[omasou]

My E70 had Nappa (?) and it was fine for over 128K miles and 8 years. I believe todays Merino was previously called Nappa?

The worst wear point is the upper side bolsters if you let your jeans rub when getting in and out.

[RH2020]

Originally Posted by SteveinArizona

I have the Nappa, not the Merino, on my 2018 530e that is now approaching four years of life with about 35K miles on it. I can't take pictures because it is in the shop having its hybrid batteries replaced.

What I can tell you is that after almost four years, there is no discernable wear and tear on the leather.

I had Dakota (similar to Vernasca) on my previous 3 series and I really disliked it. I would definitely go for the upgrade and if you can't/won't do so, I personally would prefer the Sensatec to the Dakota/Vernasca.

Care to share why the hybrid battery is being replaced? Waiting anxiously as a 2022 x45e owner…

[Auricom]

Originally Posted by omasou

My E70 had Nappa (?) and it was fine for over 128K miles and 8 years. I believe todays Merino was previously called Nappa?

The worst wear point is the upper side bolsters of you let your jeans rub when getting in and out.

Merino and Nappa are two different leathers in BMW's lineup:

Nappa - Full-grain, un-split, semi-aniline leather and it features a light clear-coat finish for durability. It's grain quality is not as high as the Merino leather, and it is considered to be the 2nd highest quality leather in BMW cars.

Merino - Full-grain leather and highest quality leather BMW offers, Merino is soft and smooth to touch in terms of its texture and during its dying process.

https://www.bmwblog.com/2019/12/23/k...ather-options/

[omasou]

Originally Posted by Auricom

Merino and Nappa are two different leathers in BMW's lineup:

Nappa - Full-grain, un-split, semi-aniline leather and it features a light clear-coat finish for durability. It's grain quality is not as high as the Merino leather, and it is considered to be the 2nd highest quality leather in BMW cars.

Merino - Full-grain leather and highest quality leather BMW offers, Merino is soft and smooth to touch in terms of its texture and during its dying process.

https://www.bmwblog.com/2019/12/23/k...ather-options/

Thanks for that! Sweet. Never had the best leather.

Someone previously posted that Nappa == Merino and Vernasca == Dakota and that the only difference between the latter two was the grain embossing.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by ENCT

I notice on your picture the headrest leather looks a bit bunched up on the bottom. I just got my 50i last night with the Merino leather and mine looks the same, is this normal I suppose? Also a small area on the inside driver side is a bit sloppy as well. Might be normal just thought I would ask.

"wrinkly" BMW leather is quite the hobby around here ... some call it on purpose for comfort, some call it a massive quality defect, and some are gathering signatures to burn down the factory.

I've had merino for a good number of years and never had an issue that I noticed, but 90% of the stuff people post here as a problem wouldn't be for me, that headrest looks normal to me, soooo .... is it "normal"?

I have an X5 w/merino on the way and should have it in a 2ish weeks so I guess I can say then ...

Maybe post some pics and people can tell you what they think

[XtremeMaC]

Wish I had seen this thread earlier. I was on the fence with lighter interior as I saw so many used leather seated BMWs in the past several months that look awful. Granted many of them had cognac or beige, which I no fan of...
Merino White looks stunning but went with Vernasca Tacora Red.
Especially changing from black dash to white really opens up the vehicle. Well, I'll keep that in mind next time.
I did get the AutoArmor ECP Plus ceramic interior protection that hopefully will keep it like new, but who knows. time will tell..

I'm having issues with getting into the car, somehow. I keep messing up the left side of the driver seat as I first hop in, then adjust myself to the right.. I'm 5' 9". Need a seating coach

[iceRN09]

6000 miles on mine. I just applied BMW leather lotion on it. Still looks nice. Only caveat is the left seat bolster that is unavoidable due to going in and out of the car.

[Za]

Ceramic coated (Cquartz Leather 2.0) my merino Tartufo leather last weekend in order to help against dark jeans colour transfer. Hopefully it works.
The X5 is leased so it's not for the long term benefit, just for myself before the 4 year Lease is up lol.

[m3_08]

always had merino/napa leather in my BMW and never used any supplemental coating.
Leather was very close to perfect after 5-8 years when I traded those cars.
Also I never had black leather!
Current tartufo in x5 looks as new after one year.

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by Za

Ceramic coated (Cquartz Leather 2.0) my merino Tartufo leather last weekend in order to help against dark jeans colour transfer. Hopefully it works.
The X5 is leased so it's not for the long term benefit, just for myself before the 4 year Lease is up lol.

Getting ready to do ColourLock's Leather Shield on mine ... hoping it's an easy on/off - it'll be the first time I"ve done a protection despite having merino for 6 years now. I'm not sure I need it, but after a bout of black jeans gave some dye transfer to my Opal White I though I'd try it and see what happens.

[TK - 421]

Keep your nails short is all I can say. Great leather but isn’t as durable that’s for sure. I don’t have freaky long nails of anything like that but I caught the seat with the edge of my nail when putting the seat belt Lon and it marked/scratched the leather. Wet my finger and wiped against the direction of the scratch and it pretty much disappeared.
I’ve done it a few times. Good old ball sack versnacker leather would of been an issue. Having said that I’d always have merino over the others in the range. Looks and feels fab and smells great also.

[Arrow29]

I just took delivery of our M50i with black merino. Really enjoying the merino after 3x BMWs with Dakota!

Im still debating whether to put a protectant on, like gyeon or colourlock leather shield…planning on keeping this for 5+yrs so want to keep the leather nice, but also don't want to make things worse by rubbing protectant products in if they're not needed (not worried about colour transfer since black)…maybe simple maintenance with a damp microfibre cloth is the way to go

[GrussGott]

Originally Posted by Arrow29

don't want to make things worse by rubbing protectant products in if they're not needed (not worried about colour transfer since black)…maybe simple maintenance with a damp microfibre cloth is the way to go

Yeah, interesting question ... if it were me it'd depend on how much friction rubbing you think they're going to take & by what type of clothes. E.g., someone roughly sliding onto the seat in jeans with back pockets every day is going to wear the leather vs if it's just you and you more set yourself down onto the seat ...

I've never done a protectant on merino but I trust those Germans at Colourlock and so if were me I'd do it if I thought there was going to be a chance of friction damage and/or someone spilling a big gulp or something ... otherwise I'd probably skip it.

[JolynnGood]

Vernasca leather is pretty nice, but if you're considering Merino, I guess there's a good reason.
If anyone could post some pictures of their driver's seat and share their mileage and usage details, that would be awesome! It gives us a better sense of how Merino leather holds up in the real world.
Also, thanks for sharing that link to the leather grades blog post at https://vonbaer.com/blogs/blog/leather-grades. It's always good to have more info when making decisions like this. I'm definitely gonna give it a read myself.

[AGONXF30]

Originally Posted by SmartSaves

I like my extended Merino and leather dash. I remember many F15's dakota leather had leather cracking issues (sides of the seat cushions). On G05 BMW now add matching cloth strips where the seat cushion meet plastic seat trim. Embossed harder leather surface might cause the following issue down the road:

Those areas of the seat are not leather, but vynil. Dakota leather is also embossed, but the actual leather is tough as nails, they vinyl areas not so much. The same has happened to my F30. After 5 years that section of the seat started to crack and to this day its cracked, but hardly noticeable. The leather portions are actually lasting very long.

The X5 has the Merino and the only issue I have with mine is the indigo transfer, but I think it adds character. I can clean it pretty good most times, but there still some areas where you can see the blueing.

[Pro55]

Mine were vernasca and have completely discoloured despite cleaning every month and using a leather moisturiser. Ive now had them recoloured/dyed again and to be fait they've come up like new again, but I had to go to a specialist as the dealer was not interested.

[Ohohoh0724]

Somewhat disappointing, hard to maintain.

I usually park indoor, no extreme condition, no excess seat heating used, now 10k mile.

Leather is not as smooth, but now being hard on some part and rough like heel. And biggest difference, the leather was very flat, smooth like paper, now I see grains like vernasca leather. No chemical other than BMW product used (actually, thing started before applying anyway).

If you want to maintain good condition, less stress with durability, go with sensafin. It looks and feels better than vernasca in my opinion. While not as good like merino, I will say the original feeling of merino might go away any moment if you have bad luck.

[1230vani]

Originally Posted by Pro55

Mine were vernasca and have completely discoloured despite cleaning every month and using a leather moisturiser. Ive now had them recoloured/dyed again and to be fait they've come up like new again, but I had to go to a specialist as the dealer was not interested.

This looks like Merino, or is it not?

[Qsilver7]

Originally Posted by 1230vani

This looks like Merino, or is it not?

He is correct...that leather seat in his pics is NOT Merino because you can clearly see the visible grain pattern on the side panel of the seat. As some have stated, Dakota & Vernasca leather have a grain pattern similar to a basketball or football. Merino leather has no grain pattern like that...it is smooth.

[Ohohoh0724]

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

He is correct...that leather seat in his pics is NOT Merino because you can clearly see the visible grain pattern on the side panel of the seat. As some have stated, Dakota & Vernasca leather have a grain pattern similar to a basketball or football. Merino leather has no grain pattern like that...it is smooth.

I agree with your point, that is vernasca, but just for sharing, merino gains grain pattern

[Ohohoh0724]

Image:

[Qsilver7]

Originally Posted by Ohohoh0724

I agree with your point, that is vernasca, but just for sharing, merino gains grain pattern

I see your point...with Merino and Nappa being actual "skins"...they are not totally smooth...and do have texture...just not the embossed "pebbled" grain that Dakota/Vernasca has.

The image below is the Merino (Cohiba/brown) and Nappa (Schwarz/black) from my 2015 & 2013 f06 650ix GCs: