Ultra white premium seats stain resistant coating

[Jason Bourne]

I wear jeans almost every single day. Like 95% of the time. My jeans are also very dark blue. After 3 months with UW seats in my Model S, they have yet to be needed to be cleaned. They still look brand new and, well, ultra white. I have a pack of baby wipes in the trunk in case I do get a stain, but I am yet to see any jean transfer. My wife’s SUV which has traditional tan leather seats need cleaning every month - you can see the blue tint from the jeans. But those same jeans she wears have yet to transfer onto my S’s UW seats even a little bit. Amazing.

Additionally I gave rides to 40+ people last weekend at a local National Drive Electric Week event - including multiple kids and even hosted a car seat and an infant. Even after 40+ people in all the seats (back was usually 2 or 3 people every lap), the seats didn’t have a single stain. 3 months in, still yet to clean them. I suspect based on what I’ve heard, a quick wipe with the baby wipes will take care of any/most stains.

Regarding the OP’s question...I have no idea if it’s a “coating” or an inherent property of the material itself. Allegedly it’s a material called “Ultra fabric” - you might research that company’s materials to see if you can find your answer. You could always ask Tesla - though not sure if the average Tesla employee would know.

I think this is the most helpful post I've read about the durability of UW seats

 

[Freedom101]

Ive had my UW seats in a model x for almost 2 months and have put 5000km on it. Two kids, 5 months and 8 years old.

I clean my car inside and outside every week. Not because I have to but because I like to .

They get marked up a little bit as far as smudges go or if a kids foot hits the seat but literally all it takes is a quick wipe with a damp microfiber cloth and it's good as new. I even somehow had blue ink on one of the back seats after giving my nieces a ride. I'll admit it scared me when I saw it but it wiped away with a baby wipe instantly.

I would NEVER, and I mean NEVER, use a magic eraser on the seats. Its way too abrasive and totally unnecessary from my experience. I have no facts on this but believe it will absolutely take off any long term protective coating. Stay away.

I haven't had to use it but the manual is pretty clear for trickier stains:

Polyurethane Seats

Wipe spills as soon as possible using a soft cloth moistened with warm water and non-detergent soap. Wipe gently in a circular motion. For difficult stains on ultra-white seats, use isopropyl alcohol, then wipe with a damp cloth. After cleaning, allow the seats to air dry.

I don't let my kids, or anyone else, eat in the car. We eat before we go, when we supercharge, or when we arrive. This isn't because of ultra white, I personally think eating shouldn't just be done anywhere whenever someone feels a slight urge. I know alot of people will disagree with it but it works for us. Covered drinks are fine and my 8 year old has been trained well.

They are super comfortable and easy to wipe. I'm more concerned about the stitching staining in the long run than I am the seats. So far no issue with the stitching though.

On those hot summer days the seats were awesome, not hot and uncomfortable / almost sweating feeling on my back. I love the look and would not trade them for any other color. I'd definitely order them again.

If you see a mark or mess wipe it up. If it doesn't come up follow the manual. I haven't had to use isopropyl alcohol once yet. Everything wipes up with a damp microfiber so far.

 

[xav-]

It seems ever time white seats gets brought up, the same video of the failing white perforated seats gets linked.
Tesla discontinued the perforated seats due to durability issues, they didn't just discontinue the white perf seats, they discontinued all colors of perf seats.
Tesla in fact recommends the Ultra White as their most stain resistant color. See the linked "Ultra White Seats" post for additional data points.

Not too surprised Tesla recommends that, considering they charge $3,300 for them! I know BMW doesn't charge a dime for fake leather seats, i meant sorry "vegan leather" seats .

That said I am planning too to buy them. My wife is vegetarian and she is going to freak out if we don't.

 

[Joe F]

9 months in, UW perf/ventilated seats. Low mileage so far, however, like new seats. Jeans 99%, however never unwashed new jeans as they'll transfer too easily, so no experience with that on the seats.

Had one bad scary moment: Had someone in the back seat, and a few WEEKS later, with the car having been out baking in the hot sun a few times, noticed heavy stains on both seat back and seat bottom. Then realized why she looked so tan: Heavy bronzer. Oh no! Looked at my wife for advice on how to clean it. Shrugged her shoulders and said I was on my own, it was my cousin that left her mark on the S. Crap.

Solution: good microfiber towel lightly moistened with water only, and stain was gone in seconds. I'm a believer.

 

[RyanT]

I do not feel sorry for you. The new ultraleather takes the cake. I'm seriously thinking of upgrading my seats to them. It's not like the vinyl that I grew up with that's for sure.

 

[gambit48]

Thank you CameronB, Freedom101, and Joe F. The details you gave really help much more than a "generic", they've been fine. I really hope you continue to give updates as the years pass.

I'll have to look for the video with the new jeans. I've seen the LikeTesla video, but they've got the heaviest duty seat covers I've ever seen (not sure if that's even safe according to the car seat guidelines although if they are Britax brand, they might conform to guidelines) and they rarely show the guy but the mom doesn't typically wear clothes I'd consider to stain that much. Plus, theirs is still really new also as of their latest update video on the seats. I do carry a pack of baby wipes in all my cars, but I don't always get around to wiping down the whole seat for jean transfer after even a week which can make things harder over time.

 

[Freedom101]

@codex57 I'm planning to keep my X for 2 decades and to do annual update videos on my white seats.

If interested you can subscribe here:

Freedom101

 

[Zaphod]

Thank you CameronB, Freedom101, and Joe F. The details you gave really help much more than a "generic", they've been fine. I really hope you continue to give updates as the years pass.

I'll have to look for the video with the new jeans. I've seen the LikeTesla video, but they've got the heaviest duty seat covers I've ever seen (not sure if that's even safe according to the car seat guidelines although if they are Britax brand, they might conform to guidelines) and they rarely show the guy but the mom doesn't typically wear clothes I'd consider to stain that much. Plus, theirs is still really new also as of their latest update video on the seats. I do carry a pack of baby wipes in all my cars, but I don't always get around to wiping down the whole seat for jean transfer after even a week which can make things harder over time.

I think the video that is being mentioned is the one from Bjorn, which as discussed in other threads is not a good use case to judge. Plus his are perforated.

 

[gambit48]

Other than the perforations, which I also believe make the seats less durable, is the material or stain resistant coating any different? Basically, are the non-perforated UW seats the same material (thickness, materials, coating, etc) the same as the perforated ones other than the holes?

 

[Trips]

A little off topic but we know that has happened a time or two on here, but I have not seen the potential glare from the white dash mentioned. The Bolt has terrible issues with glare with a lighter colored dash. I really hope this is not an issue as I like the white dash and seats combination.

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2017/07/particular-chevrolet-bolt-ev-interior-combination-shown-to-create-blinding-window-glare/

 

[shrspeedblade]

A little off topic but we know that has happened a time or two on here, but I have not seen the potential glare from the white dash mentioned. The Bolt has terrible issues with glare with a lighter colored dash. I really hope this is not an issue as I like the white dash and seats combination.

I read the same thing for my second gen Volt with the light gray interior/dash. Polarized sunglasses reduce this to exactly Zero. In fact, I hadn't even thought about it all this summer until I read your post!

 

[gambit48]

A little off topic but we know that has happened a time or two on here, but I have not seen the potential glare from the white dash mentioned. The Bolt has terrible issues with glare with a lighter colored dash. I really hope this is not an issue as I like the white dash and seats combination.

View attachment 249286

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2017/07/particular-chevrolet-bolt-ev-interior-combination-shown-to-create-blinding-window-glare/

I wasn't under the impression that there is a white dash with the UW seats. It's still a basically black interior, including the dash (well, the headliner may be lighter, but that's unimportant here). Just the seats are ultra white.

 

[CameronB]

I think this is the most helpful post I've read about the durability of UW seats

Thanks . I will add some clarification that, like others have said here, I am not talking about new, unwashed jeans.

Myself, I always wash my jeans before I wear them. But yeah, zero jean transfers for me after 3 months. I’m super happy with them.

 

[Zaphod]

I wasn't under the impression that there is a white dash with the UW seats. It's still a basically black interior, including the dash (well, the headliner may be lighter, but that's unimportant here). Just the seats are ultra white.

The belief is the part of the dash that is wood trimmed will be white with the white seats.

 

[EpiKAC]

Slightly off topic, but do we know WHEN the UW seats will become available, or are we still stuck with the generic Tesla response: "Soon"?

I've got a Mar/May expected delivery and I would REALLY like those white seats. It could be the one thing that causes me to delay my order if they aren't available by then...

 

[gambit48]

We've got "Fall". Who knows what that means, but Fall just started so it technically could still take about 3 months and still be "Fall". You should be fine though.

 

[chrisNchris]

I'm another X owner with UW seats. 1 year in, 20k miles, lots of road trips and a pomeranian that we allow all over the UW seats... and not a single spot anywhere on any of the leather that we haven't been able to wipe off with a damp cloth. I keep said cloth in the drivers door pocket and I get extreme pleasure every time I wipe off the pomeranian's foot prints with just one swipe of the damp cloth.

I believe this is a property of the pleather, and not a coating. I heard it was designed from the ground up with the intention of being unstainable.

one worry I do have, but have yet to see, is that the stitching might end up getting a little grimey eventually, as that is not the same fantastic material.

zero regrets with the decision to go UW, and I still love dismissing peoples comments about "but how do you keep them clean?!?" or "why did you choose a color so hard to keep clean?" - just bust out that damp rag and watch their jaws drop.

 

[OBX John]

I have the UW seats in our 100D, and tan leather in our 75. The UW is much more stain resistant. Two dogs and an 8 year old who likes Cheetos have proven the durability to me.

The stitching will stain though, and they are also very reflective in the Full Glass Roof.

 

[Marsnaut]

Do the current UW seats still come with perforations?

 

[Zaphod]

Do the current UW seats still come with perforations?

No. Perforated seats were only for the ventilated seats and that is no longer an option.