watermark on car door leather, help! :(

[davidkawai]

so my brother accidentally left the window open overnight while it was raining. i notice there is watermark left on the leather. so i wiped off the water and left it to dry for a day. and i still notice there is still slightly mark left on the leather.
is there any way i can remove this mark ? it is still noticeable from certain angle after a day I left it to dry...
any suggest would be appreciated

[davidkawai]

picture attached

[NOLATom]

Originally Posted by davidkawai

so my brother accidentally left the window open overnight while it was raining. i notice there is watermark left on the leather. so i wiped off the water and left it to dry for a day. and i still notice there is still slightly mark left on the leather.
is there any way i can remove this mark ? it is still noticeable from certain angle after a day I left it to dry...
any suggest would be appreciated

You mean "ex-brother"....

Someone else had a thread on here with the same thing happening to the seat. There were a lot of suggestions. I'm not very good at searching the forum, but someone I'm sure will post it.

[Falafel Combo]

Wow, sorry about that. I did not realize some water damage would do that to the leather.

[aboulfad]

The stuff of legends for repairing and protecting leather is leatherique. That said, are you sure this was due to rain? Could it have been there from day one and you didn't notice it before. Then maybe you could have it replaced under warranty? Good luck!

[davidkawai]

pretty sure it was from the rain. I asked a auto upholster shop and they said they can dye the leather panel . But i am afraid the color will not match with other door panels after dying.

anyone has similar situation ? dying interior leather and color still match ?

[aboulfad]

I would start with a less risky approach, I.e. use leatherique and take it from there.

[KevinM]

Originally Posted by aboulfad

I would start with a less risky approach, I.e. use leatherique and take it from there.

Agree. Let it dry for a long time, and then use a very good leather rejuvenator (like Leatherique) and let that sit for 48 hours in a warm climate if possible. Clean that off and see what you are left with.

GL!

[Sassicaia]

I would 100% not attempt to dye it. It will not look the same as the other panels.

Id probably look into what the cost would be to order a replacement if the rejuvenation process recommended above doesnt work.

[davidkawai]

i saw the replacement for door panel part is more than $1000 on some euro website, the door panel is one big piece from top to the bottom, i wish the top leather panel can be disassemble, but it cannot.
Not sure if i can order it in US. But $1000+ for this water stain is too much.
I tried some leather cleaner, Leather Milk Leather No2. and rubbing alcohol, tested them on some hidden leather area first, and tried on the water stain. still no luck.

Not quite sure how Leatherique work , i should give that a try .

[1uscalumni]

where is the watermark in the picture?

I know it bothers you, but it could be on the dash or even worse on the seats or drivers door panel. Trying to fix it by applying different leather cleaners and conditioners will mostly cause a bigger problem.

If you want perfect, drop the cash and buy a new panel.

[davidkawai]

attached pictures after a week ...

[1uscalumni]

Originally Posted by davidkawai

attached pictures after a week ...

I see it with the arrows. thx you can just wait and watch to see if it fades with time from the direct sun light.

[MyFragileHalogen]

OP did you find a solution? I have the same issue. I had the car sit in rain with the window rolled down during a track day for less than an hour. I wiped them out but after a week I notice the damage.

[MyFragileHalogen]

I am trying leatherique and after one day of trial a lot of the wavy wrinkled line is gone. Vast improvement and pretty happy. It might be completely fixable with few more sunny days of trials.

[davidkawai]

Originally Posted by MyFragileHalogen

I am trying leatherique and after one day of trial a lot of the wavy wrinkled line is gone. Vast improvement and pretty happy. It might be completely fixable with few more sunny days of trials.

good to hear that , i didnt try leatherique, but my incident happened years back then. not sure if this will help on my water mark. :/

[Taco_Bueno]

A had a similar issue involving dog slobber that had dried on my center arm rest leaving a more severe stain.

I applied Leather Masters Stronger Cleaner as directed to the leather, let it dry for an hour, applied the vitalizing cream, and after that dried there was no proof it had ever existed. I applied the conditioner as well because I like to err on the side of the excess

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

dont really see anything wrong

[MyFragileHalogen]

Originally Posted by davidkawai

good to hear that , i didnt try leatherique, but my incident happened years back then. not sure if this will help on my water mark. :/

It would still help. It's only $40 and nothing to lose to try it! It's very simple to use- apply the oil and leave the car outside under a hot day sun with all windows up, making the interior steaming hot, then clean it out with the cleaner liquid. Mine looks a lot better now.

[tebbnsx]

These issues are exactly why I don’t order full leather. I prefer the ease of taking care of less surfaces.

[SukSqueezeBangBlo]

Originally Posted by MyFragileHalogen

It would still help. It's only $40 and nothing to lose to try it! It's very simple to use- apply the oil and leave the car outside under a hot day sun with all windows up, making the interior steaming hot, then clean it out with the cleaner liquid. Mine looks a lot better now.

I have a similar issue in my car. Did you spot treat with Leatherique or do the whole door card ? How’s it looking now?