DSG Black Piano Surround

[Zenbasses]

Hiya all 

 

Loving my new car   but  being a bit OCD the single most annoying thing is the fact the previous own either cleaned the interior trim with sand paper or had a habit if running jewellery or nails across is.. It is scratched all over which in the sun light really gets on my wick... 

 

Same with all the other bits of piano black trim on the dashboard and doors and the aluminium door sill plates.. 

 

I know I can source all other bits. But the DSG surround seems elusive as I don't have a part number to search against. 

 

Short of going into a dealer does anyone know where these can be found? 

 

Or you can tell me to stop being OCD and get on with life 

 

All The Best 

 

Ben 

[Zenbasses]

Hiya All.

 

I have been informed that since mine has the LED interior lighting with piano black trim these are made to order from the factory and take an age to be delivered. I dread to think of the cost..

 

Anyway..still keen to replace all the scratched plastic bits so I thought I would 'Bump' the thread just to see if anyone can offer some advice before I go through the dealers.

 

Many Thanks

[peter_k]

I would expect that you should be able to polish a plastic that has a high gloss finish.  Years ago Perspex could be polished with Brasso .  The problem is finding a test area and the correct polish.  

Some random thoughts on the problem:

2000 grit wet and dry gives a satin (near shine) on s/steel sinks.

Try T Cut.

Told that toothpaste is polish

Car paint cutting compounds come in wide grade of abrasiveness.

There are kits to restore and polish headlights. 

Bathroom polish - claims acrylic (Perspex), polyester and fibre glass (but that's polyester!) https://www.plumbworld.co.uk/acrylstar-professional-scratch-1846-16658

Jewellers Rouge for a diy polish - ebay?

 

With the recycling of car parts is there any requirement to mark the type of plastic on the mouldings? Knowing the type of plastic should go as long way to a solution.

Edited 20 July, 2017 by peter_k

[peter_k]

How about https://gcabrasives.co.uk/epages/147d4a49-90ba-475a-a7eb-53ea23d3dbad.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/147d4a49-90ba-475a-a7eb-53ea23d3dbad/Categories/Micro-Mesh

ULTRA-FLEX MICRO-MESH™ REGULAR

Use these products for finishing plastics, acrylics, polycarbonates, bakelite, fiberglass, gelcoat, urethanes, celluloid,laquers, fiberglass, cast polymers, soft woods, soft metals, cultured marble, coatings, composites, and more.

Abrasive colours of this product range from dark grey to light grey. This material is made to be used wet or dry, is made with a flexible cotton backing with polymer emulsion cushioning layer and large micron graded silicon carbide crystals suspended in an ultra flexible resin bond.*Grades 8000 and 12000 are made with aluminum oxide crystals.

This material is available in the following 9 grades, from coarse, to fine:1500, 1800, 2400, 3200, 3600, 4000, 6000, 8000*, and 12000* REGULAR. 1500 MICRO-MESH™ is equivalent to a scratch pattern left using 400 wet/dry, but is much more consistent.

"

[Zenbasses]

My plan was to purchase some new surrounds and then butcher either some screen protectors or skins that you can get for tablets. Using a new razor blade to careful cut to the contours of the trim. 

 

This way even if they do become scratched in the future it should just be as simple as using a trim removal tool and applying a new film. 

 

If the cost so megs expensive to replace the parts then polishing might be the answer but I really doubt for a ultra gloss, mark free result from these. 

 

It seems the plastics used are easily scratched, even with plush microfiber cloths  . 

 

If I could also 'wrap' them in some cool looking pattern it would look smart. If done properly and tastefully

 

 

Edited 20 July, 2017 by Zenbasses

[Rainmaker]

I agree the plastics are ridiculously soft. My instrument binnacle is marred all over, and I've only ever used the lightest of touches with a very dense/plush microfibre. C'est la vie. For the DSG surround, perhaps try (very gently) with some Meguiar's PlastX polish? It's an ultra-fine micro-abrasive compound for polishing headlights clear and is designed for use on all similar plastics. I bought it for the similar plastic trim on the B pillars, which also scratch ridiculously easily.

[Bud]

Micromesh is great for transparencies used it on aircraft canopies and also to great effect on Swatches.  Problem is that you have to make it worse initially to align all scratches and then cut across the other direction to ensure you get rid of all the marks.  

[Lol6]

For cleaning the shiny black stuff I have used a clear colour windscreen cleaner very lightly applied with a microfibre cloth.  So far not a single scratch in ten months.  Having said that we all know what will happen now.......

[simhub]

You could try a place that does vinyl car wraps and see what they would charge to wrap the trim in black?  Or perhaps with clear paint protection film?

[penguin17]

IMO most of the products mentioned above will be far too corse and abrasive for the softer interior plastics.  Jewelers Rouge is hard and coarse enough to polish hard metals and glass, imagine what it would do to a soft, high gloss polish   Same for a headlight lens cleaning kit, it's designed for use on clear and hard plastic.  Other things mentioned are meant for use on the clear coat on a cars bodywork, again a harder surface than what will be used on the lacquer of the of interior trim. 

 

I've hear that people get good results with G Techniq P1  and Poorboys Black Hole but I'd still be wary of using it on anything you haven't tested on first.  Another name I recall seeing on various detailing forums is Novus, a US company.  A quick search finds some eBay sellers:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Novus-Plastic-Polish-set-includes-59ml-Novus-1-2-3-bottles-plus-one-cloth-/162579374962?hash=item25da7c6372:g:PlUAAOxyUI1TGayL

 

 

 

 

 

 

[inaaris]

I havent had a very nasty experience cleaning the glossy surfaces with the Superb, but I did have a really really messy experience with my last car (A6).

The story goes the same that as it always does: 1) Ton of research ; 2) Order stuff ; 3) Clean ; 4) Fail a bit ; 5) Get ultimately even worse result than usage usually makes.

All in all what i´m trying to say is that I ruined the surface. Nothing disasterous but it affected my eye till the very end and bugged me. From that experience I learned that even the highest priced cars interior (21st century car) is usually really really soft and easy to mess up. At the new superb (1,5 years old) I changed strategy. I accepted the fact that little surface injuries will occur, due to the fact that even if I do my best, my lady and her nails + my 4 year daughter will still eventually "get the job done" . What I discovered is that if you keep the surfaces clean then you will not see minor surface injuries, although they are there. Escspecially the DSG area, which is really easy to damage, whatever you do. So bought a pack of micro-fiber clothing and every time I start driving the car just make a 10-20 sec sweep and it looks clean and beautiful. Atleast for me.

What really sucks about the newer generation cars is that even when you change the used parts, which wouldnt be a bad plan when you really love the car´s new look. Ok, it costs , but I think for a precise and ideal like person it is usually worth it. The surfaces and materials are so easily damagable than even under normal use you will cause the damage, just a matter of time. So I actually would not invest in changing the interior, rather enjoy the ride and buy a new one after every 2-3 years if your desire for cleany and new-ness is a must.

But, if you are the only user of the car and never-ever let anyone else into the cockpit, it prolly still can be done :). Meaning that 3-5 year old car can still look brand-new ;).

[Zenbasses]

All really good comments so thank you :)....

 

For cleaning most interior bits such as the black plastic surrounds I usually use a combination of compressed air and a soft make up bush.

 

Any smudges I then use something like glasses lens cleaner and glasses cleaning cloth.

 

Plush Microfiber clothes are designed to pick up products and lock them in rather than smearing. 200-300gsm microfiber is about as far as you want to in terms of thickness other wise the fibers will scratch the plastics.

 

I should try and take some pictures as the scratches on mine really do look like the previous owner had lots of hanging jewelry such as bracelets as some of them you can feel with your finger nail. Evidence further is all the exterior door handles. the inner bit on both the front ones and the drivers side rear are badley scratched where rings have scrapped away from opening and closing the door..

 

Why anyone needs to put their whole hand round the handle to open it when a simple pull with the fingers is all it needs..

 

The problem is,  you usually find all this stuff out ONCE you've spent some time with the car........Rose Tinted Spectacles when purchasing  plus a dull and cloudy day hid most of the marks.

 

At least the main bodywork is tidy, apart from one long straight scratch up the bonnet.... I need to get a few days off work and get the old DA polisher out.... 

 

 

 

 

[Speedman]

I use Asda Lens cleaner (£1.50) and a microfibre cloth (gently) on mine - works lovely. I use this also for the satnav screen, mobile phone, laptop & TV screen, as well as glasses.

[Zenbasses]

9 hours ago, Speedman said:

I use Asda Lens cleaner (£1.50) and a microfibre cloth (gently) on mine - works lovely. I use this also for the satnav screen, mobile phone, laptop & TV screen, as well as glasses.

 

I like your thinking and since I work for Asda I get 10% off said Lens Cleaner...

 

 

Another surprisingly good product is .

 

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/gb/groceries/pledge-electronics-wipes-x50?langId=44&storeId=10151&krypto=OVvTiis1bVRE3EegPBkT4%2BlX8ahku3HeaDaO4go2%2BFnWNf5MHJDPph3zkRqzn9xgfSzAV1U%2BFaEyAu3y1VshRGIWij0TBdUY5agnl3JP9Y3CkXOc8c1ZMa3sZdNrXSLtdxI6gHGob3tZ2qEzn4ZYG49UD0imoRoK6W%2F1BO3tt%2FQ%3D&ddkey=http%3Agb%2Fgroceries%2Fpledge-electronics-wipes-x50

 

.not perfect on shiny trim but for buttons, dashboards , door cards etc etc they are great.....I like the way they have IPA in them so the excess evaporates really quickly...

[Enobar]

This is why I'm glad that the Aus Spec models wend with the brushed aluminium trim look panels for the dash rather than piano black.... I like the look of the black but its impossible to keep scratch free!  Mine has the piano black around the Transmission selector (the LEAST practical place for it) and it does already have a couple of scratches that bugs me...

[Zenbasses]

18 hours ago, Enobar said:

This is why I'm glad that the Aus Spec models wend with the brushed aluminium trim look panels for the dash rather than piano black.... I like the look of the black but its impossible to keep scratch free!  Mine has the piano black around the Transmission selector (the LEAST practical place for it) and it does already have a couple of scratches that bugs me...

I am glad my OCD is shared with others 

Edited 22 July, 2017 by Zenbasses