Leather seats not so leather??

[RamCares]

@RamCares.

Update. Just got notified from the dealership telling me that FCA denied my claim stating that the damage looks “unnatural”. Any thoughts/suggestions for recourse?


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Hi Primosp83,
We're sorry to hear that. I would be happy to look into this warranty claim to see if there's any clarification I can provide and to see if there's anything I can do to help. Please send us a private message at your earliest convenience.

Lydia
Ram Social Care Specialist

 

[Gman]

Oh, the irony. The "leather" looks unnatural to begin with. It looks like a man-made (artificial) 'vegetable leather' that uses a fabric backing.

It's soft and may work well on the earpads of my Bose headphones which can take years to expose the fabric, but a heavy wear item like seating?

 

[Bluesurf]

Has anyone else experienced this? My “leather” seat on Limited Ram (10k miles) started peeling. Any thoughts on the mater?

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The Dealer will send it out and the seat will get a respray. Good as new. All leather is sprayed. Stay away from those wipes I have them and only will use them on shoes. Lots of chemicals in the mixture. Some thing like Lexol will pamper your leather not strip it.

 

[ramhead]

Oh, the irony. The "leather" looks unnatural to begin with. It looks like a man-made (artificial) 'vegetable leather' that uses a fabric backing.

It's soft and may work well on the earpads of my Bose headphones which can take years to expose the fabric, but a heavy wear item like seating?

Typical of the "go with the cheapest quality as possible to make the most profit" mentality. But usually they try to use something that will last for at least the warranty period. I can't imagine how these seats are gonna look with kids & dogs climbing in and out over time...not a pretty sight I'd think.

I'm glad I got cloth seats (knock wood).

 

[cipherbreak]

Don't think you know what you're talking about. Many OEMs use leather with a fake embossed pebble leather pattern on the surface to create a uniform look and hide imperfections of cheap leather... FCA is not one of them (in their higher trims), but Honda sure as hell is. Obviously you will see fibers on the inside of the leather if you wear through the top coat. Leather is not the same throughout and has multiple layers. Do some research. The leather in my RAM is some of the best I've had (second only to Laguna in the GC Summit and Hellcat I had). Each piece is unique in look and feel because it's NATURAL leather, not manufactured looking Honda garbage.

if that is the best you’ve had, you haven’t had many nice cars. My first BMW—a basic 328i—had leather seats that looked brand new after 8 years of ownership. Same thing with my current BMW. I’m at 7 years now and the leather is in superb conditions.

 

[drstein]

if that is the best you’ve had, you haven’t had many nice cars. My first BMW—a basic 328i—had leather seats that looked brand new after 8 years of ownership. Same thing with my current BMW. I’m at 7 years now and the leather is in superb conditions.

I've had new 3 series, 6 series, and still have a '16 535. in the past 10 yrs. The leather in BMWs is complained about often too. And it doesn't have the feel of a soft, supple high quality leather , be it "Dakota" or whatever name they are calling it. Now if you want the upcharge of a few thousand dollars you will get the better leather. My 6 series was no different, though the 3k leather dash was very nice. In comparison, the seats on my Longhorn are soft as butter. Not as comfortable, but the leather, soft as butter.

 

[ramhead]

I'd be willing to bet that the seats are not made of any real leather at all but a material called leatherette (similar to what use to be negatively referred to as "pleather" - plastic leather):
Leatherette
Leatherette is a synthetic material made from vinyl or some type of plastic. You may also hear leatherette referred to as faux leather, fake leather, synthetic leather or pleather. While leatherette contains no animal by-products, it's made specifically to mimic the look and feel of real leather.

Leather Or 'Leatherette' -- Can You Tell The Difference?

Faux leather has gotten so realistic in recent years it’s become standard in many entry-level luxury cars, where it easily passes for the real thing.

www.forbes.com

 

[SpeedyV]

I'd be willing to bet that the seats are not made of any real leather at all but a material called leatherette (similar to what use to be negatively referred to as "pleather" - plastic leather):
Leatherette
Leatherette is a synthetic material made from vinyl or some type of plastic. You may also hear leatherette referred to as faux leather, fake leather, synthetic leather or pleather. While leatherette contains no animal by-products, it's made specifically to mimic the look and feel of real leather.

Leather Or 'Leatherette' -- Can You Tell The Difference?

Faux leather has gotten so realistic in recent years it’s become standard in many entry-level luxury cars, where it easily passes for the real thing.

www.forbes.com

Nope. We’ve already posted all of the correctly-researched info on these trucks.

That said, I’ve owned a vehicle (MINI Cooper S) with a leatherette interior. It was far more durable than any real leather. Those seat covers will be floating around in space when the Earth is gone.

 

[RAMpage]

Time to bust out the bead seat covers...

 

[Primosp83]

**Update**

Thanks to @RamCares and getting FCA involved. We finally came to a resolution, they honored the warranty and replaced the seat.

Even though the process was tiresome I am a happy customer and will be forever a proud Ram owner. On to the Borla S-type exhaust and RamAir CAI


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[Lit_AF]

That is not leather, and ofcourse its not acceptable.
Area's like that have alot of dye transfer too.
Remember you getting on and off rubbing your jeans is abrasive, always treat your seats so they are supple.
Bring it back to the dealer!

 

[eaglemike]

**Update**

Thanks to @RamCares and getting FCA involved. We finally came to a resolution, they honored the warranty and replaced the seat.

Even though the process was tiresome I am a happy customer and will be forever a proud Ram owner. On to the Borla S-type exhaust and RamAir CAI


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Very glad they took care of you!
As another data point, my 2019 is doing the same thing, only worse. The edges of the seat showed this with less than 5K miles, now the outer back bolster is showing bad wear. I have less than 7500 miles at this point. I have an appointment with the local dealer Wednesday. Please wish me luck!

 

[iamtheav8r]

Ya bought 6 Ram trucks since 1994 . Denied under warranty ,pretty nice huh? This is a $250 seat cover made out of cheap man made leather type material that doesn’t last a year. It’s the fake grain look on mine getting rubbed off, you can see the “real” leather fiber stuff underneath. I always use leather protectors on mine and have always tried to be easy getting in and out. My previous 09 11 and 13 that I had, which I got in and out of the same way never looked like this. My 13 had 93000 and looked better. These aren’t going to last long term unfortunately. Passenger seat is starting as well and it has half the use. Cheap garbage.

The cover is sitting at the dealer still. Ive worked at a Honda dealer 21 years, seen it all, and this doesn’t need to be approved by anyone and would get replaced no questions asked. That’s customer care after the sale, we even do them as a goodwill type thing after 3/36 with approval. Nothing is questioned 3/36. Honda cares!

No, Honda doesn't care. My Ridgeline has been back 11 times in 40K miles. The clear started peeling off the wheels (no curb rash, no sign of impact) and Honda said to have a local guy refinish them (after weeks of them initially saying NO) The refinish looks like crap and Honda said no more and now the refinish guy's work is peeling and he won't warrant it either.

 

[iamtheav8r]

The Indigo Frost interior (and others) aren't real leather. They're cheap, bonded or bicast leather like what you see on leather furniture in those "furnish an entire house in leather for $500" stores. You can tell by the white fiber material under the "leather" exterior.

Ram should be ashamed. 70K trucks with crap interior materials.

What’s PU Leather? Genuine Leather Vs. PU Leather - Leather Expressions

What's PU Leather? The short answer is: not something you want to spend money on. Here are all the ways you can spot this faux leather!

leatherexpressions.com

The Difference Between Bonded Leather vs Genuine Leather -

Learn the Difference between Bonded Leather vs Genuine Leather at World Of Leathers to help you to decide which is the right Leather for you.

www.worldofleathers.com

 

[OtterRam]

The Indigo Frost interior (and others) aren't real leather. They're cheap, bonded or bicast leather like what you see on leather furniture in those "furnish an entire house in leather for $500" stores. You can tell by the white fiber material under the "leather" exterior.

Ram should be ashamed. 70K trucks with crap interior materials.

What’s PU Leather? Genuine Leather Vs. PU Leather - Leather Expressions

What's PU Leather? The short answer is: not something you want to spend money on. Here are all the ways you can spot this faux leather!

leatherexpressions.com

The Difference Between Bonded Leather vs Genuine Leather -

Learn the Difference between Bonded Leather vs Genuine Leather at World Of Leathers to help you to decide which is the right Leather for you.

www.worldofleathers.com

Which RAM interiors are real leather ? I am not a leather expert and would like to avoid these issues with my next truck.

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[dstevens]

Had leather in 96 Explorer and 07 Tundra. Bought both used and both lasted until the vehicle was aged in double digits before significant wear showed. I didn't baby either one.

My Big Horn has gray cloth. Hoping it does as well.

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[RamCares]

Very glad they took care of you!
As another data point, my 2019 is doing the same thing, only worse. The edges of the seat showed this with less than 5K miles, now the outer back bolster is showing bad wear. I have less than 7500 miles at this point. I have an appointment with the local dealer Wednesday. Please wish me luck!

I'm sorry to hear of the trouble you are experiencing, eaglemike. If you are in need of any additional support while addressing this with your dealer, our team is just a private message away.

Mark
RamCares

 

[duke2001]

The Indigo Frost interior (and others) aren't real leather. They're cheap, bonded or bicast leather like what you see on leather furniture in those "furnish an entire house in leather for $500" stores. You can tell by the white fiber material under the "leather" exterior.

Ram should be ashamed. 70K trucks with crap interior materials.

What’s PU Leather? Genuine Leather Vs. PU Leather - Leather Expressions

What's PU Leather? The short answer is: not something you want to spend money on. Here are all the ways you can spot this faux leather!

leatherexpressions.com

The Difference Between Bonded Leather vs Genuine Leather -

Learn the Difference between Bonded Leather vs Genuine Leather at World Of Leathers to help you to decide which is the right Leather for you.

www.worldofleathers.com

i am not a leather expert but here is the information tag that came with my Limited with indigo frost interior. There has been much discussion on this forum regarding the “leather” interiors.

 

[daneel]

Ah, excellent find. My indigo frost interior is as good as Ricardo's Real Corinthian Leather...

 

[Neurobit]

My Limited has real leather.
My prior vehicle was a MB GL550. Before that, BMW X5, and before that, Audi A6. I could go on and on. Leather on my Limited is the best of the bunch so far.
Just my .02 cents...