Detailing Your Interior: Plastic, and Vinyl Trim

[Candyman]

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to the next segment in our Guide to Detailing Like A Pro! In this Segment, we will be discussing how to clean, and dress Plastic, and Vinyl Trim in your PT.

Vinyl is subject to deterioration from thermal heat (baking grime into the surface), UV radiation (causing fading and cracking), abrasion (sliding in and out of seats) and solvents found in some cleaners and dressings.

A microscopic view of automotive vinyl would show raw PVC (polyvinyl chloride) covered by a thin layer of plastic called the "topcoat". The topcoat is the part of the vinyl you see and can touch. To keep vinyl soft and flexible, manufacturers add agents known as plasticizers to the raw PVC. A major function of the topcoat is to hold in these plasticizers, which otherwise would evaporate as the sun heats them. This is why new cars develop a greasy "vinyl haze" on the inside windshield for the first three to six months.

Protecting the topcoat is the top priority in properly maintaining automotive vinyl. All vinyl manufacturers agree on and recommend the following:

CLEANING:

Never use household cleaners, powdered or other abrasives, steel wool, or industrial cleaners, dry cleaning fluids, strong petroleum distillates, bleach or detergents. Use a medium-soft brush, warm soapy water, (such as Ivory soap), wipe off with a mist of cool water and then dry with a clean Microfiber Rag. Stubborn stains should be cleaned with an alkaline (soap) based formula, not a solvent (acid) based formula.

DRESSING:

In order to dress your Plastic/Vinyl trim, simply taka a clean Microfiber Rag folded into four, and spray a small amount of Interior Dressing directly to your rag, and gently apply it to your trim components. Allow the Dressing to remain on the trim you are treating for approximately five minutes, and then grab another clean Microfiber Rag, and wipe off the excess chemicals. Follow these steps on all of your plastic, and vinyl trim components, until you have completed your interior.

In our next segment, we will discuss how to properly clean, and maintain Leather Seats. As always, thank you so much for reading my Guide to Detailing Your PT Like A Pro! Till next time, take it easy, and we will catch you a little further down the road!

Candyman

[Candyman]

Reposting in correct order

[taterbug]

What is a good brand of dressing I can use on all the plastic in the
interior of my 2005 convertable. Looks like the dash is plastic also
as well as the door panels even though it has a look of leather. I
have cloth seats not leather. The door panels are a combination
of plastic and cloth. Every thing is Black and dark grey so I is a
Heat magnet. I am looking for a good brand I can buy at a local
auto parts store like auto zone or pep boys.

[Teekypt]

I love your detailing posts CM. Thanks a bunch!!!