Silverstone Interior Question

[shellbmb]

For those of you who've ordered silverstone extended leather, how difficult has it been to take care of?

Contemplating black sapphire/silverstone/piano black or alpine white/black/aluminum.

I have two car seats (ages 4 and 6), but they won't ride it in too often.

Any input appreciated.

[Pazzo009]

If your mindful of it you should be fine. I have had mine for almost a year and it looks 98% new. As long as you wear clean clothes it should be good. I have heard stories that if you sit in there with wet jeans or your ass sweats and the jeans gets from that, some of the dye could get on the seats. I use Lexol cleaner and conditioner every 2 months and my seats look great. I'm very happy with it.

[URBAN LEGEND]

Mine look new after 14000 miles. I keep towels in the trunk for after gym, and if kids are on the cards... Would buy this color again.

[URBAN LEGEND]

Make sure these color options are approved by Stealth in writing.

[Mperial]

There is slight dye transfer with all colors but it's more obvious with a light color such as SSII. That shouldn't deter you though - it's an awesome contrast to any dark colored paint. And yes, you must get prior approval by Stealth before proceeding...

[Rob///M5]

Be careful with car seats. They tend to leave a dark mark on the leather. If you use a full liner between the car seat and leather, you should be good.

There's no doubt that light leather gets marked more easily/noticeably than black, but I love Silverstone. It looks amazing and is worth the extra effort to keep clean.

[shellbmb]

Originally Posted by Rob///M5

Be careful with car seats. They tend to leave a dark mark on the leather. If you use a full liner between the car seat and leather, you should be good.

There's no doubt that light leather gets marked more easily/noticeably than black, but I love Silverstone. It looks amazing and is worth the extra effort to keep clean.

Even on my current black seats, I still put down towels where the car seats come in contact with the leather. And they have rules to what they can and cannot eat and drink! If only the M5 came with that central vac like the new odyssey minivan.

And I agree that it may just be worth the extra effort to keep clean. I like a contrasting interior color to the exterior. And every white exterior car I've purchased I've regretted once the new-ness has worn off. So that's why I'm leaning towards black sapphire with silverstone interior. i've already had a red interior on an M roadster so I nixed that.

Yes, I will submit my build sheet for approval before I place my order. Just have to sell my current car first.

[Rob///M5]

Consider Azurite Black? BSM looks ok, but IMO it doesn't stand out against all the other 5ers in existence. AB is not a ///M color, but it's subtle and beautiful. Looks great with silverstone interior too - both have blue undertones.

[stealth.pilot]

Originally Posted by shellbmb

For those of you who've ordered silverstone extended leather, how difficult has it been to take care of?

Contemplating black sapphire/silverstone/piano black or alpine white/black/aluminum.

I have two car seats (ages 4 and 6), but they won't ride it in too often.

Any input appreciated.

The dye transfer issue is very real. If you wear denim a lot then you may want to think twice. There are a bunch of clueless guys here who got their leather stained and ruined because they didn't take proper care.

With proper care it will stay new looking for a long time. My seats still look brand new.

I use a dye transfer protection cream in addition to matte conditioner. I also don't wear jeans and I screen my leather belts for dye transferability against other surfaces before wearing in the car.

There may be some more aggressive protective coatings you can use to provide more permanent protection. Like this:
http://www.autopiaforums.com/forums/...ther-coat.html

[shellbmb]

Originally Posted by Rob///M5

Consider Azurite Black? BSM looks ok, but IMO it doesn't stand out against all the other 5ers in existence. AB is not a ///M color, but it's subtle and beautiful. Looks great with silverstone interior too - both have blue undertones.

Our dealer had an AB/SS 2013 a while back and it was attractive. Budget may not allow too many extras. You can get to 120k in a hurry! Was thinking that maybe the 601 wheels in the CP would make it stand out against other black sapphires on the road as most I've seen have the 343 wheels.

I'd ideally like a silver car, but I don't like the silver offerings and I'm not about to pay 5k for titanium silver which is standard on the 5 series. There's an iridium silver E63 with black interior I've been eyeing that would be the perfect color combo for me on an M5. But I've convinced myself I need to just ship from MB and test the M waters again.

[ColdList]

Had my SSII/SS for 5k miles with "almost" zero dye transfer issues and wore jeans quite often. In fact, I drive kids to school in the car and on the back side of the seats there were the routine foot marks and small scuffs from them climbing in and out. I have a fantastic leather cleaner that I use and it wiped the scuffs right off with no sweat whatsoever. The car and leather always looks mint.

I WILL say, however, that I personally would not go the route of such a light leather again because it was a constant "concern" in my mind even though I had always successfully gotten everything out. It just sort of keeps you "alert" and watching for things that will discolor it. If I went to pick up a pizza for instance, I always brought towels (usually two). If I picked of flowers for my wife-same thing., etc..One time there was a mysterious purple discoloration that got on the pass seat. I never figured out what caused it-perhaps one of my wife's belts?.It WAS difficult to remove and I always felt like I could still see a a trace. Although NO ONE else possibly could. I am extremely meticulous about my cars so I think it sort of burned into my brain a bit-lol! Again, this little incident would not deter me as much as my having to always "think" about what would possibly discolor it.

I am glad to have black leather in my two cars now. It is a world of difference on the concern meter. I also prefer the sportier look of black. I always LOVED how "classy" the SS looked-especially with Piano trim but it was more elegant than sporty IMO. That of course is just preference though.

Personally, I like your AW/Black selection.

[URBAN LEGEND]

Nice to see fellow towel carriers in here.

[uhn2000]

Originally Posted by URBAN LEGEND

Nice to see fellow towel carriers in here.

Lol, I keep the towels and cleaner in the trunk. Ready for action!

[04S]

Same here. 3 towels - one for under my youngest's booster seat, then two spares just in case.

FWIW my SS is looking mint after 18000ks. Some slight wearing on the driver seat adjustable side bolsters, but that will happen with any colour leather.

Strictly no food or drink in my car though, and pizza rides in the boot.

[JUPJAI]

if you have young kids, don't do it! All I can say from years of applying leather cleaner.

Everything does clean off though.