Chevron Techron spill…

ultane · 2026-11-01T12:12:57-0600

After my most recent oil and filter change, I put the bottle of Techron in the back seat so I could add it at the next fill up. Two days later, I got into MIss Daisy to drive 110 miles to see my grandson play soccer.

When I got in Miss Daisy, I immediately noticed a faint petrol type smell. I didn’t think anything of it until 3+ hours later when two of my grandkids were getting into the backseat. I went to move the Techron container, and noticed that the container was moist on the outside. So was the leather (perforated) seat!!!

The bottle was half empty..

I wiped it up with clean paper towels, as best I could.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get this stuff out of the foam? Or should I just buy new foam for that seat?

DubDub · 2026-11-01T12:35:23-0600

I’ve

ultane said:
After my most recent oil and filter change, I put the bottle of Techron in the back seat so I could add it at the next fill up. Two days later, I got into MIss Daisy to drive 110 miles to see my grandson play soccer.

When I got in Miss Daisy, I immediately noticed a faint petrol type smell. I didn’t think anything of it until 3+ hours later when two of my grandkids were getting into the backseat. I went to move the Techron container, and noticed that the container was moist on the outside. So was the leather (perforated) seat!!! The bottle was half empty..

I wiped it up with clean paper towels, as best I could.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get this stuff out of the foam? Or should I just buy new foam for that seat?

I’ve had similar situations, albeit not with any petroleum product. I have had to deal with spoiled milk and dog urine (my old GSD was actively dying and I was taking her back home to my parents to see them one last time).

In my experience, the only way to even come close to removing the contaminant is to flood the seat with a cleaning solvent and lots of water. Saturate it and pull it with a strong vac. Rinse and repeat until the fluids you are pulling are clear and not filmy to the touch. Petroleum would be difficult as it is not soluble with water, but that may assist in raising it to the surface for removal.

Younger me tackled this heavily, and I recall the milk taking weeks of repeat treatments with periods of aeration. Definitely remove the seat and don’t try to do it in the LC. Today me would be simply purchasing a new seat or having an upholstery shop do a pad/cover replacement.

supernova · 2026-11-01T13:35:58-0600

That sucks, bro! But wouldn’t the petroleum-based stuff eventually evaporate over time? Or does it leave something behind in the foam?

Bad1975 · 2026-11-01T14:16:34-0600

Use dawn dish soap. Take that seat cushion out, take the cover off and soak straight dawn into the foam. Let that sit for a bit and then massage the foam and then rinse out with warm water. May take a few treatments, repeat until no product smell remains. Any solvents will eat the foam.

I've haven't done this but it's what I'd try before getting a new foam piece. Do the same with the leather only wipe the dawn into the leather and thin wipe it out with a warm moist water soaked rag and then treat with Lexol leather cleaner and Lexol leather conditioner before the leather can dry from the water in it and repeat the Lexol treatment again after it air dries. Be gentle on the leather no stretching or wringing it when cleaning or it will be stretched out permanently when done.

Of course, you may want to do a spot treatment on an area you can't see first to see if the dawn cleaning and rinsing on the leather followed by the leather treatment will discolor it or not.