Reviving old Ford seat material

[Retro54]

I've recently used some PECARD antique leather dressing on a pair of old driving gloves and got great results.

Has anyone used a Pecard product on their old Ford seats? Mine are dry and I'd like to freshen them up a bit. Not even sure if the material is original or replacement (likely) but think it's not actual leather. Does anyone know what it is? Is there a product worth recommending used to revive the material on old seats? Thank you in advance for your suggestions! I have too many questions and not many answers.

[Allan]

Leather dressing should not be used on other than leather. It is made to be absorbed into the material, and I doubt that will happen with synthetics. You are likely to end up with a layer of sticky matter on a vinyl surface. There are correct dressings for synthetics.

Allan from down under.

[Susanne]

Your seats aren't leather, it's more akin to rubberized canvas... Go VERY carefully as if it's dried out it can (depending on what you use) crack and come apart, or (as happened on a test corner of my back seat) turn gooey... Still trying to figure out how to get around that.

[Erik Johnson]

Your seat cushion and seat back upholstery are not factory original.

For one thing, the configuration of the of the seat cushion upholstery is incorrect. The pleats never went down the front like that. The exposed stitching on the armrest is another clue.

Also, the grain of the material is too pronounced.

I was probably re-done sometime in the last 60 years.

I have found that the best thing you can do for old leatherette/naugahyde is clean it with soap and water. Greasy or oily spots can be cleaned with mineral spirits without hurting the finish - at least in my experience.

I would avoid using any dressings, lotions or potions because they can get into the cloth backing and cause long-term headaches.

[Retro54]

Erik, agreed and thank you! I got to drive it for the first time today. I think its actually more pliable than I thought and should hold up a bit.