Is Alcantara easy to maintain? Is it kid friendly?

**snopyro** · 05-03-2012 02:02 PM

Just trying to get a gauge of how easy the alcantara suede is to maintain with infants/toddlers. Anyone here have direct experience? Everyone I talk to say to train your kids to not eat inside the car. Maybe I should consider the waterproof backseat covers that they make to catch dog hair?

At least with the full leather, it's pretty much wipe and clean. Not sure if the alcantara beads off liquids or retains stains. I think they make a suede scotchgard, right?

(I'm referring to the silver/light gray and black recaros.)

**Scotty@Advanced** · 05-03-2012 02:22 PM

Originally Posted by snopyro

Just trying to get a gauge of how easy the alcantara suede is to maintain with infants/toddlers. Anyone here have direct experience? Everyone I talk to say to train your kids to not eat inside the car. Maybe I should consider the waterproof backseat covers that they make to catch dog hair?

At least with the full leather, it's pretty much wipe and clean. Not sure if the alcantara beads off liquids or retains stains. I think they make a suede scotchgard, right?

(I'm referring to the silver/light gray and black recaros.)

Under high wear conditions it balls up and starts to look nappy rather quickly. Alcantara will also stain alot easier than leather.

**dparm** · 05-03-2012 02:26 PM

I don't think it's a good material for car interiors (at least, for high traffic areas like on the seats, wheel, shifter, etc). It works well for things like couches since you're sitting fairly still.

You will need to maintain it with a fabric shaver and suede brush. There are indeed special stain guard and cleaning foams for it.

**MacFady** · 05-03-2012 02:27 PM

Not toddlers, but close. I had alcantara seats and steering wheel in my previous car. Never had much other than water spill on them except for one time someone vomited on the passenger seat and partially into the shift boot (which was also alcantara).

It cleans up easy enough if you take your time and don't rub too hard or get it too wet. In the case I mentioned you might be left with a residue when it dries but if you scrub it a little bit with a toothbrush or fabric brush it will work it out.

The seats were way easier to maintain than the steering wheel.

**GameBreaker** · 05-03-2012 02:53 PM

To answer your questions:

1. No.

2. Definitely NO.

I still prefer them over full leather, but they require a decent amount of care to maintain.

**dg1981** · 05-03-2012 03:13 PM

I've had the light grey alcantara in my B6... I honestly don't think its as bad as some think to maintain. However, I don't eat in my car, nor do I allow anyone else to. I disagree with the stain comments also, I had that black wheel shine/brake residue get on them on accident, and it came right out with light dish detergent water and gentle rubbing. However, the "brightness" of the grey will get a little dimmer after time. After 80K+miles the "piling" of it wasn't that bad and could be reduced with a special comb. Its not suede (animal hide), its not microfiber (a textile); its a synthetic unlike either and I think it holds up very well in an automotive environment. That being said, I have black alcantara in my B7 now.

**MacFady** · 05-04-2012 04:57 AM

If you do clean it and it gets nappy or fuzzy then I used to use one of those electric sweater de-fuzzers to shave it off, worked great. I had to use it on the steering wheel on my BMW as well as the drivers side seat bolster a couple of times a year. It's basically like a small electric razor for fabric.

**dparm** · 05-04-2012 06:32 AM

Originally Posted by MacFady

If you do clean it and it gets nappy or fuzzy then I used to use one of those electric sweater de-fuzzers to shave it off, worked great. I had to use it on the steering wheel on my BMW as well as the drivers side seat bolster a couple of times a year. It's basically like a small electric razor for fabric.

These:

And these:

Will become part of your weekly cleaning routine. If you have suede shoes, you will know exactly what I mean.

**B6JoeS4** · 05-04-2012 07:19 AM

I use a sweater shaver on mine about once a week. I would NEVER own a car with alcantara on the seats ever again. Sure they look good when they are clean and trim, but after a week of getting in and out of it, they start to get ugly fast. Mine are the gray alcantara so of course they get dirtiest that fastest. Black alcantara would be best but that's only available on b7's.

You also have to learn how to sit in them. If when getting in the car, you sit your fatass down kind of sideways, then twist in the seat to face forward, you'll beat the hell out of them. You have to either get in perfectly straight, or hoist yourself with your arms to lift and turn so you don't twist on them. I have even taught my girlfriend how to properly get in and out of my car so she doesn't mess up the seats. Another thing, if you are one of those people that kind of slides down the back of the seat to sit down, you will cause the backs of the seat to get all nappy and ugly.

I almost always sit on a towel so I don't FUBAR them up. Especially on long trips. So yeah, the hell with alcantara.

**ilko** · 05-04-2012 08:20 AM

Ouch. I'm glad I didn't buy a car with alcantara. A few that I've seen looked pretty worn out. I also have a toddler AND a dog.

I did have an alcantara steering wheel in a 911 a while back and it was super comfortable. No issues with that in 7K miles before I sold the car.

**dr.evil** · 05-04-2012 10:42 AM

Anyone know anywhere that sells this material to refinish the seats? After 100k miles, my jeans have successfully worn a hole in it on the drivers side. :(

**B6JoeS4** · 05-04-2012 08:38 PM

You have to get it from Recaro I think. I remeber someone tracking it down a while back. It was hard to do and very expensive to obtain OE stuff. If I ever redo mine, they will be done in black alcantara

**dante18** · 05-05-2012 05:55 AM

I have it and concur with the replies so far. It is not a good fabric choice for auto interiors.It does stain rather easily and pills up rather quickly. As a matter of fact if I did not get the deal on my car that I found I would never go with the alcantara. This is of course my humble opinion but I would much rather have full cow skin any day.

Invest in a good sweater shaver (it works wonders on the pilling) and a high quality cleaner. To keep it looking good certainly takes regular maintenence.

Upside: It does look nice and it's warm in winter. It also keeps you from sliding during spirited operation.

I too am looking for replacement material to refinish drivers seat... hole after 98k...

**billyp7718** · 05-05-2012 11:17 AM

Had Alcantera wheel and seats on my BMW..... Learned my lesson and steered clear on my s4. My leather on my 06 still is mistaken for new.

**jlaudio** · 05-05-2012 11:43 AM

i have the black w/ white alcantara inserts, and at 74k mine looks new. either the previous owner was a 80lb girl or he never wore jeans..
i would still buy the color combo again, people drool at the white/black offset on a black car, as do i

**dg1981** · 05-05-2012 01:05 PM

Originally Posted by dr.evil

Anyone know anywhere that sells this material to refinish the seats? After 100k miles, my jeans have successfully worn a hole in it on the drivers side. :(

ANY automotive reupholsterer (sp?) can do this, and it will be of equal quality and finish as OEM. Search, someone actually did it on here for a b6/b7.

Originally Posted by B6JoeS4

You have to get it from Recaro I think. I remeber someone tracking it down a while back. It was hard to do and very expensive to obtain OE stuff. If I ever redo mine, they will be done in black alcantara

False. Alcantara can be had in a seemingly endless variety of colors from any supplier of leather or textiles, but it is a premium material so I can't be sure on price...

snopyro: to be honest, I think we are witnessing in this thread a bit of what we see on the forums in general: negative experiences are often shared, while you don't hear people say "engine NOT blown at 105K/my alcantara is holding up as good as ever!". I personally think alcantara is an outstanding alternative to leather and is both appropriate and effective in automotive applications. There is a reason high end race seats often come in alcantara. And, it is one of the number one reasons I have an S4 (had it in my B6, have it in my B7) to begin with.

**B6JoeS4** · 05-05-2012 03:07 PM

You sure about that? The one guy that had his seats redone on here said hi upholstery shop had a very hard time getting the right color

**dg1981** · 05-05-2012 05:26 PM

Originally Posted by B6JoeS4

You sure about that? The one guy that had his seats redone on here said hi upholstery shop had a very hard time getting the right color

I don't know the specifics of the other guy, and we might not even be referencing the same case... but in any event, if you are trying to match then I assume you are only replacing a portion of the seat and matching would be difficult either way (wear and discoloration of other portions not replaced, inconsistency in manufacturing over time), an experience you are likely to encounter with leather too. But the material is readily available and in many colors. the grey shouldn't be difficult to find, the nogaro blue could prove more difficult, and the black no problem.... which is why I have black now.

**billyp7718** · 05-07-2012 02:25 PM

Originally Posted by jlaudio

i have the black w/ white alcantara inserts, and at 74k mine looks new. either the previous owner was a 80lb girl or he never wore jeans..
i would still buy the color combo again, people drool at the white/black offset on a black car, as do i

I admit, that is the best color combo.