[skyline408]

My X5M is over a year old and had 8K miles on it, and even with frequent cleaning and application of Colourlock, the steering wheel started to shine a bit after a year

On my new M3, i'd like to try something different. On the suggestion of another forum member, I bought Sonax Leather foam cleaner and conditioner, but it left a bit of not so matte coating on the wheel.

Anything else I should try - just trying to preserve the matte finish on the steering wheel as long as possible.

Thanks!

[CSBM5]

I've used leather masters protection cream for many years now with great success after giving up on many previously used products on numerous other cars (i.e. Lexol since the 1980s, leatherique, zaino, etc). I clean it thoroughly using leather masters strong cleaner (it's not very "strong", and almost any mild cleaner will work fine like diluted all purpose cleaner) and then apply the protection cream. Then wait 30 min and buff it good. Nice, clean, matte finish with a nice protection layer on it. The steering wheel in my M3 looks as new since its been treated to 11 years of this stuff. Thanks to Bryan Burnworth of Peachstate Detail for suggesting this stuff ages ago when asked about what's the best matte finish product to use.

[///MPhatic]

Ammo Lather.

[malvern_man]

[shimmy23]

i use a very small amount of leatherique. let it sit for 10min and then use a wet microfiber towel to remove it. comes out matte every time and i don't have to agitate or scrub the leather

[MVEED3]

The finest hypoglittergenic moisterizers work best.

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by shimmy23

i use a very small amount of leatherique. let it sit for 10min and then use a wet microfiber towel to remove it. comes out matte every time and i don't have to agitate or scrub the leather

Same here.

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by shimmy23

i use a very small amount of leatherique. let it sit for 10min and then use a wet microfiber towel to remove it. comes out matte every time and i don't have to agitate or scrub the leather

What ? 10 min . ?

With Leatherique Rejuvenator oil ,you should let it sit for at least 24/48 hours .

My seats and steering wheel after 48 hours with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil.
As you can see , that's how you can get the matte factory finish .

[shimmy23]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

What ? 10 min . ?

With Leatherique Rejuvenator oil ,you should let it sit for at least 24/48 hours .

My seats and steering wheel after 48 hours with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil.
As you can see , that's how you can get the matte factory finish .

well aware of the recommended time. you and i have both been using the juice forever! haha! i'm strictly talking the steering wheel and more frequent cleaning. no need to let it sit on the steering wheel for 1-2 days if you're doing this once a month

[skyline408]

Thank you all! I already have some of the products mentioned here, but not the Leatherique Rejuvenator. I will give that a shot.

[AM340iMiami]

Originally Posted by ///MPhatic

Ammo Lather.

Ammo lather and the mousse is a good combo. Ive been using it for a while now and my steering wheal has no fade and its always a nice matte finish.

[DanG]

I use Groit’s leather care. https://www.griotsgarage.com/leather-care-16-ounces/

[skyline408]

Update!

My bottle of Leatherique Rejuvenator came and I wiped it on and let it dry. I then wiped it off with a dry microfiber towel and it still looked a bit glossy. I then re-read this thread and wiped it off with a wet towel and once it dried the wheel felt and looked pretty good! I'll keep up this routine and see how the wheel looks in a few months.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

water microfiber

[chris719]

Keep in mind that very often (esp higher mileage) the shininess isn’t dirt, it’s actually worn smooth from friction and becomes glossy. If you watch the Colourlock video on OG where they recondition a BMW M5 wheel, they actually abrade it and dye it again. I wouldn’t recommend that, but you can see the cleaning attempts before they attacked the leather. It wasn’t doing much.

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

What ? 10 min . ?

With Leatherique Rejuvenator oil ,you should let it sit for at least 24/48 hours .

My seats and steering wheel after 48 hours with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil.
As you can see , that's how you can get the matte factory finish .

Have leatherique'd the steering wheel and just the seat facings today with the sun shining so wiping off later tomorrow.

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by M5Rick

Have leatherique'd the steering wheel and just the seat facings today with the sun shining so wiping off later tomorrow.

Works even better if you let it sit for 2-3 days . And remove it with a warm damp cloth .
The smell and the factory matte finish look great .
You can't you wrong with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

Works even better if you let it sit for 2-3 days . And remove it with a warm damp cloth .
The smell and the factory matte finish look great .
You can't you wrong with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil

Hasn't been done for a while so I fitted it in between waxing the bodywork.

[skyline408]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

Works even better if you let it sit for 2-3 days . And remove it with a warm damp cloth .
The smell and the factory matte finish look great .
You can't you wrong with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil

This stuff has been really good. It definitely keeps the matte finish on the wheel, and i've been using it on my other car which had a bit of seat bolster wear after 8K miles. It made the seat look new again!

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by skyline408

This stuff has been really good. It definitely keeps the matte finish on the wheel, and i've been using it on my other car which had a bit of seat bolster wear after 8K miles. It made the seat look new again!

Of course Leatherique is really good , otherwise I wouldn't say it .

Great job !

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

Works even better if you let it sit for 2-3 days . And remove it with a warm damp cloth .
The smell and the factory matte finish look great .
You can't you wrong with the Leatherique Rejuvenator oil

It works! I wiped the steer wheel and seat facings with a damp micro cloth and it's matt, it looks better than new.

[dreamingat30fps]

I agree with the leatherique. That stuff is very good, especially for leather that has not been maintained, but it's messy and time consuming. I will typically do it maybe once a year or so. In between I just clean my leather (and steering wheel) with all purpose cleaner and wipe down with moist microfiber. Never had any issues with this method.