Update: Katzkin = best quality, best customer service

Are you saying my leather seats in my Challenger are katzkins?

 

Depending on the year, yes

https://katzkin.com/why-katzkin/

 

My Clazzios were way more customizable. Put them on myself in like two hours and only cost me 500 dollars. Only have 6k miles on them right now but they look brand new still.

 

Interesting.

 

Conditioners work for leather and faux leather and must be used for the material to remain plush (leathers should never get hard).

It does not shock me that Katzkin does a horrible job writing cleaning/care instructions. Most companies don’t. My cousin’s Jaguar came with the same instructions in the manual but obviously thats not how to care for leather over time.

I agree with fighting with the dealer that did the install. They should be advocating for you.

 

Look like pretty cut and clear instructions to me.

 

I am willing to bet 2 hours is a gross exaggeration (unless you have an access cab).

My Clazzios front and back took me 6 hours and I had help.

I love my Clazzios. One of my best mods yet.

 

You can find Katzkin also for under $500. (I paid about $400 and installed myself). Install is a little tougher but still doable by anyone who can do the Clazzios, but install would take at least twice as long. Not saying Clazzios aren’t great also, but pricing can be a lot closer together than many realize. Of course OPs set up with seat coolers/heaters etc add quite a bit to the price.


Bummer OP about the wear, I have haven’t seen anything that bad that soon. Looks almost as bad as the leather in my 4Runner looked after about 10 years and 150k, I didn’t use katzkin that time but one of thier competitors. I’ve never used any conditioners on that truck or this one, just damp rag to clean.
Ive only got about 10k miles and 1.5 years on my Katzkins in my Taco, I hope I won’t have the issues you do, surprised the dealer won’t work with you if they were dealer installed, sounds like they are still under warrantee.

 

Sub'd

 

I've had my Katzkin seats for coming up on a year and have not had a single issue. They still look as good as the day they were installed.

 

2 yr/25k mile katskinz in my 2016 Challenger Scat Pack shaker. Heated and cooled.
Very little maintenance done aside from occasionally wiping them down with a semi damp rag.

 

Thanks to everyone who's chiming in. I don't see anyone who's had their Katzkins much over 2 years -- is there anyone out there who has an "old" set?

I've been getting the runaround for months. My local Toyota dealer won't doing anything except tell me the company who sells/installs the Katzkin for them is an independent company so I have to go through them. Then I talk to that company at the dealership (they have a little kiosk in there) and they say I need to talk to their install shop down the road. But that shop is by appointment only and never, ever answers their phone. It's been very frustrating.

I also reached out to Katzkin directly via their website and got one reply saying they won't help me, and they won't reply either of the two messages I sent following up with that.

 

The center of the photo in the original post is about 4" in front of the lumbar wheel.

 

Suddenly, that stock upholstery ain't looking so bad. OP sorry to hear. Big price tag for something you sit and fart on.

 

Beautiful car, sounds like the one I park next to every day:

 

While I can sympathize with your issues. Katzkin isn't necessarily to blame here. You aren't their customer. You didn't buy from them. If anything, try calling their 800# and ask for a referral to a authorized dealer for warranty appraisal. Your issues stem from lack of support via who you purchased and installed it through. While none of us can make the claim that the damage isnt failed product or from say rivets on pants. What we can do is suggest you find other channels that follow protocol. Really i'd be fucking blasting your dealer and the installer / reseller. fuck those guys.

 

Katzkin['s competitor] made the product that's failing, so I would think they should take some ownership. But yeah, I don't call Japan if my Toyota has a warranty issue, that's what local dealers are there to take care of. Unfortunately these local dealers are your best friend until they make the sale, then they disappear when you need something.

 

Sorry to say if you haven't conditioned your seats in 2.5 years the leather has dried out causing the cracks.

I use this on my Katzkin leather in my Tundra every three months or so and they look great having them about the same time you have had yours other then the spot i pinched sliding out of the seat. And I'm covered in oil dirt and metal dust every day after work.
http://www.chemicalguys.com/Leather_Care_Kit_16_oz_2_Pack_p/spi_109_16.htm

 

This is where you messed up. I know the instructions on the Katzkin website are lacking and the dealer or company that installed it should've given you better care instructions but seems like they didn't.

Wiping down leather with water just dries it out, wiping down any permeable surface with water dries it out, thats just the basic chemistry of H2O being a polar molecule. That gives water some amazing properties like ability to dissolve charged particles and other polar molecules, while maintaining incredible surface tension given its solute properties etc... Polar molecules attract moisture so when you wipe down your leather seats with water then let it evaporate every time that pulls a LITTLE more moisture out. Kind of like licking your chapped lips only makes them worse....

You DEFINITELY need to use a good leather conditioner if you want your leather to look good while lasting years.

Katzkin even makes a leather conditioner themselves called "leather lotion". I work at a dealership that installs Katzkin and we even include a bottle of Katzkin conditioner for free with clear instructions to buy more and continue using it.

A damp rag is all you need to CLEAN the leather, but thats NOT the same as conditioning the leather. You need to do both if you want it to last.

there are also varying degrees of quality on Katszin leather, you got the partial leather whereas you can pay more for full, better quality leather.

I personally recommend Lexol products for leather maintenance but there's plenty of other good products. I'd still try to get this replaced under a warranty claim but after two years its honestly not likely. If you redo the leather just make sure to use a good conditioner and it'll last longer promise!

Edit: also realized OP is in salt lake city, bro thats one of the driest places in the US! Its especially important to use good conditioner in low humidity climates. Someone in the south might be able to get away with not using conditioner but desert climates it becomes critically important.

 

I like Lexol products for leather and have used them since I got my first baseball glove in the '80s. The Katzkin installer told me the surface of the seats is more like paint than leather due to how they treat it with color and waterproofing, and they suggested that using leather conditioners is either a waste of time because it won't penetrate the surface layer -- or worse if the chemicals damage that top layer. Either way it wasn't written down so they'll says it's hearsay and doesn't matter. But I've been careful to follow the manufacturer instructions.