You buy your wife expensive perfume for Christmas, but when she opens it, it doesn't smell, and it looks like water. You get slapped round the face and banned to the spare room for the rest of the festive period.
So, why when I get my car re-trimmed, and comes back not smelling or looking like leather, do I still have to pay thousands of pounds for it?
When I express my concern, I am told that 'modern leather doesn't smell' and that 'maybe I could use a leather spray on it.' (While I'm at it, I could spray the bumpers with some nice chrome paint).
After much research I have found that someone from Connolly is remaking Vaumol, which is the original leather used in Rolls, Jags, Astons, ferraris etc.
This person is using oil-based rather than modern water-based chemicals, which produces the authentic smell. Vaumol comes as a natural finish, but can be embossed to reproduce to patterns adopted by different marques.
Obviously this doesn't come cheap, but neither does a good Pagoda.
Price is about £500 per hide, and takes around a month to arrive after order. I've ordered two and when I've retrimmed my car, I'll post the results. Unfortunately, until the Internet enables you to post smells, or scratch and sniff pictures, you'll have to take my word for the true leather aroma. :-)
I used UK Hide (01932 353 338) by the way.
Red Vaumol versus modern white leather
Original 1963 Mercedes 220 SE
