Surely alcantara is a no brainer?

[Johnson]

I’ve always been keen on red sports cars with tan leather seats. But the FE has Alcantara as a no cost option… I’m thinking this makes it a no brainer. As a comparison, Alcantara is A$2000 extra in a new Supra. I can’t think of a downside…?

 

[aEdMIRA]

I'd agree apart from the colour choices. The stitching doesn't lift the interior enough in my opinion.

 

[TXEMIRA]

On this note. Steering wheel… Sweaty hands ruin that stuff or is it better than leather?

 

[aEdMIRA]

Yes sweaty hands will be bad, but I wouldn't say ruin. I'm sure detailers will bring stuff back to life again! I'm going to try to use gloves but am sure will feel too self-conscious after one drive!

 

[fishman76092]

Im going with alcantra and red stitching with Nimbus/black pack paint. I’ve had alcantara prior and I’ll never do it again on the steering wheel. The oils from your hands do it no favors and even after professionally detailing it, it was too fuzzy.

For the seats - it’s a bit more difficult to care for but I don’t really like the leather colors. Would do red if it were more subdued.

 

[Mike-engel]

Yes sweaty hands will be bad, but I wouldn't say ruin. I'm sure detailers will bring stuff back to life again! I'm going to try to use gloves but am sure will feel too self-conscious after one drive!

Why would you feel self conscious about wearing driving gloves? I wear them routinely to protect leather touch points in my cars. I keep black, tan and red gloves around that match the interiors of my cars. I keep them in the cars and remove them before I get out so they’re always available. I started wearing gloves after I saw what happened to the latex gloves I’d wear when doing procedures at work. It’s the same thing that you see on metal hand rails after being held for years by people. If people’s acidic sweat can do that to iron, just imagine what can happen to leather. I’d rather toss a pair of $10 gloves than spend $500 or more to remove, recover and replace a steering wheel. Just sayin.

 

[CanadianEmira]

On this note. Steering wheel… Sweaty hands ruin that stuff or is it better than leather?

I’ve researched this long and hard and the consensus from long-term owners on the internet is that alcantara steering wheels aren’t worth it... they get dirty and ruined and can’t be properly cleaned or restored to their original state. When new, they are a better driving experience than leather though, IMO.

 

[aEdMIRA]

Why would you feel self conscious about wearing driving gloves? I wear them routinely to protect leather touch points in my cars. I keep black, tan and red gloves around that match the interiors of my cars. I keep them in the cars and remove them before I get out so they’re always available. I started wearing gloves after I saw what happened to the latex gloves I’d wear when doing procedures at work. It’s the same thing that you see on metal hand rails after being held for years by people. If people’s acidic sweat can do that to iron, just imagine what can happen to leather. I’d rather toss a pair of $10 gloves than spend $500 or more to remove, recover and replace a steering wheel. Just sayin.

I'm just weird

 

[Mike-engel]

I'm just weird

As long as you’re true to yourself, nothing else really matters. I’m a huge fan of authenticity. Do what makes you comfortable.

 

[Johnson]

I was thinking seats more than steering wheel. I’m still going to get a leather wheel.

 

[CanadianEmira]

I was thinking seats more than steering wheel. I’m still going to get a leather wheel.

My one thought was that the stitching on the Alcantara looked a little plain compared to the leather design.

 

[Nova]

I’ve always been keen on red sports cars with tan leather seats. But the FE has Alcantara as a no cost option… I’m thinking this makes it a no brainer. As a comparison, Alcantara is A$2000 extra in a new Supra. I can’t think of a downside…?

Some of us prefer high quality leather. We also like colors other than black.

Alcantara is a mid-cost material in my mind for seating surfaces and trim. It's more expensive than plain cloth, and may be equally as desirable as some of the low to mid grade leather. But nice leather can be a better choice for a grand touring car.

 

[CanadianEmira]

Some of us prefer high quality leather. We also like colors other than black.

Alcantara is a mid-cost material in my mind for seating surfaces and trim. It's more expensive than plain cloth, and may be equally as desirable as some of the low to mid grade leather. But nice leather can be a better choice for a grand touring car.

Any idea where the leather in the Emira falls in the quality department?

 

[Matt]

On this note. Steering wheel… Sweaty hands ruin that stuff or is it better than leather?

I prefer a lether streering wheel. After many years, the alcantara steering wheel would look horrible.

 

[Matt]

Surely, you could wear gloves to protect the alcantara streeing wheel, but not everyone loves to wear gloves.

 

[CanadianEmira]

The idea of Alcantara being a "premium" material is one of the most successful falsehoods ever perpetrated by the automotive industry, and is strictly put forth to make money off unwitting buyers. This video explains why its pricing has nothing to do with quality:

 

[Nova]

Any idea where the leather in the Emira falls in the quality department?

They say it is nappa leather, which is full grain leather. Since you can't hide imperfections on full grain leather the leather has to be carefully selected and cut to usable sizes. Other than designer leathers, nappa is generally the best quality available.

 

[Matt]

They say it is nappa leather, which is full grain leather. Since you can't hide imperfections on full grain leather the leather has to be carefully selected and cut to usable sizes. Other than designer leathers, nappa is generally the best quality available.

Personlay, I consider alcantara and lether are the same premium material. It's a personal preference or custom to choose. For me, lether steering wheel and alcantara seats with lether seat sides are perfect. Just like the car I drive.

 

[PaulP]

The idea of Alcantara being a "premium" material is one of the most successful falsehoods ever perpetrated by the automotive industry, and is strictly put forth to make money off unwitting buyers. This video explains why its pricing has nothing to do with quality:

Wow, fascinating that all the Alcantara from a $6000 Chinese car to Porsche $200,000 is the exact same stuff coming from one factory! I’ve never had it - always buy leather interiors the last 25+ years, but after seeing that definitely wouldn’t order it.

 

[Tonyshepp]

Some of us prefer high quality leather. We also like colors other than black.

Alcantara is a mid-cost material in my mind for seating surfaces and trim. It's more expensive than plain cloth, and may be equally as desirable as some of the low to mid grade leather. But nice leather can be a better choice for a grand touring car.

Didn’t lotus say the base seats would be leather on the bolsters and technical material on the cushions, this could be there reference to Alcantara is going to be on the base seats, similar to the base Porsche seats , admittedly they don’t have leather side bolsters but leather lookalikes. I’m going boring black nappa leather as it stands the test of time.