First Review: Wolfgang Leather Cleaner / Conditioner

[Racer Vol]

It's a cold rainy night and the Mrs. is out with the ladies, so I thought why not do some interior cleaning and write a review on a couple of the products.

I am new to higher end detailing products and have been very pleased with everything I have tried so far. After being particularly impressed with the Wolfgang Tire and Wheel Cleaner, I decided to try the WG Leather Cleaner and Conditioner. The vehicle is a 2011 Cadillac CTS-V, which is not so coincidentally the reason I am now a member of AGO!


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The bolsters on the driver’s seat were starting to shine a little, so it was time for a cleaning.

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I divided the seat into upper and lower sections and applied the cleaner with a microfiber applicator that was dampened with 3-4 sprays of cleaner per section. The cleaner smells somewhat similar to Windex which was not bad but not really great either. It went on easily and made a very noticeable difference in the appearance of the seats rather quickly.

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After looking at the microfiber applicator, you can really see how dirty the seat was. The photo was taken after cleaning only the driver’s seat. After seeing this I was happy with how the cleaner was working.

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Next I grabbed a fresh microfiber applicator and began applying the conditioner. The amount shown was enough to do one section of the seat. I also tended to apply more conditioner to the areas of the seat that see the most wear. I am not sure if this will help long term or not, but it made me feel a little better. The conditioner does not have a great smell, and I was a bit worried about the smell overpowering the normal leather smell. After letting the car sit for a while, it actually boosts the natural leather smell, which is great. The conditioner also adds tremendous amounts of gloss when first applied, so I was worried about this as well.

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After applying the conditioner, I took a look at the applicator, and it picked up a bit of dirt as well. I think I may need to get some brushes to agitate the surface a little more during cleaning.

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The directions state to wait a few minutes and then buff the surfaces. After the wait and buffing, the gloss had pretty much vanished and left a nice matte finish, which is what I prefer. The leather feels pretty nice, but the conditioner leaves the finish just a little bit slick for my preference. They are not slippery by any means, but I would rather the leather have a bit of grip.

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Just to show how glossy the conditioner goes on, I snapped a couple of photos of the dash. It’s hard to see on the right side of the dash, but you can definitely see where I stopped applying above the steering wheel. Fortunately after you let it dry and duff it out, the gloss goes away.

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Overall I am pleased with the performance of these two products, but I will admit that I do not have much margin for comparison. I have heard though that you should “Find something you like and use it often”, and I think these will work just fine. They clean well, leave a nice finish and smell, and are easy to use. Hopefully that will translate into longer term performance as well.


While I had the camera out, I also decided to snap some shots just for fun and decided to post them just for fun. Thanks for reading!

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[CM8 6MT]

Is it me or does your after shots look like the leather lost some of its natural shine? Seems like the post shots look faded?

[Racer Vol]

Is it me or does your after shots look like the leather lost some of its natural shine? Seems like the post shots look faded?

I think the flash may have washed out the color in the photo a little. Plus the center of the seats are suede, so that may be part of it as they are definitely not shiny. I will try to take some photos when the sun decides to show back up to see if that makes a difference.

[CM8 6MT]

I think the flash may have washed out the color in the photo a little. Plus the center of the seats are suede, so that may be part of it as they are definitely not shiny. I will try to take some photos when the sun decides to show back up to see if that makes a difference.

Ahh I see that makes sense now, other then that it looks like the product cleaned really well! Very well put together review, looking forward to seeing more good job :)

[Racer Vol]

Ahh I see that makes sense now, other then that it looks like the product cleaned really well! Very well put together review, looking forward to seeing more good job :)

Thanks for the compliments, much appreciated. The car has less than 10k miles but after cleaning all the seats, the dash, and the doors, I was really surprised at how dirty everything was. Products worked well indeed.

[ihaveacamaro]

It's nice to see the cracks in the leather happen in all GM cars lol!

Seats do look better now, thanks for the review :)

[bikeride4fun]

Great review....:dblthumb2:

[WRAPT C5Z06]

Nice job. Next time, spray the cleaner directly onto the surface, then agitate.

[Racer Vol]

Nice job. Next time, spray the cleaner directly onto the surface, then agitate.

Thank you. I would have done that, but I was unsure of the compatibility with the suede inserts and wanted to be careful with how / where it was applied. Does anyone know if the cleaner or conditioner will harm suede?

[VroomVroom]

The cleaner and conditioner will be fine on the suede, but be sure to use a very gentle brush for any agitation...and be prepared going in that the more product you use, the more effort you'll need to get the residue out from those ventilation holes. I actually dread doing the leather in my wife's Lexus for this reason. Ventilated seats are a really sweet option to keep your tuckus cool in the summer, but they're not a detailer's friend. :) At that, if you're a wee bit OCD, following up with a final brushing, with all strokes in the same direction, will make the suede look perfect for your 'after' shots.

Nice review on a fine set of products.

[Racer Vol]

The cleaner and conditioner will be fine on the suede, but be sure to use a very gentle brush for any agitation...and be prepared going in that the more product you use, the more effort you'll need to get the residue out from those ventilation holes. I actually dread doing the leather in my wife's Lexus for this reason. Ventilated seats are a really sweet option to keep your tuckus cool in the summer, but they're not a detailer's friend. :) At that, if you're a wee bit OCD, following up with a final brushing, with all strokes in the same direction, will make the suede look perfect for your 'after' shots.

Nice review on a fine set of products.

Thank you for the compliments and the info on the suede compatibility. The one thing I have learned so far with these good products is that less is more, so I will keep your tip in mind when working around the ventilation holes. They are very much worth the extra effort though, gotta keep cool!!!

[brazuca]

A combo i want to try. Thanks for the review :xyxthumbs: