| By Chilton Staff |
When you have skin in the game, the materials used for automobile interiors matter. Our bovine friends don’t have to ruminate over it: Cattle would stampede to alternate upholstery coverings like cloth or synthetic leather.
With American drivers spending an average of more than 10,000 minutes each year behind the wheel,1 safe and comfortable vehicle interiors are important. Vehicle interiors aren’t just fluff, though. Consider that panels and cushions keep you safer by housing airbags and critical dashboard controls. Seats position you for driving, tether seat belts, and may even contain heating and cooling elements. So with all that’s going on with your hardworking, multitasking interior, it’s valuable to have the ChiltonLibrary automaker recommendations for its care and repair.
FROM CLOTH AND LEATHER TO PLEATHER
The earliest automobiles were open-air, like the horse-drawn wagons they were modeled on. Once at least part of a vehicle was enclosed, creating an “interior,” automakers began providing comfort inside. Fabrics like wool or the more durable material, leather, were popular for covering interior surfaces, and they remain popular today.
While long-lasting leather is costly, requires regular conditioning, and can be uncomfortable in hot and cold temperatures, there are also ethical and environmental concerns. For example, the tanning process uses toxic chemicals and lots of fresh water. Over the years, automakers have explored alternative materials inside the cabin, such as using petroleum to make plastics like vinyl, which became popular in the ’50s and ’60s.
Newer plastic materials for interiors are various formulations of petrochemicals, like polyester and nylon, sometimes called “pleather.” Silicone is used to create another type of synthetic leather. There are pros and cons to interior coverings, ranging from their suppleness to environmental concerns and toxicity to durability. Automakers look to minimize the cons and the cost, while maximizing the pros, as they investigate new fabric technologies. Whether it’s cloth, leather, or pleather, manufacturers let the customer decide from among the different options they offer.
Currently, automakers are experimenting with emerging technologies called “protein leather.” Broadly, protein leather is made from any animal with a skin, though the term is now also used for less common materials made from jellyfish or eggs.
Innovators are also growing leather from animal skin cells. Advocates of lab-grown bio-fabricated leather say it has the scent and feel of regular leather.
Animal-free protein leather, also called “vegan leather,” includes leather made in part from plants, microorganisms, or fungi. Mushrooms,2 coffee bean skins,3 bacteria, cacti, and sugarcane are some of the materials used in making pleather. Vegan leather also incorporates oil and natural gas–derived plastics along with the plants, fungi, or microbes.
SOUNDS SWEET BUT DON’T EAT IT
Nissan used sugarcane bio resin for its seats, parts of the door trim, headrests, and center armrest in the 2013 Nissan LEAF,4 while Bentley’s EXP 100 GT concept car used vegan grape leather in its interior.
At the 2019 LA Auto Show, VW introduced the sleek ID. Space Vizzion concept car. Its seats, door trim, and armrests were made in part with apples.
INTERIOR CARE AND REPAIR
When it comes to body repairs, such as with seats, locks, doors, dashboards and more, ChiltonLibrary can help. In caring for the appearance of your vehicle’s interior, the owner manual has specific maintenance tips. If the owner manual is not in the vehicle, it’s usually available as a free download from the manufacturer’s website.
ChiltonLibrary includes the owner manual for some models.
If you are bothered by noises, like tapping, ticking, squeaks, or rattles in your car, check the bulletins section of ChiltonLibrary. There may be a bulletin related to the issue your vehicle has.
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1 American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety 2023 survey. https://aaafoundation.org/american-driving-survey-2023/
2 “Cadillac and MycoWorks Develop Mushroom-Based Renewable Leather,” Cadillac Newsroom, June 26, 2024. https://news.cadillac.com/newsroom.detail.html/Pages/news/us/en/2024/jun/0626-mycoworks.html
3 “Double Shot of Sustainability: Ford and McDonald’s Collaborate to Convert Coffee Bean Skin into Car Parts,” Ford Newsroom, December 4, 2019. https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2019/12/04/ford-mcdonalds-collaboration-convert-coffee-bean-waste-into-car-parts.html
4 “Nissan’s Leaf Opts for Bioresin-Based Seats and Interior Trim,” PlasticsToday, November 28, 2012. https://www.plasticstoday.com/resin-pricing/nissan-s-leaf-opts-for-bioresin-based-seats-and-interior-trim