Alcantara vs Leather
Discussion
I've had BMW's take on alcantara in the past but never the real deal. The stuff in the BMW appeared quite fragile and prone to wear.
Is proper Alcantara, as you get in McLaren's, hardwearing?
I'd really like to go that route on my 540, especially across the dash, but am really concerned that it would end up fraying/bobbling whereas leather can always be fed and made to look new again as it ages.
Interested in peoples experiences.
Is proper Alcantara, as you get in McLaren's, hardwearing?
I'd really like to go that route on my 540, especially across the dash, but am really concerned that it would end up fraying/bobbling whereas leather can always be fed and made to look new again as it ages.
Interested in peoples experiences.
I had to make this decision recently for a dash retrim. In the end I opted for leather for similar reasons to those above. I know it can be nourished, generally looked after and will last a long time. That's not to say that you can't do the same with alcantara, just that I don't have any experience of doing that. Also, for me at least, leather ages well - it gets characterful with usage. I've not seen alcantara do the same.
fyfe said:
I had to make this decision recently for a dash retrim. In the end I opted for leather for similar reasons to those above. I know it can be nourished, generally looked after and will last a long time. That's not to say that you can't do the same with alcantara, just that I don't have any experience of doing that. Also, for me at least, leather ages well - it gets characterful with usage. I've not seen alcantara do the same.
I have to say, that's my current thinking too.cho said:
Gary I think you're just suffering from withdrawal symptoms and finding different ways to keep yourself occupped ;p
I did a similar thing when waiting for the only car I've ever ordered from new and ended up buying a very expensive mountain bike to keep myself occupied!
Probably I did a similar thing when waiting for the only car I've ever ordered from new and ended up buying a very expensive mountain bike to keep myself occupied!
. The anticipation is all part of the process.We're moving to a new part of the country at the end of June so will have plenty to occupy my time then!
Off to see the car in the flesh in 2 weeks time so that should also help
garyhun said:
andrew said:
41k over eight years on my lambo : alcantara seats and dashboard look perfect
hth
Yes that does, thanks.hth
Great to hear the car is being used as it was intended.
sounds like we're mistaking alcantara for silk !
google it
it's made 100% from polyurethane and polyester, and used for cinema seats, hospital furniture, etc
andrew said:
sounds like we're mistaking alcantara for silk !
google it
it's made 100% from polyurethane and polyester, and used for cinema seats, hospital furniture, etc
Living on the South coast I've seen it used a lot in boats too.
As I said, only have the BMW stuff to go by which was not good.
andrew said:
garyhun said:
andrew said:
41k over eight years on my lambo : alcantara seats and dashboard look perfect
hth
Yes that does, thanks.hth
Great to hear the car is being used as it was intended.
sounds like we're mistaking alcantara for silk !
google it
it's made 100% from polyurethane and polyester, and used for cinema seats, hospital furniture, etc
Real alcantara has one of the highest durability ratings of all commercial upholstery fabrics. It also can be cleaned easily.
It's great for seats, dashboards and door panels, although for steering wheels and gearshift knobs it is disgusting and horrible.
flemke said:
andrew said:
garyhun said:
andrew said:
41k over eight years on my lambo : alcantara seats and dashboard look perfect
hth
Yes that does, thanks.hth
Great to hear the car is being used as it was intended.
sounds like we're mistaking alcantara for silk !
google it
it's made 100% from polyurethane and polyester, and used for cinema seats, hospital furniture, etc
Real alcantara has one of the highest durability ratings of all commercial upholstery fabrics. It also can be cleaned easily.
It's great for seats, dashboards and door panels, although for steering wheels and gearshift knobs it is disgusting and horrible.
garyhun said:
flemke said:
andrew said:
garyhun said:
andrew said:
41k over eight years on my lambo : alcantara seats and dashboard look perfect
hth
Yes that does, thanks.hth
Great to hear the car is being used as it was intended.
sounds like we're mistaking alcantara for silk !
google it
it's made 100% from polyurethane and polyester, and used for cinema seats, hospital furniture, etc
Real alcantara has one of the highest durability ratings of all commercial upholstery fabrics. It also can be cleaned easily.
It's great for seats, dashboards and door panels, although for steering wheels and gearshift knobs it is disgusting and horrible.
Even when alcantara is new, it seems to have less friction against the skin than either suede or leather or even the old bakelite has. That is the first problem.
The second is that not only does one's skin exude oil, it also exudes perspiration.
I know nothing about chemistry, but it feels like the synthetic alcantara does not absorb even tiny amounts of perspiration as well as suede and leather do.
The result is that an alcantara steering wheel will simultaneously be more difficult to grip and will feel less comfortable against one's skin than any of the alternatives will do.
Suede on a steering wheel is fantastic when it is fresh, but in my experience it seems to have a life of about 10 hours before it will begin to get grubby and unpleasant. This effect is delayed by the wearing of gloves, but unfortunately it is not eliminated.
br d said:
I went Alcantara interior with carbon pack but leather wheel. Love the look and feel of the Alcantara but didn't want it on the wheel, had an Alcantara wheel on my lambo previously and it really degraded over the course of a couple of years.
are you sure that the lambo wheel wasn't suede ? even with the full alcantara interior ( superleggera ), lambo would only supply me with a leather or suede steering wheel
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