So here we are 14,636 miles into our M3's life and it's beginning to show some signs of wear. This is the driver's side floor mat which is unraveling at its seams. Not a really big deal but somewhat surprising this early on.
More after the jump.
Oldham already addressed the driver's side seat bolster last fall, but the wear is increasing rapidly from what you saw last September. Is it just me or does this kind of patina look better on black leather? It's no secret that I'm not a fan of the red leather and this is part of the reason why.
On the up side, I just spent 850 miles blasting around in the M3 over the holidays and am reminded again why this car is a segment benchmark. It is a car I would happily own. Even with the wear.
Josh Jacquot, Senior road test editor
dragonflight says:
03:08 PM, 01/ 4/10
Wow, my older BMW and much much older Benz never had this problem with their bolsters, nor do my other recent vehicles with leather. In fact, the only car I own that has anything resembling this is an 03 Accord, which had leather that made me ask if it was Vinyl the day I bought it. But that car's also been parked in far worse conditions, both sun and otherwise, than SoCal, so what gives? Improper leather care has to be a large part of it. But what else? I can't be the exception to the rule here
pyo_s65 says:
03:09 PM, 01/ 4/10
I can't believe you still didnt do anything to the leather to help maintain it. I'm at 12000 miles with 2 lexol leather applications thus far and the leather while slightly wrinkled is as supple as can be. I've taken care of my leather interiors this way for all my cars and all of them never flaked the way yours did.
The carpet is a wear and tear item. You should install the all weather mat anyway.
brn says:
04:46 PM, 01/ 4/10
I don't get the leather cracking. My car is ten years old. It cost a fraction of the BMW. My leather shows no signs of cracking.
alex4515 says:
05:13 PM, 01/ 4/10
That sort of patina does not look good on any leather bolster, regardless of color. If the entire car is beaten up enough to match, then sure, that's fine. This would not be OK if it were my 2009 M3. Same goes for the floormat - I've had plenty of cars, both stick and auto, whose floormats held up far better. What would a replacement mat set cost, by the way?
felonious says:
05:31 PM, 01/ 4/10
Hate to nitpick, but... "unraveling at its seams."
jordanw says:
05:38 PM, 01/ 4/10
Wow that is disappointing. I own an 06 e90 with 30000 miles and my floormats still look brand new and my side bolsters aren't doing that. BMW leather care works wonders if you keep it up
clarkma5 says:
06:13 PM, 01/ 4/10
I would call this "disappointing". If if were someone's private vehicle that they actually put some care into, I would call it "unacceptable" but you guys really destroy things (and then sensationalize it, to be honest...)
ptcdawg says:
07:01 PM, 01/ 4/10
Looks like any other BMW floor mat I've seen in the last 20 years....they don't wear well, and they aren't cheap.
roadburner says:
08:12 PM, 01/ 4/10
The sport seats in my 120K mile 1995 3er look much better than that. It's amazind what a proper leather care product can do, even if it's only applied once or twice per year.
If you really want to see crappy worn-out mats, look at any MS3 with more than 5K miles on it.
brn says:
08:33 PM, 01/ 4/10
Make sure you replace the floormat with a BMW floormat or the gas pedal might get caught on it. ;)
yellowmiata says:
12:03 AM, 01/ 5/10
Some of the BMWs I've seen have both of these same problems.
+1 with felonious "seams" vs "seems." Where are the editors?
breif says:
05:01 AM, 01/ 5/10
Roadburner; My MS3's mats are holding up fine and I've got double that mileage.
1487 says:
06:38 AM, 01/ 5/10
I dont see how leather treatment would prevent wearing away of the leather itself. treatment may add some shine and clean the surface but that is just wear from use- and its way too much wear. The mats and carpeting look like a $20k car in terms of texture and thickness of the pile.
achenator says:
07:14 AM, 01/ 5/10
My 08 M3 drivers seat is starting to show wear at 9k. I have black interior. I condition at least every 2 months. Oh well. It is not cracking but the color is wearing off. I have the M3 mats and they feel rediculously cheap. Thin and flimsy. I want to say these cost $135 IIRC. I have the all weathers that I use occasionally. The m is a third car and generally isn't driven in inclement weather.
achenator says:
07:15 AM, 01/ 5/10
My 08 M3 drivers seat is starting to show wear at 9k. I have black interior. I condition at least every 2 months. Oh well. It is not cracking but the color is wearing off. I have the M3 mats and they feel rediculously cheap. Thin and flimsy. I want to say these cost $135 IIRC. I have the all weathers that I use occasionally. The m is a third car and generally isn't driven in inclement weather.
jeepsrt says:
09:14 AM, 01/ 5/10
Those look more like scratches from buttons on pants or checkbooks in a back pocket. I have a '92 Corvette with red leather and condition it at least twice a year and have no where near that amount of wear. Although my Jeep is conditioned the same amount and it is a little wrinkled at 20k miles.
e90_m3 says:
10:21 AM, 01/ 5/10
My 1 1/2 year old M3 has grey leather, and it looks 100% brand new. I wipe them down with a damp towel every month and deep clean them (Zaino leather cleaner + Zaino conditioner) every 6 months.
The same treatment also worked wonders on my old E90 325i. When I sold it after 3 years of ownership it looked good as new.
Having a covered parking spot helps too.
zacbol says:
10:35 AM, 01/ 5/10
I'm at around 8k-9k in my M3 and have almost no wear. Not saying it might not happen by 15K, but just looking at the floor mat it seems pretty obvious you guys don't even clean the car. Serious question, I'd be very interested to hear: have you *ever* vacuumed the car? It doesn't look like it to me. From the various posts about flat out dumb and careless things you've done to your long term cars, putting incorrect oil viscosities comes to mind (and this is something that really matters), it's hard for me to believe you're doing a better job when it comes to interior care. So, I'm not really surprised by this.
wayno_san says:
11:10 AM, 01/ 5/10
That's now wear, it's "character"!!!!!
;)
stephen987 says:
11:23 AM, 01/ 5/10
Looks about like my eight year old Accord with 92k miles on it.
civilag says:
11:47 AM, 01/ 5/10
+1 clarkma5 and
+1 e90_m3
I have an 07 E90, and I have very little if any wear on my side bolsters. I cant' help but add that you can't just scoot in and out of any car, let alone an M3 or 3 series with larger protruding side bolsters. You have to take extra care of those jean buttons, zippers etc. when entering of exiting the car. I've had to cringe a few times when I've had friends jump in the passengers seat, and hear a "pop" of their zipper or button catching on the seam of these bolsters. That, and +1 to whoever added using BMW's leather care solution.
As for the floor mats, about $100 replacement for the set (at my Houston area BMW dealer).
zoomzoomn says:
02:35 PM, 01/ 5/10
Actually these mats have been prone to this. Can you say warranty? I knew you could.
sgude says:
06:08 PM, 01/ 5/10
When you enter the car, instead of sliding across the bolsters like I'm sure you all do, turn your butt, sit down, then swing the rest of your body in.
oachalon says:
08:49 PM, 01/ 8/10
Wow that doesnt look good at all. Ive seen vehicles that are 15 years old and 200k miles with less wear on that. We had a 95 blazer that was never cleaned on the inside, and its seats looked better than that.
Those little things like leather wearing that fast, drive me nuts.
You guys should see if BMW will warranty it. I understand that wear items arent covered, but that just seams excessive that after 14k miles the seat looks like that.
famof3kids says:
06:40 PM, 01/11/10
Looks almost as bad as the seat in my aunts M Class.
hybris says:
07:26 PM, 01/11/10
This is one reason why I want cloth seats.
If its going to wear than it better be cheaper to replace.
jacton says:
12:38 PM, 01/12/10
If you're paying $65K for a car both of these wear items are completely unacceptable. Regardless of how you exit a vehicle the bolsters should be constructed out of a material that can take rubbing and various levels of abuse. Its called robust design.
carfreak13 says:
09:04 AM, 01/23/10
my Avalon has 120k and the leathers is fine