How to Fix a Burn Hole in a Car Seat in 4 Easy Steps with ColorBond

April 18, 2023

The surgeon general has determined smoking is dangerous to your health. It may not be so good for your car and truck seats either. Dropped cigarettes and errant smoldering ash can result in burn marks and holes. The damage not only looks bad but can worsen with wear. So, it’s important to repair a cigarette burn in a car seat as soon as possible. People often enlist the service of a professional upholstery repair shop to fix a burn hole in a car seat, but with care and attention to detail the restoration can be successfully completed as an easy do-it-yourself project. Here we’ll describe how to fix a burn hole in a car seat made of leather.

Cigarette burn hole in leather

What You’ll Need to Repair Cigarette Burn in Car Seat

A pair of small and sharp scissors or a scalpel
A piece of canvass
Flexible glue or leather filler
Fine grit sandpaper
ColorBond LVP

How To Repair Cigarette Burn in Car Seat

1. Trimming

The next step to fix a burn hole in a car seat is using scissors or a scalpel to cut away the edges hole that are burnt. Only the discolored, damaged material needs to be removed. Be careful to keep the trimming as smooth and even as possible. To make trimming easier it may be necessary to pinch up the leather at the sides of the hole.

2. Backing

The canvass will be used as the “backing’ for the repair. Cut a small circle, or shape that conforms to the shape of the cigarette burn hole in the seat, that is slightly larger than the hole. Insert the canvass into the hole so that it covers the hole on the underside and extends underneath the edges. Tip: Folding the piece of canvass in two, inserting it in the hole and then unfolding to “spread it out” on the underside of the hole makes the process easier.

3. Patch

The third step when repairing a cigarette burn in a car seat is to fill the hole with flexible glue or leather filler, smoothing it to an even layer, making sure it extends to the edges of the hole. Allow the layer to dry thoroughly. Repeat this process until the hole is completely filled. Sand the final layer so that it is level with the edges. Gently sanding the layer will smoothen the dried glue or filler so that its texture more closely matches the surface of the seat.

4. Color Matching When You Repair a Cigarette Burn in Car Seat Leather

To properly fix a burn hole in a car seat, the repair needs to be color matched to the seating surface. This can be done with ColorBond LVP, which is a paint designed to restore and renew leather and vinyl car seats. LVP Refinisher is durable and strongly bonds without cracking or peeling. The finish has the appearance of natural leather. ColorBond LVP is offered in over 205 OEM certified colors, which makes it simple to find a matching color when repairing a cigarette burn in car seat leather. See how to identify the color code of an interior here.

Did you know that ColorBond LVP is the only aerosol car interior paint available in OEM factory colors? ColorBond’s production of OEM correct colors started back in 1996 when we began seven years of testing and collaboration with Ford Research Labs to earn two Ford OEM Worldwide Performance Specifications for ColorBond LVP. These highly sought-after specifications are accepted by all vehicle manufacturers and are the gold standard for OEM performance and quality. Today ColorBond LVP is offered in OEM correct colors for 20 vehicle manufacturers.

As we add new car interior color choices, each goes through a highly involved process to be sure it exactly duplicates the OEM correct sample. Sometimes the samples come directly from vehicle manufacturers or Tier 1 manufacturers. Car clubs also send OEM correct samples to match. In each case the sample is analyzed, and a duplicate color formulated and sent back to the source for approval.

Before painting the repaired cigarette burn in the car seat, clean the leather with ColorBond Prep Cleaner, which will prepare the surface for best adhesion by removing dirt, grime and oils. After allowing time for the leather to dry, spray a mist coat of ColorBond LVP then give it two minutes to dry before spraying another light coat. Spray additional coats as needed, again allowing two minutes dry time between coats. ColorBond LVP bonds within ten minutes.

Seat painted with LVP Refinisher

Conclusion

Smoking can be bad for the health of your leather seats. Hopefully this tutorial will make it easy for you to repair a cigarette burn in a car seat with great results. With attention to detail and ColorBond, you can fix a burn hole in a car seat yourself with great results.