Have you noticed that the plastic cover on a car's gauge cluster is one of the easiest things to scratch in the history of mankind? Why is that? Does it have to do with an anti-reflective coating? And what do you do to clean it?
The plastic is extremely soft. I usually clean them when I do the windows. Some glass cleaner and a mf towel should eliminate the scratching problem.
For this kind of plastic I make sure to use OPT Opti-Clean when wiping down. It is even more robust than no-rinse at suspending dirt and protecting the surface being cleaned from damage. Also, you can hand polish this area with powerfinish or 85rd and a clean mf towel. It should help reduce the damage.
I honestly never touch mine. If anything i give it a little shot of compressed air (if you use this method, just be sure to be a little distance away). I guess it all depends on the car but mine never really get dusty - Am I the only one? lol :tumbleweed: It's really soft indeed, my guess is because it should be very clear and that's probably the best plastic for that type of clarity - unfortunately not for durability though!
I'm so scared of scratching the plastic as well. I usually dust it first and then use mf/glass cleaner.
Usually don't touch it, if you have to blow it off first and using a product like Plexus works well if needed.
Its driving me nuts! Driving in the sun i noticed marring all over. I have a plastic cleaner polish spray. Applied with MF didn't seem to help much. Any suggestions?
Try powerfinish and then 85rd with a MF towel, work it for a bit, use a QD product when wiping off the residue
I just replaced this in one of my cars as it was scratched and cloudy, mostly likely because someone used Armor All on it. I'm going to take the old one and try three different techniques to get it looking like new and I'll post up the results when I'm done. As for prevention. I absolutely refuse to touch it unless I have to. I use compressed air to clean off dust. If I have to actually touch it I use a little steam and a MF towel.
I just used 85rd on a blue pad this evening. It's hard to see anything under LED, so I'm anxious to get it into the sun. I'm thinking this combo worked very well so I commend your recommendation.
Cool, let us know how it goes. I am always interested to hear if stuff that works for me works for others....
