Leather types

[philnewmerc]

Mercedes had at that time 3 “levels” of leather on seats:
- Leather (entry, grain leather, quite hard)
- Nappa leather (softer, more pliable premium)
- Semi-aniline leather (softest, morst premium finish, yet hardy and durable)

The semi-aniline leather on my w209 started to peel off, which is a common problem. It's basically leather with a very thin coating of plastic paint. As soon as it gets a scratch it will start to peel... But of course this might take 100,000 miles and 20 years but once it starts it's like the car has dandruff

 

[Deleted member 55947]

I remember reading somewhere that Rolls Royce used leather from a herd in Finland as barbed wire was banned so there’d be no scratches on the hide. Don’t know if it was true or not and if that’s still in force today.

 

[tonysmb]

I remember reading somewhere that Rolls Royce used leather from a herd in Finland as barbed wire was banned so there’d be no scratches on the hide. Don’t know if it was true or not and if that’s still in force today.

I can't say for definite but it was certainly sourced from Scandinavia, though whether that was the only source I can't recall now. Certainly, the issue about areas with no barbed wire is correct.