Leather seats falling apart

[P.Bronner]

I have a 2010 Expedition with leather seats that are falling apart. Its not a stitching issue, the leather itself is literally dis-integrating. Its happening on two seats where the occupants (Wife and Son) routinely wear shorts, so the seats are in contact with bare skin. Is anybody else having this problem? The car is 26 mos. old and has less than 21,000 mi. and Ford is denying warranty coverage. They have accused me of using improper cleaning materials on the seats, thereby causing the damage. I've never used anything but a damp cloth!! I'd appreciate hearing back from anybody whose has problems with their seats.

 

[rick chitown]

Mine is a '10 as well, and I have noticed my leather looking a little rough, but nowhere near as bad as your sounds... That's ridiculous that Ford is giving you any grief at all!! If I'm reading that correctly, you are still well w/in the parameters of your 3/36 bumper to bumper to warranty?

I would suggest a different dealer nearby (or even if you have to drive a little bit...), make more of a scene, perhaps. Obviously be polite with the dealer, but firm and vocal. If they still say no, ask for the Ford zone managers name and contact info. Trust me when I tell you, they WILL fix your issue and make you happy. Ford has too much momentum and too much to lose right now to not keep every customer happy.

I speak from experience in getting the lock cylinders replaced on 5 different Ford cargo vans that my co owns... one of which is 11 years old! They WILL work with you...

Good luck.

 

[GAINMOB]

sucks to hear this is happening...i havent heard of anyone else having these types of probs...hopes it works in your favor...which seats is this happening to?

 

[sgtowing]

That definitly sounds wierd. I also say go to another dealer and see what they say. Good luck.

 

[P.Bronner]

Thanks for the feedback, everybody. I've been doing business with this same dealer for a long time and have been happy with them. They told me they were required to send pictures up the chain to some type of warranty arbitrator who denied the claim. The dealer offered to eat half the bill to keep me happy(which I truly appreciate),so I don't know if a different dealer will help or not--but I'm definitely keeping that option open. I've been in contact with customer service and have a case number, so we'll see where that goes. This really gripes me, as I have done a lot of business with Ford in the last 9-10 years, 3 crew cab Superduties and this Exped. I sure don't put much faith in the term "bumper to bumper" anymore. Maybe it just covers the bumpers?!

 

[Dib52]

Not to sound like an a$$, but a damp cloth only will only go so far on the leather. You still need to apply some form of conditioner every 6 months or so to keep the leather pliable. My 08 has seen its fair share of in/out with hardly any wear of the leather, but I'm **** when it comes to treatment. I have used ArmorAll Leather care gel every 6-8 months with great results.
Also, you didn't say where in Ca, but if you're near the coast, small amounts of sand can end up on bare legs and act as sandpaper rubbing the leather resulting in failure. Still agree with others that Ford should step up and take care of you under warranty.

 

[Nathanialson 08]

try talking to a different dealer, my brother had a problem with a Mazda 6 he used to own, the check engine light came on and the first dealer and Mazda said it was due to abuse and since it failed an emissions test because and they had a tool hooked up to do the emissions test they voided his warrenty for good but once he whent to another Mazda dealer and told him it failed an emissions test they worked out the bugs and reinstated his warrenty and Mazda covered the cost of the work and fixed his car, but ya i say if Ford is giving you grief over the seat issue and the dealer wont work with you try another dealer, its BS and I love Ford dont get me wrong but they are impossible to work with at times.

 

[Stoned06]

I would think pressing the dealer harder may be beneficial. Try to find someone else on ANY Ford vehicle forum who has had a similar problem resolved, and use that as an example (with an actual warranty claim number).
Do your wife and son have sunscreen or lotion on their legs prior to sitting down. This could cause the leather to lose it's color "layer".

 

[Kvou812]

I currently have an 03' with 73k miles on it... and just a little wear on the driver's seat. From 07' to 10' I had an 07' that I bought new and Ford ended up replacing the leather after a year on both front seats because they were wearing so bad. They were showing wear again when I traded it in with about 30k miles though not as bad.

 

[P.Bronner]

No sunscreens or lotions involved, just a very poor tanning job on the materials.

 

[Nathanialson 08]

If all else fails and you have about $1500 to spend you can always replace the leather with Katzin seat covers?????? i hear they are a sturdy material that lasts forever and it's not just a seat cover but they pull off the actual leather from the factory and and reuse the phome padding and then install the new seat cover materials, they look good and theres a variety of colors to choose from, i'm thinking about doing this to my 08 expy because i hate the factory cloh material.

http://www.katzkin.com/