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Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

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  • #1

    Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

    A couple of months ago I bought a brand new Cub Cadet lawn tractor and I've been maintaining it by using quick detailer products after every other use. I store the thing in a closed shed in-between uses. Yesterday, after using it, I proceeded to wipe it down with detailer and I found the black vinyl seatback is starting to feel like it's getting a little brittle on the top corners. Is there any kind of restorative product out there that can slow this down or restore the vinyl before it gets to the point it cracks? Would Ultimate Black be the ticket on this or is there something geared more towards vinyl upholstery? Thank you for any suggestions!

    Oh yeah; here are some pics of a "detailed" lawn tractor! LOL After I was done with the yard, I blew off any debris with the electric leaf blower and then I wiped the whole thing down with a quick detailer product, including anywhere I could reach under the cowl around the engine, on the chassis, the top of the cutting deck, and the insides of the back of the wheels! I want to keep this thing in good shape so that it lasts me a long while.





    2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual
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  • #2
    Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

    You can use leather products on vinyl.
    99 Grand Prix
    02 Camaro SS

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    • #3
      Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

      Cool! I've got some leather restorer stuff at the house I bought when I took over my wife's Ford Explorer and did a total detail clean of the interior. Hopefully that will soften the vinyl and put some moisture back in it. It's not a very thick product though. I wonder how it works to make the surfaces better?
      2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual

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      • #4
        Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

        Nice work on the mower. I see I am not the only nut around here. Here's a pic of our mower, only it's almost 13 years old.

        http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums...hp?photo=64264">

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        • #5
          Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

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          • #6
            Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

            lol I love the pics of the detailed mower! That's the spirit!
            Originally posted by Blueline
            I own a silver vehicle and a black vehicle owns me. The black one demands attention, washing, detailing, waxing and an occasional dinner out at a nice restaurant. The silver one demands nothing and it looks just fine. I think the black vehicle is taking advantage of me, and the silver car is more my style. We can go out for a drive without her makeup and she looks fine. If I want to take the black one out, it is three or four hours in the "bathroom" to get ready.

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            • #7
              Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

              That's the exact one I have been looking at. Home Depot for 1499, correct?
              We are moving into a new house with .53 acres

              It gets great reviews. I know you are picky so how does it work?
              I don't think I could match your job on the detail. Nice job.

              I will blow it off and probably hose it down occasionally, but then again a sealant would make that easier.
              It is nice to know you are the expert for any questions in the future.

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              • #8
                Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                I love this thing Spazzz! We had the back yard ripped up and about 2500 to 3000 square feet of sod put down, so with that addition to the back yard, I wanted a riding mower. I was initially aiming at a v-twin John Deere but my wife was leery of spending that kind of money on top of the cost of the yard work we were having done. I ended up with the XT1 42" because of that $1499 price at Home Depot. It wasn't until after I bought my mower and joined a lawn tractor forum that I found out that the Kohler Courage motors have a bad reputation (loose head bolts), but the general consensus is that this issue was in the early to mid 2000's and is no longer a problem. I found that this thing handles the steep grade with the new sod without any issues.

                Upon using it, my first impression was that this thing was too power for what I needed. It went really fast when I was cutting my yard, and it was blowing all of the clippings across my yard, across my driveway, across the other part of my yard, and into my neighbors yard. So the speed thing was cured by just backing off the go-pedal. As for the clippings blowing out across the yard, there is not much you can do about that. You can't throttle down the engine because you can lug the engine and it the engine relies on the RPMs for spinning the cooling fan. I ended up putting the mulching kit ($60 from HD) and now I don't have clipping blowing out across the property anymore!

                The mulching kit was okay to install; it took about 1.5 hours. You have to drop the deck to change the blades but I actually enjoyed it and learned a lot about how these things work (my first riding mower). I'm getting a really nice even cut with the mulching blades with not a lot of clippings laying on top of the grass (it was very high during my last cut, thus the presence of clippings).

                As for detailing it; a lot of people have told me not to use the hose on anything except the underside of the deck (with the deck rinse-out hose adapter). I use the leaf blower on it after each mowing, and then every other mowing, I wipe the mower down with a quick detailer and some AutoZone microfiber towels that I wouldn't use on a car. The cowl is plastic and mine shipped with some light scratches that you can't see unless you look for them. The rest of it is metal and might take to a sealer well.

                I'm coming up on 5 hours of use, and according to the owners manual, it's time to drain the "break-in oil" and refill. I think I'm going to spend the extra $13 and replace the oil filter too while I'm at it, just for peace of mind. (Suggested maintenance calls for the oil filter to be changed at the next oil change.)
                2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual

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                • #9
                  Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                  Here is after I got it and detailed it after it's second use!





                  2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual

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                  • #10
                    Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                    You inspired me to detail the inside of my Husqvarna mower last night :-)

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                    • #11
                      Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                      ..oh and @Glocker, we got bit by the Kohler engine issues 2 years ago, but Kohler replaced/rebuilt without any cost to us.

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                      • #12
                        Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                        Originally posted by mcleod52 View Post
                        You inspired me to detail the inside of my Husqvarna mower last night :-)

                        That's awesome! Take care of 'em and they should last awhile!
                        2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual

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                        • #13
                          Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                          Originally posted by mcleod52 View Post
                          ..oh and @Glocker, we got bit by the Kohler engine issues 2 years ago, but Kohler replaced/rebuilt without any cost to us.
                          That's good to hear. Was it a Courage motor?
                          2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual

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                          • #14
                            Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                            A much gracious thank you for the heads up about the mulching kit.

                            You even reviewed it on the HD site. I started reading it thinking, wow, does everyone detail their mowers?
                            Then I realized it was you.
                            And Glocker my son really likes your car. I'm right there with him.

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                            • #15
                              Re: Black Vinyl Seat Problem!

                              Thanks Spazzz! I love my car!!! It's a PITA to keep looking shiny though! I'll probably never buy another black car again!

                              I just changed the oil and oil filter on the mower yesterday after coming up on 5 hours of use. The Cub Cadet manual suggests doing an oil change at 5 hours to replace the "break-in" oil. It did not call for changing the oil filter, but I did it for peace of mind. I wont have to do it again for another year or 50 hours of use; whatever comes first. I like that there was a hose coming from the oil drain to drop down into a container to drain the oil into; what a great idea. The oil filter was a pain in the butt to get off and started collapsing and shredding apart. Oh well, I cleaned up the oil that got all over the mower and installed the new one without any issues.
                              2014 Mustang GT 6-Speed Manual

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