SIST EN 14906:2026

• Abstract:

  This document gives guidelines to select the test methods to assess the performance of leather for automotive. This document also specifies the sampling and conditioning procedures of specimens.; NOTE Regulations on chemical substances in consumer goods might differ from country to country requiring; for any given market a special attention to restricted substances.

• Status: Published
• Public Enquiry End Date: 23-Apr-2025
• Publication Date: 15-Jun-2026
• ICS: 43.020 - Road vehicles in general
• ICS: 59.140.30 - Leather and furs
• Technical Committee: IUSN - Leather
• Current Stage: 6060 - National Implementation/Publication (Adopted Project)
• Start Date: 10-Jun-2026
• Due Date: 15-Aug-2026
• Completion Date: 16-Jun-2026
• Ref Project: EN 14906:2026 - Leather - Leather for automotive - Test methods and testing parameters

• Refers: SIST EN ISO 26082-1:2026 - Leather - Physical and mechanical test methods for the determination of soiling - Part 1: Rubbing (Martindale) method (ISO 26082-1:2026)
• Effective Date: 12-Aug-2026
• Refers: SIST EN ISO 105-B06:2020 - Textiles - Tests for colour fastness - Part B06: Colour fastness and ageing to artificial light at high temperatures: Xenon arc fading lamp test (ISO 105-B06:2020)
• Effective Date: 01-Jul-2026
• Revises: SIST EN 14906:2012 - Leather - Leather for automotive - Test methods and testing parameters
• Effective Date: 08-Apr-2024

SIST EN 14906:2026 is the Slovenian standard for leather for automotive, published as EN 14906:2026 by CEN. It gives guidelines for selecting test methods to assess the performance of automotive leather and sets out how specimens are to be sampled, conditioned and prepared. In practice, it helps suppliers, buyers and laboratories use the same test plan when specifying leather for automotive use.

What does SIST EN 14906:2026 specify?

SIST EN 14906:2026 specifies how to choose test methods for automotive leather and how to handle test specimens before testing. It is organized into Scope, Normative references, Terms and definitions, General principles, List of test methods, Test reports and a Bibliography.

The scope covers leather intended for automotive use and includes a note that chemical substance regulations for consumer goods can vary by country, so restricted substances need market-specific attention. The document is structured around general principles for sampling and conditioning, then a list of methods for essential and optional properties.

What are the key requirements of SIST EN 14906:2026?

Clause 4 sets the handling rules that make test results comparable. Sampling follows EN ISO 2588 unless the parties agree otherwise, and test pieces are located and identified according to EN ISO 2418. If testing a whole hide or skin, specimen selection follows EN ISO 2418; if that is not possible, for example with finished products, the test report has to record the details.

Sampling, conditioning and preparation

Clause 4.3 requires conditioning at the reference standard atmosphere for at least 24 h in accordance with EN ISO 2419. After conditioning, preparation and testing should take place in the same conditioned environment, or start within 10 min of removal if that is not possible. Chemical test pieces are prepared according to EN ISO 4044. This matters because leather responds to moisture and temperature, so the same handling is needed for repeatable results.

Clause 4.4 says test pieces are evaluated according to EN ISO 7906. That ties the assessment to the standard colour fastness testing principles used in leather.

Essential properties for automotive leather

Clause 5 divides properties into Table 1 essential properties and Table 2 optional properties. Table 1 is treated as mandatory unless the parties agree otherwise. It includes basic parameters such as apparent density and mass per unit area, thickness and surface coating thickness, plus tensile strength, elongation at break, elongation at defined forces, tear load, adhesion of finish and stitch tear resistance. In practice, these checks cover structure, strength and construction performance.

Table 1 also includes bending and stiffness, softness, flex resistance and abrasion resistance. It adds ageing and dimensional change by heat and hydrolytic ageing, plus colour fastness, emission behaviour, resistance to horizontal spread of flame, soiling and cleanability, and loose grain effect. These are the properties that most directly affect appearance, durability and in-cabin performance.

Test conditions that are fixed by the standard

For colour fastness to artificial light at high temperatures and colour fastness and ageing to artificial light at high temperatures, the document gives specific exposure conditions, including apparatus type C and filter system BS/SL. It also requires comparison against the original test piece according to EN 20105-A02. This gives a controlled way to judge colour change after light exposure.

For fogging, only gravimetric procedures are allowed and the drying time is at least 7 days. The document also points to standard methods or widely used methods for volatile organic compounds (VOC), odour and loose grain effect. That tells users which interior-air and surface-appearance issues are relevant, even where a separate standard is not named in Clause 2.

Optional properties

Table 2 lists optional properties such as colour fastness to migration, colour fastness to insect repellents, resistance to sun lotion, water vapour permeability, stick-slip behaviour and permeability to air for perforated leather. These are used when the customer or application needs extra performance checks beyond the core list.

What terms does SIST EN 14906:2026 define?

• Apparent density - the density-related property used together with mass per unit area to describe the leather’s structure.
• Conditioning - bringing test pieces to a defined atmosphere before testing so moisture and temperature effects are controlled.
• Test piece - the prepared specimen taken from the leather for a specific test method.
• Flex resistance - the ability of leather to withstand repeated bending without damage.
• Fogging - the tendency of material emissions to condense on a cooler surface under the test conditions.
• Volatile organic compounds (VOC) - organic substances that can be emitted from leather and are assessed for interior-air behaviour.
• Soiling and cleanability - the ability of the leather to resist dirt uptake and to be cleaned afterwards.

Who uses SIST EN 14906:2026?

SIST EN 14906:2026 is used by leather suppliers, automotive trim manufacturers, laboratories, buyers and quality managers. They use it to agree which tests to run, how to take samples, how to condition them and how to document the results. It is also relevant when comparing materials for seats, steering-wheels, gear-knobs and headrests.

What changed in SIST EN 14906:2026 from the previous edition?

SIST EN 14906:2026 supersedes EN 14906:2012. The European foreword states two significant technical changes: the normative references were updated, and Table 1 and Table 2 were updated together with the general wording of the procedure to be followed.

Which standards are used with SIST EN 14906:2026?

• EN 15987 - provides the leather terminology and key definitions used in the document.
• EN ISO 2588 - gives the number of items for a gross sample.
• EN ISO 2418 - sets specimen position and preparation rules.
• EN ISO 2419 - sets conditioning of specimens before physical and mechanical testing.
• EN ISO 4044 - covers preparation of chemical test samples.
• EN ISO 7906 - gives the general principles for leather colour fastness testing.
• EN ISO 3376, EN ISO 5402-1, EN ISO 17076-2, EN ISO 17226-3 and EN ISO 26082-1 - provide the named test methods for tensile, flex resistance, abrasion, formaldehyde emission and soiling.

What does the SIST EN 14906:2026 document contain?

The document contains two main test-method tables: Table 1 for essential properties and Table 2 for optional properties. It also gives procedure notes for sampling, conditioning, evaluation and several test conditions, including the specific light-fastness setup and the fogging drying requirement.

It names the methods to use for key performance checks such as thickness, tensile behaviour, tear load, bending force, softness, abrasion, ageing, colour fastness, emission behaviour and flame spread resistance. For some topics it points to widely used VDA methods in notes, such as VOC, odour, loose grain effect and stick-slip behaviour.

Clause 6 defines what a test report should contain: at least the information required by the test methods used, plus any extra evaluation requested in the specification.

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-julij-2026
Usnje - Usnje za uporabo v avtomobilih - Preskusni postopki in parametri
Leather - Leather for automotive - Test methods and testing parameters
Leder - Automobilleder - Prüfverfahren und Prüfparameter
Cuir - Cuir pour l'automobile - Méthodes et paramètres d’essai
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN 14906:2026
ICS:
43.020 Cestna vozila na splošno Road vehicles in general
59.140.30 Usnje in krzno Leather and furs
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EN 14906
EUROPEAN STANDARD
NORME EUROPÉENNE
May 2026
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
ICS 59.140.30 Supersedes EN 14906:2012
English Version
Leather - Leather for automotive - Test methods and
testing parameters
Cuir - Cuir pour l'automobile - Méthodes et paramètres Leder - Automobilleder - Prüfverfahren und
d'essai Prüfparameter
This European Standard was approved by CEN on 27 April 2026.

CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this
European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references
concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to any CEN
member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by
translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management
Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and
United Kingdom.
EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION

EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2026 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. EN 14906:2026 E
worldwide for CEN national Members.

Contents Page
European foreword . 3
Introduction . 4
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 6
4 General principles . 6
4.1 General. 6
4.2 Sampling . 6
4.3 Conditioning and test piece preparation . 7
4.4 Evaluation of test pieces . 7
5 List of test methods . 7
6 Test reports . 10
Bibliography . 11

European foreword
This document (EN 14906:2026) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 289 “Leather”,
the secretariat of which is held by UNI.
This European Standard shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an
identical text or by endorsement, at the latest by November 2026 and conflicting national standards
shall be withdrawn at the latest by November 2026.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CEN shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
This document supersedes EN 14906:2012.
— update of normative references;
— update of Table 1 and Table 2 of the methods to be used for the test and the general wording of the
procedure to be followed.
Any feedback and questions on this document should be directed to the users’ national standards body.
A complete listing of these bodies can be found on the CEN website.
According to the CEN-CENELEC Internal Regulations, the national standards organizations of the
following countries are bound to implement this European Standard: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland,
Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of
North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and the
United Kingdom.
Introduction
This document was prepared by CEN/TC 289 “Leather” in order to provide the leather and the
automotive industries with methods to be used for testing on which sellers and buyers can base their
specifications and negotiations.
1 Scope
This document gives guidelines to select the test methods to assess the performance of leather for
automotive. This document also specifies the sampling and conditioning procedures of specimens.
NOTE Regulations on chemical substances in consumer goods might differ from country to country requiring
for any given market a special attention to restricted substances.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
EN 15987, Leather — Terminology — Key definitions for the leather trade
EN 20105-A02, Textiles — Tests for colour fastness — Part A02: Grey scale for assessing change in colour
(ISO 105-A02)
EN ISO 105-B06, Textiles — Tests for colour fastness — Part B06: Colour fastness and ageing to artificial
light at high temperatures: Xenon arc fading lamp test (ISO 105-B06)
EN ISO 2418, Leather — Chemical, physical, mechanical and fastness tests — Position and preparation of
specimens for testing (ISO 2418)
EN ISO 2419, Leather — Physical and mechanical tests — Specimen and test piece conditioning
(ISO 2419)
EN ISO 2420, Leather — Physical and mechanical tests — Determination of apparent density and mass
per unit area (ISO 2420)
EN ISO 2588, Leather — Sampling — Number of items for a gross sample (ISO 2588)
EN ISO 2589, Leather — Physical and mechanical tests — Determination of thickness (ISO 2589)
EN ISO 3376, Leather — Physical and mechanical tests — Determination of tensile strength and
percentage elongation (ISO 3376)
EN ISO 3377-1, Leather — Physical and mechanical tests — Determination of tear load — Part 1: Single
edge tear (ISO 3377-1)
EN ISO 4044, Leather — Chemical tests — Preparation of chemical test samples (ISO 4044)
EN ISO 5402-1, Leather — Determination of flex resistance — Part 1: Flexometer method (ISO 5402-1)
EN ISO 7906, Leather — Tests for colour fastness — General principles of testing (ISO 7906)
EN ISO 7979, Leather — Tests for colour fastness — Colour fastness to hydroalcoholic mixtures (ISO 7979)
EN ISO 11641, Leather — Tests for colour fastness — Colour fastness to perspiration (ISO 11641)
EN ISO 11644, Leather — Test for adhesion of finish (ISO 11644)
EN ISO 14087, Leather — Physical and mechanical tests — Determination of bending fo
...