How to remove ballpoint pen from leather seats? (luxury, windshield, best)

[Phil A. Delphia]

Am I the only one who read the title and thought was an entire ballpoint pen stuck inside a leather seat?

[suzy_q2010]

Originally Posted by Phil A. Delphia

Am I the only one who read the title and thought was an entire ballpoint pen stuck inside a leather seat?

Since it said "scribbled" I suspect you are.

Wish OP would come back and tell us what he tried and if it worked.

[Phil A. Delphia]

Originally Posted by suzy_q2010

Since it said "scribbled" I suspect you are.

Wish OP would come back and tell us what he tried and if it worked.

Since I wrote "title" I suspect you aren't reading thoroughly. Or maybe just don't know what "title" means.

[Rivertowntalk]

I have used "Goof Off" for ink and it worked fairly good. Careful using it though. Use as little as possible.

[Rogarven]

There are people here that say the "leather" seats in Hondas and Toyotas are not real leather. I am wondering if it is not real skin, is it Naugahyde or some other imatation? I was able to get lipstick off of the 03 Accord leather seats fairly easily with leather cleaner. Comments?

[orrecc]

Originally Posted by Rogarven

There are people here that say the "leather" seats in Hondas and Toyotas are not real leather. I am wondering if it is not real skin, is it Naugahyde or some other imatation? I was able to get lipstick off of the 03 Accord leather seats fairly easily with leather cleaner. Comments?

The seating "surfaces" (where your butt and back touch) are real leather with a twist, I'll explain in a second. The sides and backs are matching vinyl in the same texture and color. Making the entire seat covering out of hides would be very costly and would increase the price of the leather interior option from an average of say around $800 over the cost of a cloth seat equipped vehicle, to say nearly $2500 at M.S.R.P. for basic 100% leather coverings, far above what most folks would pay and priced out of the range of profit for most manufacturers, due to lower customer demand. Imagine a Hyundai with the stand alone leather seat option costing and additional $2500, it would not fair well in the marketplace.

The "leather" seats in most everyday vehicles are a thin low quality hide coated or treated with a very tough and flexible vinyl coating embossed with the grain pattern and color the mfg chooses to match the rest of the cars interior. Only very high end autos like Rolls Royce, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Aston Martin and so on use 100% hide, dyed and treated as a standard feature to produce a color to match the design of the car. Everyday cars increasingly use bonded leather on the seating surfaces, additionally more and more manufacturers are now using 100% vinyl for the rear seats unless a premium leather option is available/specified. Jump in any newer everyday vehicle and really look at the seating surfaces, or do the poke test, you will be surprised! BMW was a big pioneer in offering bonded hides for the regular leather packages.

Even my A4 with the premium leather package which uses hides for all of the seating surfaces, seat backs and door inserts uses bonded leather to give a uniform look and color as it is less costly than hand selecting premium 100% grain-matched blemish free cuts. So yes! They have real leather seating surfaces (front seats mostly) enhanced by a durable top coat!

[Rogarven]

thanks, orrecc!

What is the "poke test"? The front seats on 03 Accord started splitting earlier than the back seats. In fact, back seats look new, of course not used much. They have been a disappointment, to say the least. That was after I babied them with Lexol. Thanks again.

[Retriever]

Originally Posted by Phil A. Delphia

Am I the only one who read the title and thought was an entire ballpoint pen stuck inside a leather seat?

No, you're not the only one.
When I read the title of the thread, my interpretation was that a leather seat had been impaled by a ballpoint pen.

Of course, reading the content of the post made it clear that the OP actually meant, "ballpoint INK", but my interpretation of the thread's title was exactly the same as yours was.

[Phil A. Delphia]

Originally Posted by Retriever

No, you're not the only one.
When I read the title of the thread, my interpretation was that a leather seat had been impaled by a ballpoint pen.

Of course, reading the content of the post made it clear that the OP actually meant, "ballpoint INK", but my interpretation of the thread's title was exactly the same as yours was.

I had a vision of someone meticulously pinching the leather and pushing the trapped pen towards the puncture hole, kind of like when the tie string comes out of a cheap hoodie or a pair of sweatpants and it takes 10 minutes to get the sucker to successfully cooperate because the string gets hung up or won't stay on course.

[orrecc]

Originally Posted by Rogarven

thanks, orrecc!

What is the "poke test"? The front seats on 03 Accord started splitting earlier than the back seats. In fact, back seats look new, of course not used much. They have been a disappointment, to say the least. That was after I babied them with Lexol. Thanks again.

Poke test:

Take your pointer finger on either hand and push down on the top of your other hand firmly but not hard, twist your pointer finger about 1/4 of a turn, watch how the skin gathers and starts to "wrinkle" in in the direction of the turn. That is how real leather gathers and folds, even without the twisting. Now go to a known area of vinyl in your car (seatback and sides is a good place), try to do the same thing. You will notice that on vinyl or synthetic surfaces your finger will simply press in and when removed leaves behind a small dent the same size as your finger without gathering or wrinkling, or the material rebounds with a small rise to the area after removing pressure. This is how my mom used to test purses when she was buying them, some vinyl looks very real, and some very thin vinyl can somewhat simulate the effect but only real leather gives the correct effect!!