Comments on: Leather vs Leatherette – What would you choose?

By: dctommy

dctommy — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:05:42 +0000

I think having leather can actually downgrade your resale value. If you have ever gotten into a used luxury car it feels like someone else has totally USED it. Because the leather absorbs their sweat, smells and presence. The paint on the surface of the leather is usually cracked and it gives off the feeling of a Salvation Army special. So you totally lose that fall-in-love curb appeal factor for resale.

Where as.. if you have something a bit more neutral and sterile like PLASTIC or quality cloth. It feels NEWER. So I think you would have more demand for resale purposes over the long-run.

By: MiMi

MiMi — Fri, 22 May 2009 13:51:50 +0000

(Redwood lounge leather is like a deep Sienna red, not chili red, trimmed in black piping)

By: MiMi

MiMi — Fri, 22 May 2009 13:49:15 +0000

What do you think about redwood lounge leather seats in a CooperS? Those are the pleated leather seats with piping. I’m thinking about resale here.

By: Noel

Noel — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:55:54 +0000

The wife’s new Jetta came with leatherette i asked for her imput she said she like’s it better, we took a long trip in the Jetta it felt very comfy this is the first one we get with the stuff so we’ll report back in 150K miles. leather wears out too soon especially in Japanese cars. By the way we know people who own Japanese cars with leather seats those people had ripped seats at the seams at about 30K miles the manufactures did not take any responsibility to correct the problem. Germans seem to be way better at it they been using leather on their seats far longer than Japs. I cannot comment on American made cars their leather seats seem more plastic than genuine leather.

By: Wain

Wain — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:35:13 +0000

I live in Southern Cali so lather is out of the questions, here summer days reach the 100 mark, leather is a back killer. Some claim resale value how about driving the thing for 5 years or more pure back punishment, only my opinion but i think leather wears out too fast, just look at a 5 year old bimmer, leather looks ugly most of the time. one really must pamper that leather if you really want it looking good. bottom line leather is pure punishment on your back. If i lived in places like Washington State then i will consider heated leather seats.

By: rick

rick — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:16:44 +0000

Well I got the leatherette in my new 3 series I have to say I wish I had gotten leather it makes me sweat not good. I had to put a towel down towel down to sit on the seats. And the leatherette is really not as comfy as leather. It does do well with pets just wipe it down if it gets dirty LOL

By: Mike

Mike — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 00:51:57 +0000

Leatherette is a complete joke. Feels like vinyl.

By: DKS

DKS — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 19:48:28 +0000

…in addition, I’m currently looking at other brand vehicle options and wonder why they don’t offer leatherette, I love it so much. I don’t want a cloth that stains, wears, catches fur etc. I don’t want to get anything other than a BMW, but financially it may have to come to that.

By: DKS

DKS — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 19:45:03 +0000

I have a BMW with each, hubby has leather, and I have plastic. I’m kinda messy so the leatherette is great. I don’t like cloth since it wears harder plus captures a load of pet fur. EVERYONE thinks the leatherette is real leather and they look at me weird when I mention it’s fake.

Plus, I don’t like the look of leather after it is many many years old and it becomes shiny and hard. The only way I’d go with leather is if I wanted one of the unique colors like the brown or red not offered in plastic.

May be weird, but I use the BMW leather cleaner on it–it keeps that plastic very nice and cleans it especially well. Not sure if it hurts, but so far it looks nice and clean like the day I bought the car.

By: anthony

anthony — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 04:10:05 +0000

Anything beats the cracked worn out uncomfortable heat scarred leather in my e36 convertible

But if and when I order a BMW brand new, it will have leather. Not a question or so much as a second doubt in my mind. Besides, my BMW isnt going to be used for hauling pets around anyways. Thats why they have beater cars like civics.

By: Horatiu B.

Horatiu B. — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 01:57:32 +0000

@Gragop: Both have leatherette.

By: Gragop

Gragop — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:22:17 +0000

@Ignace:

I know BMW grants US customers some “Priority 1″ options in the US for certain leather colors on the 3 Series but we don’t get higher quality leather without upgrading to an M car or higher Series.

That said, we only get Leather and Leatherette, though on the E46 Performance Package the base trim with the package was cloth inserts in the seats trimmed with alcantra around the seats. So, the US has had cloth seats recently(within last 5 years) but typically you don’t find a whole lot of E46’s with that option.

By: Ignace

Ignace — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:10:08 +0000

Are leather / leatherette the only options in the US ?
In Europe, we don’t have the leatherette,
but a choice of – fabric, – fabric / alcantara (f.e. sport seats),
- alcantara / leather, and leather in different qualities.
The “basic” leather for example for E90 is “Dakota” leather,
more expensive is the “Walknappa” leather.
Next to these 2 list choices, there is BMW Individual leather, called “Merino”.

By: Gil

Gil — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 19:51:36 +0000

I’m not picky on that, as long as it has heated seats, I’m good.

By: Ezh

Ezh — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 19:37:28 +0000

I’d prefer the velvet (do not know how it is right in English) or alcantara.

By: Gragop

Gragop — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:54:32 +0000

@Doug:

Our E65 had the actual ventilated seats which is a very nice feature(the massage feature rubbed your ass and legs and that just felt awkward) but my ex’s mom’s E65 didn’t have it and it makes a big difference in terms of comfort, especially during more extreme climate changes like Summer and Winter. The massage function was only nice for long car trips where you didn’t get out of the car much and your legs needed circulation.

Mom’s E60 just has the leather seats – which I believe have perforated leather, I could be completely wrong on that because it’s been a while since I’ve riden in her car but I know that the leather feels much more supple and comfortable in her car over my E46.

By: Doug

Doug — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:45:07 +0000

@Gragop: Gragop: does it actually ventilate the seats through the perforations? With a fan I mean.

By: Gragop

Gragop — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:40:27 +0000

@Horatiu B.: Do you have leather in your E90 or the X3?

By: Horatiu B.

Horatiu B. — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:27:58 +0000

Here is what I like about my leatherette: I can put my 85lbs dog on it and nothing will happen to it, no scratches, not much wear and tear. But, I do miss sometimes the leather feel, a little softer, especially if you drive long distances.

But leather it’s a pain to maintain, I remember spending money on all those “special” solutions and it would still crack.

By: Horatiu B.

Horatiu B. — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:26:27 +0000

@The Lee: No worries, I just want us to stay on track here cause otherwise....I know where the discussion will go..:) been there