SofTex or Leather?

I had leather put into a PIP basic and have been pleased so far. I wasn't too thrilled with the feel of the SofTex when I sw it t the car show.

 

I don't like the look of cloth over time. It looks kind of beat and worn. It's hard to keep it looking fresh. If it gets dirty it's tough to clean too, I feel. I also figured since I got the base over the advanced, I could splurge a bit on the leather. I have never felt or sat on Softex. But if it was an option on the base, I probably would've just got that since I generally prefer OEM over aftermarket. However, I am quite happy with my dealer installed leather.

 

I had a 2010 Prius V and the seat was the only thing that I didn't care for. When I went to the L.A. Auto show I sat in both the basic and advanced model and the advanced had a much more comfortable seat. It could also have been the fact that the V had 17 inch rims with low profile tires.

 

Totally agree with you. I also had factory leather on 2010 IV w/ Solar and the leather was so so but on my 2012 PiP Advanced, it's softer, feels thicker and more durable than the factory leather.

 

There aren't a lot of decisions. With the Plug-in Prius, SofTex is part of an $8,000 package. You get it or you don't. If you don't want fabric and you buy only the Basic model, aftermarket leather is the only option.

 

I have the Softex in my PIP Advanced. I am pleased with it. We have cloth in our 2011 Blizzard Pearl sunroof model. The cloth gives the impression of an economy car, good or bad, as you may perceive it. The Softex is much richer looking and is comfortable, although we haven't hit warm weather yet. My preference would be leather in a natural color, but that wouldn't work with the limited choices offered in the PIP advanced model this year.. A sales person told me that Toyota used Softex because they believe that most Prius drivers would would object to having leather. How does that resonate with you?

 

You can easily go with recaro seats like I did.

 

Toyota choose Softex because ALL there cow stock was radioactive from Fukushima. One guy lost over 2 billion in cattle to radioactivity.

Japan halts Fukushima cattle shipments on radiation worries | The Raw Story

Radiation Bankrupts Japanese Cattle Ranch With $5.6 Billion in Liabilities - Bloomberg

 

Where did you see that some have replaced SofTex with leather? All the posts that I recall were replacing cloth with leather, not Softex with leather.

 

That article also says Fukushima accounts for only 3% of their beef. What's more, mildly radioactive meat which should not be consumed probably does not mean the leather is radioactive. If the switch to Softex had to do with Fukushima, it would have been to prevent consumer fears, not because of availability or actual dangers.

The actual reason is more likely cost, quality, and sustainability.

 

I got the base model 2012 Prius Three with no option for Softex. I had the dealer roll in X amount to cover the after-market cost of replacing the cloth seats with heated Softex seats. They had to order the Softex material and it should be in stock within the week and I'll be taking the car in to get Softex heated seats put in this week or next week. I am sure if you had to make a decision quick then it may be too late by now but I'll let you know what differences I see when I go from the cloth to Softex (obviously easier to clean will be one of them).

We took the dogs on one road trip and the cloth is covered in dog hair now. :mmph:
Guess that should be a lot different once the Softex is added.

 

I have leather in my '11 and love it. I've only seen the SofTex and have never felt it. Visually, I think the leather looks better but after reading several posts it sounds like the 'feel' of SofTex is just as good if not better than the leather.

Is it too early to hear how well the SofTex lasts as compared to traditional leather seats?

 

I believe I read the switch from leather to softex was cost and weight.

We have leather in out 2011 Prius IV and the softex in our Plug-in AT. Honestly I couldn't tell the difference on my rear, but (no pun intended) if I physically touch it with my hands it's evident the softex is a "thinner" material, and substantially at that. I really have no complaints about it, in fact I can already see one potential pro to it. In our 2011 after only just 16k miles the drivers seat bottom outer edge is starting to show wrinkle marks in the leather from sliding in and out of the seat (My wife and I both like the steering wheel all the way down). The Softex looks to me more resistant to wear creases/wrinkles. How it holds up long term against leather is pretty much anyones guess right now.

I could completely see the reasoning behind upgrading a base Plug-in to leather, but IMO upgrading the Softex to leather sounds to me like a waste of cash.

 

We added aftermarket full leather to our base model. If leather (softex) had been available with the base model I would have purchased it. That being said, I am very happy with the after market, dealer installed leather.

 

That's interesting. I asked about that before I bought my PiP basic, and Dianne @ Carson Toyota said adding Softex wasn't an option. So naturally, I went with the aftermarket leather.

I like the leather. It turned out great. It looks & feels like top quality stuff and I liked that I could choose the color. I went all black and I think my interior looks nicer than with the gray Softex.