Your experiences please…

I am concerned about the too hot / too cold thing and sweaty long journey’s….should I be?

Not if your air-con is working/used and/or heated seats.

Easier to clean too 😉

No, you are thinking of vinyl from the 70’s. Leather is fine.

Leather seats are much, much better with kids. Vinyl, on a hot day, in shorts, not so much.

My first car with leather seats was ~4 years ago and was a company one. Following leaving that job and having two different private cars I made sure both had leather (and heated seats for that matter!). Whilst nothing can beat a proper seat cover for when you’re really hacky, leather is so much easier to clean, as well as more comfortable. If you can manage heated seats as well, go for it, they seem like heaven at the end of a cold winters ride!

As above. Good air con, heated seats (even better ventilated) and leather is great for keeping clean. Although maybe not in very light colours.

Remember as a kid our old Volvo 240 when we lived in Egypt with black leather seats. Never fun getting into if it had been sat for more than 10 minutes.

I’ve got leather seats and arsewarmers(tm), nothing better on a December morning.

how old are your kids –

if young don’t forget they’ll be sitting in a car seat/booster so it might not be any concern for a few years

My 7yo complains about the leather smell…

Nope not an issue as it’s leather not plastic, had it in a couple of Golfs I owned was lovely and dead easy to keep clean. Just make sure it’s a dark colour though for the inevitable spills that kids do.

arsewarmers

The German slang for them is funny “Popo-Heizung”

Both of our main cars have leather seats. Never a problem with either of them. I did have some cheapo aldi seat covers for the abarth but gave up when I realised how easy the leather was to clean after muddy bums had been on them,

Posh Fords (I know) will also blow cold air through their perforated leather seats (very nice leather also)

It’s quite a nifty trick.

Oooh, it is a titanium x galaxy with perforated leather…