I skipped the Nappa leather because it does in fact wear harder. In addition to the stretching, the more porous surface picks up dirt more easily as well. (I don't mean the ventilation holes, the dirt sticks to the actual leather itself.) Unfortunately, not much you can do if they won't cover it.

Sorry to hear about your other build quality issues.

 

I think I would have to say I'm seeing similar results 3 months in, the passenger seat, which is very rarely used, shows some leather stretching. I'm going to give it another TLC day and see if it softens up. But yeah, it looks rougher than it should for 3 months old.

 

I had those issues on both XC90s I owned. Both had the TJ applied by Volvo. The newer seats are not as soft (well, it might just be newer leather vs. worn... or the products applied... but it wasn't quite the same) and there is a noticeable metal bar which some people have commented on being bothersome (I would not agree, but I think it depends on your seating position). After the TJ, I had greatly reduce wear and tear, but it has not completely disappeared.

In all cases, Volvo made no fuss about replacing the driver's seat, but refused to do so for the passenger seat. So I ended up with seats with different stitching. Not noticeable, unless, well, you look for it...

 

I just go one a month to my detailing guys and they clean my carmel nappa and put on some coating that is superb and makes dirt not stick to the leather so much

 

Just out of curiosity, how many of you would opt for a Volvo version of Mercedes' MB-Tex vinyl upholstery? Reviewers claim it looks and feels like leather, wears better, is easier to clean, and breathes as well as leather, though without the leather aroma. I'm sure it's of higher quality than the vinyl that was in my 1969 Pontiac and that survived wonderfully for 8 years with the wear and tear use of a 21 year old living the beach life in SoCal.

 

I have never enjoyed sitting in MB Tex seats.

I'd prefer something more like the V90 CC Ocean Race seats.

Fake leather just never does anything for me.

 

Rear Brake pads replaced with a different spec to fix.

Do you know the part number of those brakes?

 

The color will rub off quickly as well. Despite the leather being dyed-through, there's essentially a layer of paint adhered to the surface of the nappa leather. It rubs off shockingly fast, particularly on high wear areas like corners. I was in a loaner with 1500 miles on the dash that had a worn driver's seat corner.

I noticed this happening in my S90 about 6 months in. Had a Lexus GS with full leather, the red seats were a little discolored thanks to blue jean dye rubbing off, but a soft cloth and a little water cleaned them up instantly. They use a durable urethane coating on their leather. It wears alot better but is half as luxurious when you're sitting in it. So, yeah, the nappa isn't very tough on the surface, and it will stretch, but technically it's a higher quality/class of leather. At least it's not renamed vinyl like everyone else is using these days.

 

My 2016 XC90 with the nappa leather had terrible wear on the drivers seat at around 15,000miles. Dealer replaced the leather on the drivers seat, and it showed hardly any wear when I traded it in 35,000miles later. They definitely improved something there.

 

I’m currently trying to get Volvo to warranty the damage seen in the attached picture on my V90CC. The damage is on the outer bolster on the drivers seat. The car is currently at my dealer for an unrelated issue and the dealer supposedly re-dyed the seat, but to me the damage is more than just color transfer. There are portions of he leather that have worn away already and the car has around 11k miles on it. We have a 2016 XC90 with the same seats that hasn’t had any issues. I don’t keep anything in my back pockets and the only pants I have with anything on the back is a pair of shorts with plastic sewn on buttons. Anyone else seeing anything similar? I tried not to rub in the lower portion to avoid the wear issues and apparently created a different problem in the process.

 

That just looks like you're rubbing against the bolster when getting in and out of the seat and something has scratched the leather in a few places. You might try setting one of the seat presets for entering/exiting the vehicle so that the seat moves back a few inches to provide a little more room and try not to rub on the bolster when getting into and out of the car. This is typically an issue with softer leather seats.

 

That's what I have done now, but the damage is done. The problem is I don't keep anything in my pockets that would cause damage like this. We have an XC90 with the same seats and have had no problems. At worst, a plastic butting rubbed against the against the seat. Those white spots are where the leather separated from the backing and was rubbed off.

 

Forget shoe polish. Do a search for Leatherique. It's the best leather-restoration material out there.