LIONHEAD

That's strange.....mine came out with great results. There was a lot of black scuff marks and now its all gone in the circled area (see below). I better not use it for anything else.

DaCeptak0n

I have the Stone interior too and it through me off when I first saw it but then it matched the wood and the capri blue so well that I feel in love with it (bit of an exaggeration, haha). Nonetheless, I went in for its first car wash and one of the kids had a dirty jumpsuit on and had stained the driver seat leather (not inserts mind you). It was replaced but I knew from then on it would be a ***** to keep clean. Who cares...lease!!!..haha

Barry45RPM

Blue Coral Carpet & upholstery cleaner (clear liquid in a bluish tinted spray bottle) works incredibly well. I only use it on the floor mats carpets, & plastic parts around the seat bottoms. It will keep the interior brand new, with no effort. I don't use it on the leather or soft plastics/dash pads, for that I use Lexol leather cleaner diluted 1:5, Lexol:Water in my own spray bottle on a white terry cloth "rag"

DavidNJ

I thought the Lexol comes in its own spray bottle. Why do you dilute it? Does it work better that way?

scorchie

Yeah, but look at those huge red marks it left behind...

-s-

bboerit

My E320 (NAV replacement) is a year old this week, it has 6k miles on it, and I am a huge Zaino fan! On the door sills I use "Resolve" carpet cleaner, the regular stuff you buy in the store. It works great, no stains, etc. I also used Leatherique for the first time about 4 weeks ago. It also worked great! The seats look brand new, the leather is softer, and it leaves a nice leathery smell. For the mats, the dealer gave me a set of the all weather mats which I use year-round. Those I throw in the washing machine and they come out like new as well. Good luck!

Barry45RPM

Lexol DOES come in its own spray bottle. I dilute it because sometimes all you need is a damp wipe with plain water to clean off the seat. My thought was that cleaning too often with any detergent has to dry out the skins, so I dilute it so that there's just enough "detergent" in the mix to loosen stubborn grime, but not so much that I will dry out the leather. Also, I dont have to rinse several times to remove the Lexol. Ever notice how much "soapy bubbles" remain after using Lexol full strength?

I try to use as gentle a solution as is necessary to do the job.

E500Meister

I have a black E500 with stone interior and wood/leather sterring wheel as well, and I also love the combo. I don't mind cleaning the sills occasionally, but the carpet mats cannot hack it - just walking from the supermarket to the car collects enough dirt and residue on my sandals that they immediately leave stains on the carpet mats.

I am curious what those people think who have replaced their stone carpet mats with another color. Is black the only one that works? Are there any dark browns?

Randy

Spartan

I have the ash (light gray) interior and the sills are a real pain in the butt! Every time you get in the car, you have to lift your feet over them otherwise they get filthy.

It's a real pain and whoever thought of it should be scrubbed with Lysol.

If I was ordering again, I would buy the darker gray interior.

Barry45RPM

All you need is Blue Coral Dri Clean Carpet & Upholstery cleaner> (Clear Liquid in bluish tinted plastic spray bottle) It will keep your carpet/sills as clean as the day the car was delivered to you. For really stubborn stains like tar/ gum/ asphalt, etc. dab with VP&P Naphtha (from paint store) it is like dry cleaning fluid. DO NOT USE NAPHTHA ON YOUR LEATHER OR VINYL. EVER. Naphta is also bug & tar remover & is safe on paint.

...I'm working on a solution for the dead pedal in winter.

DavidNJ

European and designo floor mats cover the dead pedal.

Barry45RPM

How do you know? Do they come in the right colors for non designo cars, and why are they different?

DWP

Are the designo floor mats part of a package, or can they be purchased separately from the dealer? If the latter, can just the driver's floor mat be purchased from the dealer? Anything like that would look better than the hunk of cardboard I have covering the dead pedal right now.

DavidNJ

Someone who did an ED posted a picture earlier, and I saw a designo at the dealer...recognizing the difference from the earlier photo.

In the US designo E-class mats probably come in black and stone. In Europe they may come in more colors. The standard European mats probably (I can't confirm this) come the correct colors to match the interiors. In addition to having a flap that covers the dead pedal, they DO NOT have a rubber pad under the throttle.

David

P.S.
We plan on taking the mats, triangle, and first aid kit home with us.

Miguk_Saram

My previous w211 was Bordeaux Red w/Stone; the sills were always a problem, but I kept the mats clean by purchasing transparent, vinyl mats from a local store (I forget which, may have been Walmart, or Target).

The vinyl mats collected most of the particles, soot and grime without detracting from the appearance of the interior (and cleaning them was a cinch). The one spot that I had issues with was the bottom edge of the accellerator pedal.. couldn't quite tuck the mats under it.

Try it, if worse comes to worse, you're out $20 bucks!

Gunther

Have Java interior in my E430 ('01) - while it's a little darker than the Stone it still tends to show dirty easily. For quick clean ups I use rug cleaner that you'd put in a rental rug cleaner (like you'd rent at Home Depot - look by the machines...it's about $8-$12/gallon). Put some on a rag and rub the spot out.
Doesn't take a lot of elbow grease.

Then about twice a year I get out the pressure washer. I spray down the mats with the same stuff...scrub them a little more with a soft brush and then use the pressure washer to get all the detergeant back out. Once they dry they look like brand new again. And no, it doesn't wear them out. It is okay to soak them - you get them wet when it rains or snows, right? Just make sure they dry completely before you put them back in the car.

People can't believe that my mats are almost 4 years old and aren't replacements.

Barry45RPM

The mats are there as an add on accessory to protect the carpet. They are supposed to get dirty. To cover a protective mat with a protective mat seems kind of weird. They clean right up though & can be done outside the car so there's no stooping as there would be if you got the carpeting dirty.

Miguk_Saram

..hmm.. ..I remember your comments on this topic from a different thread...

Quite frankly, I actually agree - it IS kinda weird; but I would much rather vacuum and wipe off the vinyl vs. vacuum, scrub, and re-vacuum the OEM mats.

I don't know.. there's something to be said about efficiency.. but, then again, efficiency is dictated by circumstances. "Your results may vary."

My $.02

lig

Barry -

I know you are right about the mats... I just can't bring myself to soil them. I bought some mats to protect the factory mats. They are such a lovely cream color (Stone) I just couldn't stand to mess 'em up.

The dumb thing is - it's not even my car! It's a lease that is up in March.

Barry45RPM

Who said I'm not crazy too? I ordered an extra set of factory carpeted mats in stone which will become my Spring/Summer mats after these go thru this winter!

RJC

Screw it! I'm putting in marble.... :p

lig

Thanks for posting that Barry - I don't feel quite as bad now.

You guys are nuts. :LOL:

I've personally always wanted slate...

Carbon9

as far as the dye transfer of belts and denim, sometimes I resort to putting a thin towel between the seat back and the "offending" area. I wish there was somehting to safely remove the light dye stain, though.

I wish I had gotten the walnut wheel, though otherwise, I think it's a very sweet interior scheme.

E500Meister

I dunno about Marble...but a wood floor in the car wouldn't be a bad idea at all...

Barry45RPM

Adding the wood trimmed wheel is not a problem. It doesn't end up costing much more than if you had it done at the factory. Confide in your service advisor, tell him you are all pissed off you didn't get it, slip him a 20 & ask him for a deal on one installed. (he can save you a couple of bucks on the labor charge).

You'll love it every time you feel it. Is is worth the cost? Nah, not really, but it sure is NICE!