The Mystery of the Dissolving Audi Seats

[RoadworkUK]

One thing I'm inordinately proud of is the factory-fresh rear seat in my Audi.

 

 

Sad, I know, , but I've had this thing for almost 100k now, and it was mint when I got it and I like to keep it well.

 

Anyway, recently we took a trip from Essex to Orkney in it. Nice little run up North, and the Audi coped rather well.

 

 

We noticed something a bit odd with our 2012 AA large-scale Road Atlas, in that the bottom edge of it had gone all brittle and bits were breaking off.

 

 

It was most odd. Looking at it closely it seemed that some kind of unknown agent had done bad things with the paper and bits of it were flaking off all over my legs, the floor, everywhere.

 

It was completely dry, though, Very mysterious. It was as if the paper of the map had just given up with life and was turning to dust.

 

I swept the villages and landmarks from my lap and thought nothing more of it..... Until I got home.

 

 

Aw, fucksticks.

 

Whatever had caused the map to begin to evaporate had done irksome things with my lovely rear seat, too.

 

 

A gentle prodding of the affected area found it to be exactly as with the map- dry, brittle and lacking any form of strength.

 

I've done all I can do, which is to drown the surrounding area with leather feed and apply the best colour match of insulating tape I could find to try and hold it together.

 

Cause? Not really sure. The only thing I can think is that some of my peroxide-based contact lens solution may have leaked on to the back seat on a camping trip at some point. Otherwise I have absolutely no idea. Anybody experienced anything similar?

 

 

[Captain Furious]

Only thing similar was years ago I was topping up a battery with water and it overflowed and spilt on my jeans. Didn't think too much of it but over the course of the day my jeans gradually disintegrated one hole at a time

 

But I guess you would know if there was a possibility battery acid had spilt in the interior.

[Rusty_Rocket]

Perhaps it's made of the same stuff Mercedes use on their wiring looms?

 

Seriously though, spilt any brake fluid there?  That stuff can mess up, well, anything..

[RoadworkUK]

Well, bugger me. I did have a battery back there at one point.

 

Harrumph.

[Stixy]

I thought battery acid too  ,  

[Pillock]

Battery acid or air freshener... I used to have a Polo with magic tree imprint on the dash where the string had failed, I'd put it there to keep it safe and left it a few days.

[RoadworkUK]

Battery acid or air freshener... I used to have a Polo with magic tree imprint on the dash where the string had failed, I'd put it there to keep it safe and left it a few days.

 

Air freshener is an interesting thought. The battery I had back there was a recent maintenance free job, and I don't recall it tipping over.

 

Aftershave?

[richardmorris]

Sulphuric acid based on the map paper- ie a battery. I have little holes in most of my work trousers and you want to see what it does to skin!

[saucedoctor]

Many many years ago one of my pals ran a Bluebird diesel as a taxi (or what you guys would call a minicab). He took it to some local chancers for a valet. Right enough, the interior cleaned up a treat. Very shortly after, he came out to the car on a bright, sunny day to find that the stitches in the seats had dissolved. The valet monkeys had used a peroxide-based cleaner, he later found out. I reckon your contact-lens fluid could well be the culprit.

[RoadworkUK]

The valet monkeys had used a peroxide-based cleaner, he later found out. I reckon your contact-lens fluid could well be the culprit.

 

Hmm. This also means that Audi leather is possibly made from the same petrochemical compounds as Nissan Bluey velour.

[hairymel]

 The battery I had back there was a recent maintenance free job, and I don't recall it tipping over.

 

 

bastard things still have vents though, as i can attest recently. spare battery tilted in my boot an and leaked from vent holes. first i knew of it was when all my tools started to sprout white fur. fucked my boot covering and some clothes and my tools are still sprouting after a good wash :'-(.

 

gonna wash them in a bicarb solution when i get a chance and hope that fixes it.

[Alusilber]

Battery acid or air freshener... I used to have a Polo with magic tree imprint on the dash where the string had failed, I'd put it there to keep it safe and left it a few days.

 

I had a cardboard air freshener hung on my rear view mirror last year with the elastic looped around a couple of times so it didn't swing around too much. After a while I noticed it was stuck to the back of the mirror housing and had actually melted the plastic where it touched. What do they put in them?

[nisfan]

I put a spare battery on the back seat of my laurel, little did I know it had a leak, left the velour missing and in its place a sticky mess