Can my cloth seats be salvaged?

[hardisj]

I own a 2006 Honda Civic Sedan. Brown interior. >150k miles. I bought it new and have been the sole owner.

When I first bought the car I sprayed scotch guard on the seats because that's all I knew. Not sure it was the best idea, but I was ignorant. Over the years the cloth seats have just taken a beating. Some spots are so worn on the driver's seat they are black. BLACK! Seriously!?


I've tried using carpet shampoo with the shampooer machine (borrowed from my folks). That didn't really do anything. Some stains are just in there so good, I'm not even sure they can be removed. At this point I honestly think my only real options are to invest in some good seat covers or buy new seats (salvage yard, in which case they probably aren't great either). I'd like to not go these directions and prefer to salvage what I can, though.


Here's a picture of the front driver's seat:







Any links or suggestions on techniques, product, etc would be greatly appreciated. Or, heck, your opinion on if it's worth pursuing at all.


Thanks in advance,
Erin

[Romach]

Have you tried a decent steam cleaner.

I tend to find this worked on my wife's 2006 powder blue seats

[KB in MD]

I removed the seats. The factory seat covers were quite easy to remove and replace. I took them off and sprayed them with some APC and hosed them off. Let them dry up and reinstalled. They are snapped on. You should take a look at yours

[hardisj]

Unfortunately, the seat covers on my seat aren't very easy to remove. Mainly due to the airbag device and associated wiring. I've taken this car apart more times than I can count for stereo related things and I once attempted to do some seat work and wound up scrapping the idea due to this. I mean, I could do it... but I wouldn't call it easy.

[Romach]

All I did was spray my wife's car seats with 303 cleaner and scrub with a cheap medium strength tooth brush. Rub with a microfibre and let it dry.

When that left rings like water stains I grabbed my karcher steamer that I use for cleaning ovens, showers and tiles.

I used the floor cleaner with a white terry towel and took my time and to do front and back seats took me about an hour but looked new!

I then sprayed them with 303 protector and left to dry over night and the finish was brilliant

[wdmaccord]

Since I don't have a steamer, if I was tackling this job I would start with a good fabric cleaner like CG Fabric Clean. Mist the seats lightly with distilled water, mist with CGFC, then use an upholstery brush to scrub lightly. Then use a household extractor like a little green machine with only water in the soap dispenser. Use the water to rinse as you extract. If the foam of the CG causes problems, you could also try something like Folex which is available at home improvement stores.

[hardisj]

I don't have a steam machine myself, but I might be able to borrow one.