MASTER THREAD: Removing marks from white seats

[Michael-3P]

So, the paper towel trick worked, and lo and behold the hat stained it. So, a little bit of liquid and it transfers dye.

The good news is that it enabled me to try different things to see if anything would get the dye out of the paper towel. The only thing I had any luck with was nail polish remover. So, armed with a small paintbrush and a bottle I carefully attacked the stain in the car one small spot at a time. Each time I’d finish a spot, I’d thoroughly clean the remover off of the seat. After a nerve-wracking eternity, I was able to get most of it to come out. There’s still some left but it’s a lot better than it was. Perhaps I’ll get up some more courage another day, but for now I’ll live with it.

Same thing happened to me - been trying to use cue tips + nail polish remover. It's been faded slightly, but nothing all that drastic. Any updates on your end?

 

[Michael-3P]

A member on here, maybe a few months ago, posted his white rear seat staining that I think he determined came from a baseball cap left on his back seat for some time. Kind of reminds me of your situation. Don’t know if I reread his thread later to see what the outcome of trying to remove was though.

just found the thread...Get a white interior they said...... Post #53 talks about another person’s seat belt stain. OP with hat (the stain source) had some luck getting most of the stain out.

Thanks, seems very similar in nature - perhaps there was a hat to blame - i've been able to somewhat lighten it, but still needs some color correction.

 

[super20g]

Even the seatbelts stain the white seats... Case open with Tesla but no follow up yet.

Seatbelt 'burn-in' on white seats?

 

[Atari2600]

That is weird. I've never seen that. Grease?

 

[super20g]

That is weird. I've never seen that. Grease?

Wish I knew... Several others have the same issue. Not sure how the seat belts are made, but I didn't expect that kind of non-removable transfer at 1K miles...

 

[Atari2600]

I have white seats, almost 25,000 miles and over one year and never had that issue period.

Grab a white microfiber cloth and see if you can get any transfer via some vigorous rubbing on that belt.

 

[super20g]

I have white seats, almost 25,000 miles and over one year and never had that issue period.

Grab a white microfiber cloth and see if you can get any transfer via some vigorous rubbing on that belt.

I will give it a try later. First time I reported it they told me to pack sand and file an arb claim if I was unhappy. Second time I reported it they opened a case with engineering and said it will be fixed when they can fix the root cause as well so it doesn't reoccur on a new backseat. I assume others are reporting it as well now which is probably why they didn't tell me to pack sand again. I can always count on their inconsistency to be consistent.

 

[minis2003]

try baby wipes to clean with Vinyl protection on top

 

[XLR82XS]

https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Foamy-Automotive-Interior-Cleaner/dp/B01KYFUKUA

 

[N.Y.R.]

https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Foamy-Automotive-Interior-Cleaner/dp/B01KYFUKUA

This is the second time you’ve posted this link with ZERO context. Don’t bother wasting anyone’s time unless you can explain how it works and it actually does work.

 

[Atari2600]

https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Foamy-Automotive-Interior-Cleaner/dp/B01KYFUKUA

Is this a joke? We do not have carpeted white seats.

 

[XLR82XS]

This is the second time you’ve posted this link with ZERO context. Don’t bother wasting anyone’s time unless you can explain how it works and it actually does work.

I did explain in another thread. Ive used this for years with excellent results on vinyl, plastic & leather. I'm not wasting anyones time - it's self explanatory. It works.

 

[Jazz_MIII]

So I have the white interior and wore a denim jacket that transferred blue dye to the seat around where my shoulder blades rested. I used a magic eraser very carefully and was able to remove the dye, but had to do it a few times. Initially I had taken my vehicle to a detailing place where they helped me figure out what to do, and recommended the magic eraser. I just dipped it in water, used light circular motions, and wiped with a towel as I removed the stain....I hope this helps!

 

[Rachmaninov]

*Warning*
Magic eraser is an abrasive that will remove both the stain and the actual material finish. While it may provide a temporary fix it can definitely cause a permanent issue.

 

[neurocutie]

try carbon tet or benzene...

nail polish remover is a bad idea, that's acetone, very aggressive solvent

try not to breathe in any of these agents, particularly benzene, wear gloves, handle very carefully, but very good cleaning agent

 

[awpk]

I have a white interior SR+ that within 6 months, started staining on the driver’s seat lower outer bolster. The commonly noted stretch marks as well as blue dye transfer (most likely from jeans).

My local detailing/PPF shop who does a ton of Teslas used the “Inside” cleaner from Carpro together with steam - they sprayed Carpro Inside on the seat bolster, then massaged it in using a towel wrapped on the head of a steamer.

The blue was pretty caked in (enough that other cleaners didn’t work) but this method did the trick and took out 95%+ of the color. It’s also safe on the leather without any discoloring or damage. I would think much more so than any abrasive (magic eraser) or strong chemical (acetone, etc)..

Would recommend. Can also provide a very short video clip if I can figure out how to upload..

 

[N.Y.R.]

I have a white interior SR+ that within 6 months, started staining on the driver’s seat lower outer bolster. The commonly noted stretch marks as well as blue dye transfer (most likely from jeans).

My local detailing/PPF shop who does a ton of Teslas used the “Inside” cleaner from Carpro together with steam - they sprayed Carpro Inside on the seat bolster, then massaged it in using a towel wrapped on the head of a steamer.

The blue was pretty caked in (enough that other cleaners didn’t work) but this method did the trick and took out 95%+ of the color. It’s also safe on the leather without any discoloring or damage. I would think much more so than any abrasive (magic eraser) or strong chemical (acetone, etc)..

Would recommend. Can also provide a very short video clip if I can figure out how to upload..

Yes please, would love to see the video. Just upload it to Vimeo and link it here.

 

[awpk]

Yes please, would love to see the video. Just upload it to Vimeo and link it here.

The picture is after the 1st attempt without steam, and the video is a short clip of the steam

 

[diggity]

OH man, you all are scaring me off from getting white seats! I love the way they look, but really don't want the hassle of dealing with this kind of upkeep!

 

[adhoc]

OH man, you all are scaring me off from getting white seats! I love the way they look, but really don't want the hassle of dealing with this kind of upkeep!

I used Gyeon Leather cleaner then Gyeon Quartz Leather Shield
after drying very soft and slippery feel to white vegan!