How To Cool Down Black Leather Seats [Quickly & Easily]

Black leather seats make for a clean and stylish look on every vehicle. However, black is excellent at absorbing heat, which can be good or bad depending on where you live. We've looked up how to help you cool down your black leather seats quickly.

Two standard practices to quickly cool down your vehicle are the "Door-fanning" method and the "Blast the AC" method. They are both effective, and you can choose which method suits you.

To learn more about preventing this uncomfortable situation, head over to the rest of the article.

Cooling Black Leather Seats

It does not matter where you live; vehicle owners with black leather seats from around the world experience heat-trapping black seats since it's the color of choice for most car owners.

In the "Door-Fanning" method, you roll down the front passenger-side window and use the driver-side door as a fan to blow hot air out.

As the name suggests, the "Blast the AC" method requires you to put on the AC until the hot air is replaced by comfortable cold air. Your black leather seats will also benefit from it.

The Door-Fanning Method

Opening car door into another car.

The door-fanning technique might make you look a little odd, but it works. It cools down the interior temperature of your vehicle without you even getting in the car.

The method only involves two essential steps to get it done.

  1. The first thing you have to do is to roll down the front passenger-side window. It acts as a vent for the hot air. If you have a somewhat modern car, you won't need to enter your vehicle to access all the window controls on the driver's side door.
  2. Next, open the driver's side door and begin fanning movement. Execute this in and out motion with the door about ten times or until the hot interior air dissipates.

It is arguably the simplest way to cool down your vehicle's interior quickly. The logic is to force the hot air out by introducing much cooler outdoor air through fanning.

Even if this method won't make the interior as cold as using your vehicle's AC, it is still an excellent way to get the interior temperature into bearable conditions. Plus, your AC will work less to achieve the desired temperature.

The Blast The AC Method

Woman driver has problem with a non-working conditioner, hand checking flow cold air, being hot during heat wave in car, suffering from summer hot weather, wipes sweat from her forehead with tissue.

Another method for quickly cooling down your vehicle's interior temperatures is the AC itself. It does not involve physical intervention from you apart from turning on the ignition. This also works best when paired with the door-fanning method.

Here are some quick notes to remember when using this method of quickly cooling down your vehicle's interior.

  • Firstly, turn off the AC setting that allows you to recirculate the air inside your vehicle. You want cool outdoor air to come in but hot recirculated air through the AC.
  • Secondly, slightly roll down all the windows to let the hot air out. Hot air will always go up, and opening your windows just a bit while blasting the AC will speed up the process.
  • When temperatures are down to a comfortable level, shut all the windows and let the AC do its thing.

Note that regularly doing this can stress your vehicle's cooling system. It could lead to premature damage and affect the efficiency of the AC. When you notice something out of the ordinary on your AC, immediately contact your mechanic and have them take a look.

Click here to see this portable car AC on Amazon.

Why Do Black Leather Seats Get Hot Easily?

There are a few scientific explanations for why black leather seats, in particular, get hot easily compared to other car seats.

Black Absorbs Heat Better

Black leather back seats inside luxury car with red seat belts plugs

Winter car clothes are often in shades of black because the color black can absorb heat much more quickly than any other. Black does not let as much light reflect its surface as lighter colors do, turning all that light into thermal energy.

The Greenhouse Effect

Polycarbonate greenhouse with open door in a well-kept garden. In the evening sunlight, you feel calm and comfort

Cars are like plant greenhouses. They can retain heat longer because of their physical attributes, like the windshield's angle and the vehicle's general shape. It resembles a mini sauna box.

When sunlight hits a car directly via windows, heat gets trapped inside.

The shortwave radiation produced by the sun causes a greenhouse effect on the interior, making it uncomfortably hot, especially during summer. Pair that with a dark-colored interior, and you've got yourself one deadly combination.

Leather Is Hotter Compared To Cloth

Samples of interior trim of a modern car with leather.

The leather's composition affects how it absorbs and retains heat. Cloth is much more porous and has a higher heat capacity than leather.

The heat that comes into contact with the cloth fabric gets spread out quickly and, in turn, dissipates faster because of air circulation. The material is so porous that the fluid will just get absorbed. That is why cloth seats are unsuitable for spills and stains.

Ways To Prevent Too Much Heat In Leather Seats

lamborghini urus super car in the dubai desert yellow car, hyper car, How To Cool Down Black Leather Seats [Quickly & Easily]

Heat buildup cannot be avoided, especially with dark-colored interiors. However, there are ways in which you could lessen the effect of the inevitable. Remember these tips every time you park your vehicle.

Park In A Shaded Area

 

It does not matter if it's under a tree or inside a garage. Try parking your vehicle in a shaded area to lessen the buildup of heat on the seats. It's critical for places where midday temperatures can get as high as 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Not only does parking under direct sunlight create a "hot mess" when you enter the vehicle again, it can also be dangerous. Depending on the angle of the glass and other reflective items inside, sunlight can become magnified in one spot, causing a fire to break out.

Tint The Windows

Applying tinting foil on a car window in a garage

Tinting the windows is an excellent way to lessen the effects of the sun. However, local laws might regulate how much tint you can install on your vehicle. So, be sure to check local and state guidelines before trying this method.

Tint reduces the amount of infrared and ultraviolet rays that enter your vehicle through the glass. Professionals can tint your car at the dealership or a third-party car shop. It ensures high-quality workmanship and insurance.

Tinted windows also give a sense of privacy as all the passengers are not entirely exposed to the outside world.

Purchase Vehicle Sun Shades

Using sun shades can help prevent too much heat buildup on your vehicle. There are sun shades available on the market for all the glass panels of your car, and typically, these sun shades come as a set. So you won't have to worry about finding a sunshade for different windows.

Vehicle sun shades are typically made of cloth fabric, with one side having a reflectorized material. The reflective part of the sunshade prevents sun rays from entering the vehicle and heating the interior.

Click here to check out this car window shade set on Amazon.

Keep Windows Slightly Open

Close up shot of slightly ajar car windows for btter cooling on hot summer day

This last option depends on how secure you feel in your parking area. If you park in a relatively safe space with little to no chance of having your vehicle broken into, by all means, try this method. 

The benefit of keeping the windows open is that it helps the heat escape. So, as the air heats up, it escapes via the open window. If your vehicle has a sunroof, you can slightly open it to accelerate the hot air escape and cool it to bearable conditions.

To Sum Up

Luxury car interior view, black leather car seats

Heat buildup will always be a challenge to car owners. It doesn't matter if your car seats are dark-colored or not. When the sun shines directly on your car, it will get uncomfortably hot.

Luckily, there are plenty of easy ways to prevent this uncomfortable situation from happening. There are many ways to protect your black leather seats, from tinted windows to sun shades.

If you found this post insightful, be sure to check out our other posts on the site:

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