when the new rear screens where fitted by a local trimmer then spent the best part of two days refurbishing the hides.

Lots of conditioner to soften it all back up, a full steam clean then a rub down and a re-dye process.

Here is a before (top left) and after picture set - Personally i think they look a million times better. The before picture doesn't show the worst of the grime, they where marked, black and truly disgusting

 

[AndyRan]

Before:

And After

 

[Sjmw]

Very good. What products did you use?

 

[AndyRan]

It was a kit from Bespoke Leather - Sprayed on with a paint gun and compressor

 

[streetsupercars]

rough idea on what they charged to do it ?

 

[219]

Nice job !

Alas , my front seats ( slightly different pattern from yours as mine is a pre-facelift ) are in much worse condition ( at least the base cushions are ) with much of the stitching having come apart as well as small bits missing off some of the sections ! Then again , my car passed 180,000 miles a few weeks back and gets used every day .

For me , replacement is the only option , and I most likely will end up replacing the two base cushions ( the backrests , even the drivers bolster , are in surprisingly good condition ) . In the past I've treated mushroom leather in my various W124 and W126 cars ( or champagne as Mercedes seem to call it in the R129 ) with the Autoglym products ; others speak highly of the Gliptone products ( but not the surly manner of the proprietor ) .

Assuming I keep my car long term ( which is the plan ) my car being mechanically sound and running very reliably with over 50K now covered in my close to two years ownership , I need to look at new front wings and a full respray , ideally a new front bumper although the existing one could have the bottom scuffs repaired and painted , and , most of all , a new hood - since I would be taking the car over to KHM in Germany to have a hood fitted , and they also make leather seat covers , if I reach that stage with the car then I might have brand new seat covers fitted at the same time . My carpets are still fine and the back seat has hardly been sat in , although my 8 year old son and his chums do use them .

 

[AndyRan]

rough idea on what they charged to do it ?

As i did it all myself (apart from the repair to the stitching £40) The materials cost me £40, so £80 all in and a weekend of my time - I already had the compressor, water trap and good spray gun.

 

[AndyRan]

Nice job !

Alas , my front seats ( slightly different pattern from yours as mine is a pre-facelift ) are in much worse condition ( at least the base cushions are ) with much of the stitching having come apart as well as small bits missing off some of the sections ! Then again , my car passed 180,000 miles a few weeks back and gets used every day .

For me , replacement is the only option , and I most likely will end up replacing the two base cushions ( the backrests , even the drivers bolster , are in surprisingly good condition ) . In the past I've treated mushroom leather in my various W124 and W126 cars ( or champagne as Mercedes seem to call it in the R129 ) with the Autoglym products ; others speak highly of the Gliptone products ( but not the surly manner of the proprietor ) .

Assuming I keep my car long term ( which is the plan ) my car being mechanically sound and running very reliably with over 50K now covered in my close to two years ownership , I need to look at new front wings and a full respray , ideally a new front bumper although the existing one could have the bottom scuffs repaired and painted , and , most of all , a new hood - since I would be taking the car over to KHM in Germany to have a hood fitted , and they also make leather seat covers , if I reach that stage with the car then I might have brand new seat covers fitted at the same time . My carpets are still fine and the back seat has hardly been sat in , although my 8 year old son and his chums do use them .

My car has done nearly 150k now - the seats where in fantastic condition under all the grime, i will do the carpets again with my cleaner once the weather warms up as there are still a few bits I am not happy with.

I had to have a new screen in the soft-top, not ideal compared to a new roof but as its a sun weather only car its more so there isnt a gaping hole in the back of the car. The fabric is like new luckily.

I have to get one front wing done soon as its starting to bubble a little