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anyone know of good products to use on the "1st gen" interior vinyls? mine are uncracked and soft but id like to keep them that way. car was garage kept its entire life until i got it this december and i dont want the vinyls to crack/warp or anything. What are some good safe cleaner and protectants?

warm water and little bit of palmolive using a 100% cotton cloth then use a dry cloth alike to wipe it dry.

Avoid any oil/chemicals and if it "shines" or contains a gloss finish, dont use it.

To protect it, use a sunlight reflective heat shield for the windshield.

I clean with blue Dawn and warm water, then I either use 303 protectant, if I can find it. Otherwise, I've used Olive Oil with good results.

The important thing is putting replenishing oils back into the dash plastic and vinyl. Stuff like Armor-All just lifts the oils to the surface, creating an artificial shine that will quickly dry off, leaving you with a dry, chemically dash that will eventually become brittle and crack prone.

If you want to replenish rubber, apparently DOT3 brake fluid has many rubber conditioners to protect the rubber brake line section. Just don't use it on painted or dyed objects, as brake fluid will bubble paint off of metal, so use it sparingly

1988GTU wrote:warm water and little bit of palmolive using a 100% cotton cloth then use a dry cloth alike to wipe it dry.
Avoid any oil/chemicals and if it "shines" or contains a gloss finish, dont use it.
To protect it, use a sunlight reflective heat shield for the windshield.

^^^ I agree with this. ^^^ (Also consider one of those carpeted dash-protectors.)

Koots wrote:I clean with blue Dawn and warm water, then I either use 303 protectant, if I can find it. Otherwise, I've used Olive Oil with good results.
The important thing is putting replenishing oils back into the dash plastic and vinyl. Stuff like Armor-All just lifts the oils to the surface, creating an artificial shine that will quickly dry off, leaving you with a dry, chemically dash that will eventually become brittle and crack prone.
If you want to replenish rubber, apparently DOT3 brake fluid has many rubber conditioners to protect the rubber brake line section. Just don't use it on painted or dyed objects, as brake fluid will bubble paint off of metal, so use it sparingly

But Koots, the vinyl dashes are dyed, I can't see how brake-fluid would be safe for the color, even if it helps preserve the body of the dash, which IDK... But I haven't tried it either, so... I totally agree about the Armor All though -the stuff is known to damage interior components after a few years. Our cars are NOT just disposable junk, I wish they would quit selling that crap to people who either don't know any better or don't care about the car beyond the first couple of years...

Rettax3 wrote:But Koots, the vinyl dashes are dyed, I can't see how brake-fluid would be safe for the color, even if it helps preserve the body of the dash, which IDK... But I haven't tried it either, so... I totally agree about the Armor All though -the stuff is known to damage interior components after a few years. Our cars are NOT just disposable junk, I wish they would quit selling that crap to people who either don't know any better or don't care about the car beyond the first couple of years...

I added the DOT3 tip for rubber parts only (such as weatherstripping) and mentioned that it will strip paint so that people won't try it on other places, because it is really does a number on paint. I use it as a paint stripper when I'm in a jam and tired of sanding

I forget about the windshield covers, we never had a use for them up here (same as people in Texas have little use for a block heater), but it does make a big difference in the blinding summer heat, because when I visited my relatives in Texas, it meant the difference between melting our asses off on the leather seats or just being lightly burned.

I would say even in your area though the windshield cover is useful because it protects the dash from UV rays.... not specifically heat on the interior. I know your way up in Labrador, but you still get sunlight up there last time I checked

3X00-Modified wrote:I would say even in your area though the windshield cover is useful because it protects the dash from UV rays.... not specifically heat on the interior. I know your way up in Labrador, but you still get sunlight up there last time I checked

True, it's just not as detrimental as it is compared to some of you guys further South than me. It can get over 100*F, but only for 2-3 weeks max. in the Summer and then it's the downward spiral into Winter Hell.

I think Koots could potentially win the longest drive award for Burritofest if attending. LoL

I do plan on making one of the BFests before I die, just hope the Corsica can hold together long enough to make it