Interior protectant?

Cleft_Asunder · 11-15-2008

Is there a cheap way to coat the inside of the car after you've cleaned it off with soapy water? Is there a simple formula I can make? If not, what products are good? I've read on here that armor-all is bad, but I don't know why.

I tried coating my dash with carnauba wax, and fun things did not happen.

Now I've got white inside the cracks on the dash material and it's a bitch to even out even with a brush. Sigh... -_-

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gearbox · 11-15-2008

i use black magic interior protectant. i like it because it actually protects the plastic and only stays shiny for couple days before going back to stock. shiny dash FTL, esp in the sun.

bakertime · 11-15-2008

Oh man, that must have been a mess with the wax! Definitely stay away from that! You probably didn't do any damage, other then having to clean it all up!

When I detail, I use Turtle Wax F21 (Neon Green bottle). It's a little weird, in that it smells pretty strong and is REALLY shiny at first, but it lasts for a very long time. I use it in conjunction with Blue Coral Upholstery Cleaner (Make sure it says WITH odor eliminator, w/o smells bad), which makes the combination of smells actually quite nice : ). The upholstery cleaner smells amazing, haha.

Some people don't like Armor All because it has silicon in it..they say that if you don't re-apply normally, it will cause premature cracking and drying out. F21 also uses silicon, and I think Black Magic might also...But I've never had any issues.

If you're looking for a low luster shine, wipe it all down with a clean microfiber after you put it on, or try Mother Interior Protectant. It's way expensive, but it's a lot less shiny. Microfiber also works if you're having an problems with streaking after you appy it.

Hope that helps!

gearbox · 11-15-2008

turtle wax was way too shiny for me and yes it lasted forever which i was about to go crazy from sun glare. i use it alot on the outside trims and stuff tho. the black magic sucks for everything except the dash.

bakertime · 11-15-2008

Yeah, it's pretty shiny...it works well on a lot of dashes that don't like to take protectant though. 7th gen's have a pretty shiny dash, so it gets pretty crazy. Wiping with a towel really helps that initial glare. And yeah...B.M. sucks for a lot of things...their wax is awful to get off. I use their tire foam though...goes on nicely and the excess wipes off without leaving a greasy residue.

BTW gear, the retro looks sick...I hadn't see it since you did it a second time around.

gearbox · 11-16-2008

the oem retro you mean? yeah im really happy with it this time. but yeah have you tried 3m performance finish (wax)? its the best wax ive ever used and it also shines up the black trim pieces between the outside doors. beads water better than anything ive tried and lasts long time. its silicone based and pure synthetic. for inside i dont recommend putting anything on the panels other than the dash. when it rains the water will mess up the door panels and anything else that gets wet.

heres closeup of the retro. i also have white reverse pnp led 3w cree xre in the works (well its done, im waiting on backordered drivers so i can hook it up.

Cleft_Asunder · 11-16-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by bakertime

Oh man, that must have been a mess with the wax! Definitely stay away from that! You probably didn't do any damage, other then having to clean it all up!

When I detail, I use Turtle Wax F21 (Neon Green bottle). It's a little weird, in that it smells pretty strong and is REALLY shiny at first, but it lasts for a very long time. I use it in conjunction with Blue Coral Upholstery Cleaner (Make sure it says WITH odor eliminator, w/o smells bad), which makes the combination of smells actually quite nice : ). The upholstery cleaner smells amazing, haha.

Some people don't like Armor All because it has silicon in it..they say that if you don't re-apply normally, it will cause premature cracking and drying out. F21 also uses silicon, and I think Black Magic might also...But I've never had any issues.

If you're looking for a low luster shine, wipe it all down with a clean microfiber after you put it on, or try Mother Interior Protectant. It's way expensive, but it's a lot less shiny. Microfiber also works if you're having an problems with streaking after you appy it.

Hope that helps!

Well I tried it on the streering wheel first and it wasn't to bad so I covered half the top of the dash, but it was so not a good idea. I cleaned it off with simple green and a brush.

Other than that, thanks for all the info. I've got to do those headlights as well, they have become yellowish which looks like crap and decreases night visibility. Is that in a DIY somewhere gearbox?

gearbox · 11-16-2008

if headlight isnt too bad, you can get away with using meguiars plastx and skipping the wet sanding.

bakertime · 11-17-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by gearbox

have you tried 3m performance finish (wax)? its the best wax ive ever used and it also shines up the black trim pieces between the outside doors. beads water better than anything ive tried and lasts long time. its silicone based and pure synthetic.

I haven't tired that...Maybe I'll give it a shot next time I need some more wax...thanks for the tip! And yeah, I meant the OEM Retro. I had a TSX retro in my eBay projectors when I had my 01 Civic...just this past summer I moved them over into my Integra. Having a bracket made for projectors already made it much easier, hah! Not to mention, no worries attention from police since it looks completely stock. Anyway...sorry for the threadjack Cleft, I'm getting way off topic.

For the headlights, Mothers Mag & Aluminum Polish does a pretty good job at getting rid of minor yellowing. I have to do my Integra ever couple months to keep it clear, but it works well. Just did it today actually

Worst case, you need to wetsand (I'd do 600 & 1000 at least, maybe higher also), hit with rubbing compound or the Mothers stuff, and then plastic polish.

gearbox · 11-17-2008

once you get it looking good, use wolfgang clear plastic sealer every few months to protect the finish.

katzenjammer84 · 11-17-2008

Best protectant is to hide it from UV rays. Those dressings do nothing but cause the vinyl to dry out prematurely.

bakertime · 11-17-2008

The dressings generally have UV resistant finishes. The drying out prematurely argument is constantly argued, and often there is no evidence to show it to be true. Even if it might cause it in the future, just keep dressing on the dash and your good to go.

gearbox · 11-17-2008

isnt the dash plastic? i know black magic has uv block and plastic restoring chemicals to keep the plastic "soft"

bakertime · 11-17-2008

Yeah I think it's either a plastic or a vinyl...not sure. I really don't think that whole drying out argument holds water.

gearbox · 11-17-2008

well my car is almost 7 yrs old, with most of that time sitting out in the sun all day. dash doesnt have any cracks and i used to use alot of stuff on the dash, but in the last few years ive been getting lazy. nothing happened either way. the airbag cover is discolored but thats cause its a separate piece and prolly cheaper plastic.