I'm sneaking in here, even though my kr is a F350, cause I can't find a board like this for my model. But you all have my leather, so probably can answer this question.

My leather is beautiful. But in the back bench seat (the 60 part of the 60/40), right on the seat part near the front, are two marks shaped like lines (if that makes sense). They are a tiny bit darker than the rest of the leather color, and in fact in certain light, look a bit indented. They are close together, and maybe 6" long. They aren't as noticeable in the sunlight as in the darkened garage. Nothing that large anywhere else in the truck.

Here's the deal - the salesman said its real cow, so you get some real cow marks, its like a saddle. I sort of understand that, I have saddles,in fact, I also have cows. He said if you can't stand any marks, you shouldn't have this kind of leather. Okay, I understand this leather will scratch, and that ultimately I may have all sorts of marks on it. I just wish I was the one making the marks, and that it didn't come like this. Perhaps stupidly, I think if my cow hide had a mark like this, couldn't they have placed it in a less obvious place, like the front edge of the seat? My husband thinks it adds character and doesn't want to raise the issue further (partly because we've already had to replace the radio, have a new back seat cupholder on order because of 3" gap in stitching they can't fix, and our limited slip doesn't work, scheduled for repair soon).

So is everyone's leather mostly uniform, or is this to be expected, ie some marks but especially of this length? Unusual or part of the deal? Otherwise, I can't describe how much I love this truck. The engine is unbelievable. Only thing I'd like better is to have many more Thanks for any help.

 

I have some natural looking dark lines on the passenger seat which look fine to me because I know they are natural and not scratches. Why don't you post some pic's and let us see how they look. If they are 'man made', then RockPick could give you some advice.

 

Thanks - I'll see if hubby knows how to get the digital cam to get some pics online.

I think they are natural not man made. The indentation part puzzles me, but still, I don't think its man made (I have a couple of indents on the same seat, running the opposite direction, much smaller, but they are the same color as the rest of the seat.) Am just making sure, as we had this truck driven its first 300 miles to the dealership by someone else. Our 2000 Lariat was totaled in a head on in a snow storm, we live way remote and had no other rig to drive; thus it was a kind of rushed purchase. DH had to drive another 600 miles round trip to pick it up, and given his condition, didn't check out everything as we would have normally done. Were just glad we found it so quickly- this size KR were flying off the lots as fast as they arrived, and there weren't that many to begin with.

How long/wide are your dark lines? You've probably answered my question - ie, it appears that some marking is part of the package.

 

Hey TS...

All of the fine folks here in Louisville hope you're enjoying your Super Duty (it was made here).

As for your leather issues, it's a tough call without seeing them. My hunch is that Tun2One is 100% correct in calling it natural.

You see, when the tannery turns out a hide, the level of imperfections will show based on the amount of tanning and work that is done on the hide will directly dictate how much detail you can see within the hide.

The reason that you don't see this type of imperfection in a Lariat leather interior is because the leather has been tanned and treated to the point that it's not visible. That's not to say that it wasn't there at the beginning though. It's just been 'industrialized' on a much broader scale.

King Ranch leather (Castano) isn't treated to this level and thus, some of the imperfections from the cow are going to show up. Maybe it rubbed up against a barbed wire fence, maybe it's rubbing on a tree, maybe something else happened; none the less, all of this type of thing will directly impact how the leather looks when it's tanned to the degree that our Castano is tanned.

Think of the leather as skin -- because it is. Now think of your skin. Somewhere in your life you've probably picked up a scar or two either from surgery, a boneheaded move when you fell and were hurt, or similar. This type of thing, pending we tanned your skin, would also show up. I know it's a weird comparison but, it's exactly correct.

I look forward to seeing some of the pictures. Maybe from that we can tell if someone at the factory or dealership goofed but, my hunch is that it's probably exactly correct. Not to take your husband's side but, I think it really adds character to the interior...

RP

 

Hi Rock -

Please pass on to the fine KY folks that this simply is the best truck on the planet Earth We had planned to keep our old Lariat forever, and pick up a 2nd rig sometime in the distant future. With the accident, we "accidentally" were forced to buy one, and I had no clue that the new Fords would be like this! Have you driven on of the diesel SD's? Quiet engine, rides like a chevy, still beefy like a Ford workhorse, accelerates fast like a gas truck, and of course the KR interior is stunning. We saw one of these last year at a friend's house and were impressed... little did I know I would own one faster than I'd planned. Honest, I bought it strictly for the interior, and am still shocked at what's under the hood, performance-wise. DH took a die-hard Chevy friend with him to pick it up, and this man says next truck, he is going to look at the new Fords.

To the subject - thanks so much for the input. I am becoming convinced these are natural - dh read your post and chuckled, and I am not sure now that I could be so cruel as to take away his "character" seat in the back. I think he is becoming convinced that his "cow" tangled with a bad fence/predator and won, therefore being a good match for his tough Ford truck. Soon we'll probably even make up a name for this tough cow....

I'll work on the pics, but may take awhile. Thanks again!

TS

 

I feel your anxiety...

My 2003 KR leather was a focal point of incredible stress for me (Did I get a bad patch of hide? Have I not cleaned it enough/too much? Why is the color is changing and no one even sits in that seat? etc.).

Then I came to realize that cleaning occasionally (I now do it once every 3 months - I drive less than 5k per year, no heavy interior use) and paying attention to immediate problems immediately will keep your leather in top shape. I found, through this forum, a product called Leather CPR which seems to have stopped any additional problems. I wish I had known about it when I bought my truck.

I hope this helps...

Dave...

 

A couple of pictures of my seats that have been cleaned / conditioned with Leather CPR since I purchased my '01 F150 KR SC 4WD back in June 2004. The prior owner did not take as good of care of the seats - they were dried out and a bit soiled when I picked up the truck in Houston (driving it back to San Diego). My wife actually found the Leather CPR at Restoration Hardware and purchase a jar for me. Now all my leather gets cleaned / conditioned monthly.



(more pics in my gallery)

For Lenny -

 

cjw3cma, here in Charlotte we have a store called Restoration Hardware, but it's more of a trendy store with furniture, home decor, etc. Is that where your wife found the Lether CPR, or was it a true hardware store with the same name?

 

Same place (Restoration Hardware - the "trendy" one - search for Leather CPR). I also use it on our leather loveseats and club chairs in the living room and my computer desk chair in the den.

 

Great, I'll pick some up after work. Like you, I can justify it to my wife by saying we can use it on our sofa. Of course, I'll hide it in the garage.

 

Dave - that sums up where I was heading, ie how come a mark, and I haven't yet used the seat, etc, etc. When dh and his friend brought it home, there were two light scratches on the passenger seat back, probably from something protruding from the friend's jacket (I just rubbed that and it faded, but you know....) So I am making an executive decision that I am not going to stress anymore about the seats! Even if they get beat to heck, fact is if I condition them to the best of my ability, I think this leather is gonna look better than what I had before. And keep in mind, I am a dog lover, and my dogs have ridden in the back (seats are up, and they are on comforters on the floor) - yes, this is a recipe for disaster unless I chill. They have Roadie seatbelts, thus they stay put at all times. ahemm...please remind me of my vow if I start whining in the future, lol....

Greg and cjw and dave - thanks re the Leather CPR info, and cjw for the photos! We have a Restoration Hardware store that I can visit when I do the trip to the big city 4 hours away (in fact, am leaving this afternoon, so will pick up some when I arrive). I had ordered the KR stuff, not here yet, but then read some threads re it leaving a white film??. Your seats look very nice - hard to believe they were soiled and dried out at one time. Says much for the CPR stuff.

 

Okay... someone has to ask...

You keep referring to 'DH'. Are these your husband's initials or are you calling him... well, an abbreviation for something else?

RP

 

This may help....

dh - darling husband
ds - darling son
dd - darling daughter
ot - off topic
imo - in my opinion
imho - in my honest opinion
impo - in my personal opinion
dil - daughter in law
sil - son or sister in law
lol - laugh out loud
roflmao - rolling on floor laughing my a$$ off

_SG

 

One more to add:

ARKRO

**** Retentive King Ranch Owner

Applies to (almost) all of us, don't you think?

 

Absolutely! That's why I have a SWC.