I purchased a 2012 Ford Fusion with a black leather interior in May 2012. The doors and the seats are starting to look" distressed" at this point and I am getting a bit concerned about this. Although the problem is cosmetic, I would like to hear from other owners as to whether anyone else has seen this on any Ford product. The leather has not been cleaned with anything harsh so this problem is not of my making. I noted the problem with the dealer at my last oil change. They stated that they could not see it.
Additionally, the dash lights dim at will and in no predictable fashion. Again, the dealer could not document the problem.
Does anyone else have these problems with their Fusion?
How should I proceed with my attempts to get this issues corrected?
I have a 2012 Fusion that I bought in May, but have not noticed these problems, yet. I keep it in the garage all the time so possibly it does not get as much sun.
It will probably help to use a leather conditioner on the seats. It will also help to not wear clothing that has sharp edges, such as the copper rivets on some jeans, or put a seat cover on the seat if it looks like it will be a problem.
I do not own a Ford currently, but maybe it would help to shoot a cell phone video or similar of the dash lights dimming. (or have your passenger do it, better yet) Assuming you can reproduce the problem. It would be helpful to note when it does it–is it when the A/C kicks in or engine cooling fans start, is it more when waiting at a light or does it happen at steady speeds, etc.
I agree with oblivion and recommend Leatherique cleaner and restorer (two separate products). It’s kept the leather looking nice in my '07 so far.
I also agree with oblivion about recording video of the lights dimming.
Both of these issues should be brought up with the dealer, however. Unless you’ve had it parked outside in the desert or have otherwise abused it, the leather should not yet be showing so much wear.
Leather is showing signs of distress? I’d be more concerned if it didn’t show some signs of distress. No signs of distress can mean that its not real leather, at least now you know that it is real.
read your manual about putting a seat cover on. Some vehicles, like mine, have airbags inside the seat. Covering them up can cause problems should you ever need the airbags to deploy
