Desert Beige interior - should I?

[WestOiler125]

Hi fellow dubbers,
As my 08 TDI nears end of lease I've been looking at Passat B7 and Alltrack for replacement.
Alltracks are very nice, and am considering a sports pack addition for the swish seating, paddles and tint (and the 4 wheel roadholding). However, Passat wagons appear to be very good value, with an panoramic sunroof model being advertised under the magic 50K (2013 compliant). My only concern is the beige interior, how does it go for staying clean? I do find it rather garish, especially the dash contrast between the two colours.
My black leather has always been simple to keep clean with a quick wipe over with the chamois.
However the Passat is the right colour, instock and available now.... Difficult decision as a similar Alltrack would be a 6 month wait and probably $5K more!

[Martin]

Are you going to clean and groom the interior every month?
I've seen so many beige interiors get grimy/gruby very quickly - it ain't pretty

[HarryK001]

I have a 2004 honda with a beige leather interior which still is OK, my passat has the black nappa and I would have prefered the beige as I spend most of my weekends down on the beach and the bleck really shows the sand, something which WA has plenty of, though I have to say the contrast with the black leather and carpets makes it easier to clean.

[Dutch77]

As above.. if you don't mind some extra work then there's no real drama with the beige finish.

I had a similar light finish on a previous vehicle and it did show up some dirt/markings on the base and side bolster where I went in and out but overall not too bad. On the plus side if you're unlucky enough to cop a small scrape/scratch it seems to show up less than on the darker leather.

[Amalgam]

My previous car had a beige leather interior and it was simple to keep clean. Just spray and wipe with Auto Glym Leather Cleaner when you clean the car and every 6 months I would use Auto Glym Leather Cleaner with a soft nail brush to remove any stubborn marks. It added about 30 min to the clean.

IMHO you should be maintaining black leather the same way and I prefer the lighter interior.

[The_Hawk]

If you really hate the colour or what it takes to keep clean you could get it replaced after market. If the car ticks all the other boxes and is available now you could probably have it re-trimmed in better than factory leather for less money anyway if it came to that.

[Hillbilly]

Mine is Desert Beige and wouldnt have black The car looks lighter and bigger inside.

I clean it with Mothers Leather Cleaner regularly and it looks pretty good

Im not allowed to wear old gear in it though so that helps.

Also have put 3M protective film on all the door sills to stop them getting scuffed and that has kept them immaculate along with the rear bumper which I did also.

[WestOiler125]

Thanks dubbers,
Will now seriously consider this, and the cooler seats will be a plus in the hot Perth summer (40C today!)

[Inego]

Thanks for thsi discussion guys - I'm interested in Desert beige too, having spent many years with coal hole interiors, but have 5 and 9 year old. Now just to convince the wife....

[Hillbilly]

Thanks dubbers,
Will now seriously consider this, and the cooler seats will be a plus in the hot Perth summer (40C today!)

I know the feeling. Parked our rental car in Las Vegas facing the sun on a 42C day and had to turn aircon to blow on steering wheel as nearly burnt my hand it was so hot and that was at 9 45am
It unfortunately had black leather so was pretty warm to sit on then as well