Team Adam's Posted July 21, 2010 Share Posted July 21, 2010 Todays modern factory interiors feature an increasingly wider variety of surfaces and materials. In sports cars and high end coupes its more common to see OEM using a suede like material referred to as alcantara or microsuede. The luxurious material provides an premium appearance and feel, also it reduces slip on the seat as you take high speed turns, but the problem comes in with its care. most owners are confused on how they care for these materials or out of fear of causing damage neglect them. This article will cover the basics of daily care as well as how to address more serious soiling, stains, and more. UNDERSTANDING THE MATERIAL The first thing to understand is that virtually no manufactures currently use real suede leather in their interiors. The common materials used are synthetic suedes, like alcantara or micro-suede which give the look and feel of real sueded leather, but with lower cost and better durability. These are synthetic fibers, similar in makeup to the microfiber towels used for car care towels. While micro-suede is more durable than traditional/natural suede it still is highly susceptible to wear from neglect and moisture exposure. REGULAR CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE Prevention, as always, is the best medicine. As micro-suede is sat on or handled it begins to look matted and worn. Depending on whether your vehicle is driven daily or more of a track toy that only sees use for fun the rate that you need to perform some tasks will change. It all just depends on how much 'driving time' it sees. The most basic step you can take to prevent premature wear and keep the synthetic suede materials looking their best is to brush them regularly with Adam's Cockpit Brush. By brushing the fibers gently you can prevent them from becoming permanently matted and also remove any dry dust or small debris that may have settled on the surface. If you don't have access to a brush, a short fiber microfiber towel , like the Adam's Edgeless Utility Towel, wadded up in your hand will work as a substitute. Its recommended to brush the materials out once a week for most cars average use cars, more frequently for cars that see lots of driving. Be sure to brush the drivers seat more frequently as well as any faux suede on the steering wheel, shift knob, or armrests. MODERATE CLEANING OF SUEDE WRAPPED STEERING WHEELS & SHIFTERS Micro-suede looks great on steering wheels and shifters. It provides the driver with a much nicer, non-slip grip, but because your hands sweat and have oils the deterioration of these areas is often faster than the seats. The oils and sweat from your hands will attract additional dust and dirt leading to a soiled and matted surface. Like the seats, regular brushing of the surface will help prevent or slow the materiel from matting. Be sure to brush these surfaces out as often as they appear to be getting flat. To break up skin oils and dirt that don't come off from brushing alone we recommend the use of an Edgeless Utility Towel lightly dampened with a product like Adam's Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner. The simple process for addressing moderate soiling on these surfaces is: First vacuum and brush the surfaces to remove any loose debris (like dust) Spray a very small amount of the Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner onto a clean microfiber Utility Towel. Gently blot the surface, then wipe. Typically the most serious contamination will be at the 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock hand positions on the steering wheel. Add additional cleaner to the towel as needed and repeat until the soiling is removed. Blot up any excess moisture with a separate clean, dry, microfiber towel. MORE SERIOUS STAINS OR SPILLS No matter how careful you are there are always those times when you have your morning coffee or a soda in the car and it splashes out, or you accidentally drop something on the seat that you didn't mean to. While synthetic suede is fairly durable there are some general cleaning rules that should always be obeyed to preserve its look and feel. Treat spills as quickly as possible. The longer a spill sits the harder it will be to remove. When attempting to remove ANY spill or substance avoid pressing down and forcing it further into the material, blot lightly with something absorbent like a sponge or towels until most of the excess is removed. For thicker substances, say like ice cream or a fruit smoothie, use a spatula or credit card to scoop the excess off of the surface first so it can't absorb into the fibers. After the bulk of the spill has been removed see specific cleaning info below. In all cases avoid excess saturation with liquid. If a shop vac or extractor is available use that to remove excess moisture after cleaning. Fruit juice, jelly, syrup, ketchup, mayo, etc: Use lukewarm water, rinse by dabbing with clean water, rinsing and wringing the towel or sponge often. Blood, excrement, urine, or protein based stains: Use cold water; avoid warm water because it makes these substances coagulate, rinse by dabbing with clean water, rinsing and wringing the towel or sponge often. Alcoholic beverages, wine, beer, coke, black coffee and tea: Use lukewarm water; if the color mark remains, treat it with lemon juice and then rinse it well. (if liquor - what the heck were you driving for?) Pencil, ground in dirt, non-permanent ink: Use lukewarm water; rinse by dabbing with clean water rinsing and wringing the towel or sponge often. Hair gel, coffee with cream/sugar, ice cream, etc: Use lemon juice and then wipe with lukewarm water; rinse by dabbing with clean water, rinsing and wringing the towel or sponge often. IF A SPILL DRIES, STAINS, OR HARDENS BEFORE YOU CAN REMOVE IT Depending on the type of spill or stain start with the recommended treatments outlined above. In a situation where these do not work use diluted isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) and follow the instructions below. This is of course the method of last resort, so only use this option if all other options fail.Dilute the alcohol 1:1 with distilled water. Spray onto an absorbent, lint free, microfiber towel and gently blot the stain, then wipe with a separate water dampened towel. Follow up with a dry towel to wick away as much moisture as possible. Leave the vehicle in a dry place with the doors or windows open to allow the area to dry completely. Repeat the alcohol treatment as needed or until there is no longer any improvement in the stains appearance. NEED MORE HELP? The Adam's Polishes team is standing by to assist with more information if you need it. If the methods above do not work or you need additional clarification any of the processes please contact us via email - TIPS@ADAMSPOLISHES.COM - be sure to include pictures of any stains or spills to help us find the best solution for you. EPISODE 5 of Ask the Shine Doc covers the basics of suede interior accent care: JasonMzdSpd3, bosco1 and JKnudsen 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svrds10 Posted July 21, 2010 Share Posted July 21, 2010 Very cool writeup. Thanks for the tips... The new Challenger SRT8's has it as well. Sucks to maintain but looks great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Adam's Posted July 22, 2010 Author Share Posted July 22, 2010 No problem... that was my thought... with as many new cars now have it inside it was about time I put what I knew about it in writing... typing out the basics each time someone asks gets tiring. Now good old copy paste shall save me!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris@Adams Posted July 22, 2010 Share Posted July 22, 2010 Interesting!!:2thumbs:Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svrds10 Posted July 22, 2010 Share Posted July 22, 2010 LOL, be nice if i posted in the right thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derelict Posted July 22, 2010 Share Posted July 22, 2010 Awesome! I cringed the other day when my gf JUMPED into my tbss with a slurpee...thinking i'd never get that junk off the seat if it spilled! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the shine shop Posted July 23, 2010 Share Posted July 23, 2010 very nice write up. another tecnique you can try is bonnet cleaning. wrap your towell around the brush and spray the cleaner on the towell and scrub in one direction then flip the towell to a dry section and repeat. for small spots you do the same with a towell and brush, but lightly spray the spot then tap the brush and towell on the spot to bring out the stain. hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxxer Posted November 5, 2010 Share Posted November 5, 2010 Good write up, never had any problems on my cousins alcantara seats while using Adam's products. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heschlie Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Heya Folks, I own an '06 STi which has this stuff on the seats, and in the door cards, and I was wondering if the carpet and upholstery cleaner was safe to use on this material? Do I need to dilute it? And if it isn't then what do you guys recommend? The material isn't severely stained or anything, just some grime on a few parts. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill-V8V Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I just did a quick search and found this http://www.adamsforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7740&highlight=Alcantara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heschlie Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I just did a quick search and found this http://www.adamsforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7740&highlight=Alcantara Doh! how did I miss that! I must have had a typo or something when I did the search. Thanks for the link Bill! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill-V8V Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I can't spell so I copied and pasted out of your thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormChaser Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 HAHA and that works perfectly (the write up on Alcantara). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris@Adams Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I just did a quick search and found this http://www.adamsforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7740&highlight=Alcantara Good hustle Mr. Mayor! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewy Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I just did a quick search and found this http://www.adamsforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7740&highlight=Alcantara I was about to do just that... Thanks for the link.. lol Merged! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE Mook Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Hey thank you Dylan, that's really good information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmo Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Interesting... my car claims to have "suede" inserts but it sure looks like the Alcantara on one of my previous vehicles. Either way, glad I read this first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mels SS Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Dylan is this the same as velour and cleaned the same? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Adam's Posted March 2, 2012 Author Share Posted March 2, 2012 No... not the same a velour.... it looks and feels like real suede, but its man made. To be honest I've never had to deal with velour so I'm not exactly sure how you'd clean it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mels SS Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Thanks Dylan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichiganSRT8 Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 such a good thread, great info for my srt8 seats with similar inserts. i keep a little brush in there to fluff every once and a while, gotta keep her lookin good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForceofWill Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Great info, thanks Dylan. Quick question. The brush you recommended is too big to get into the area's in my Boss 302. What brush would you guys recommend to clean my shift/E-brake boots and my steering wheel? There is a lot of Alcantara in the Boss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForceofWill Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Could I use the pad cleaning brush? Or is that too stiff and will ruin the mat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECaulk Posted May 12, 2013 Share Posted May 12, 2013 Great write up Dylan. Do you know of any places to actually purchase alcantara material in the greater denver area? Could I use the pad cleaning brush? Or is that too stiff and will ruin the mat? I would think that would be too stiff, you want a softer brush. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shermanator Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 Great info, thanks Dylan. Quick question. The brush you recommended is too big to get into the area's in my Boss 302. What brush would you guys recommend to clean my shift/E-brake boots and my steering wheel? There is a lot of Alcantara in the Boss. I have it on my steering wheel and I was wondering how to clean it too...I took some Interior cleaner to it using a single soft microfiber, but didn't see a huge difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now