slimmyjimmy

Hey everyone,

I was wondering if anyone knew how to get rid of scratches on the interior finish of the TL? Not on the leather or carbon fiber but the material on the doors and stuff. It's been kinda frustrating cause I just got my new car and these random big scratches appeared out of nowhere.

datmrman

Can you post pics so we can see what you're talking about?

slimmyjimmy

sure. I'll take some tonight and post them up on here.

curri

If you're talking about the rubberized finish on the dash and inside door trim, I had the same problem. This material gets scuffed very easily by too much pressure with dry cloths, etc. I scuffed mine with a MICROFIBER CLOTH of all things!

Took it into the dealership, and they fixed it with no problem, and were going to recommend a cleaning treatment, but the salesman I bought it from talked to me. He has an '05 TL and has used Maguires pop-up wipes (hot wax???). He says he uses them on the ENTIRE interior, leather, vinyl, not the carbonized metal parts. He says it does an amazing job keeping everything in great condition and smells great.

He even has people walking up to his car and asking what he uses, because the interior looks so good.

Other people recommend the 303 products.

slimmyjimmy

Yeh, I'm actually talking about that rubberized material. It got scratched so I was wondering if there was a way to get it out.

How did the dealership remove them or did they just replace the place where it got scratched?

Do those Maguire wipes remove buffs and scratches or are they mainly just for cleaning purposes?

Thanks for the input!

slimmyjimmy

here are some pictures of the scratches. You can see that there are two hash marks on the finish. One of the pictures is a close-up.

Any idea on how I can get rid of the marks?

Andrew McCarthy

You may not be able to get rid of them but wipes or some type of protectant will hide them pretty well because it will be a more uniform color.

JDM5lugHatch

Those look like marks you get when people that ride with you kick your door as they get out. This is usually because they don't open the door enough or they are in too big of a hurry to get out.

curri

These are deeper than mine, but I would use the protectorant products on these, too.

The dealership used that type of product: you wipe it on and let it dry. I would concentrate some on these scratches.

Either the Maguires or the 303 Protectorant will at least diminish these marks.

It looks to me like these might have been caused by someone running into the interior door with something while it was open, but the heel marks make sense, too.

If this is a brand new car from the dealership, I'd take it to them and make them fix it. If you bought it from a private party, then try the products mentioned. Like I said, they will at least diminish the marks, and mybe eliminate them with repeated use.

slimmyjimmy

I did get the car from the dealership brand new about a week or two ago.

Did the dealership charge you for the fix? Dealerships these days charge for anything and it's not a small fee either.

lembowski

iTrader: (1)

I have some similar marks that I would like to get rid of. O and I've already tried the 303 on it and it doesn't diminish the marks on the rubberized surface. Any other ways to get the scuffs out......a buffing process maybe?

curri

The dealership absolutely did not charge me a penny! The car is under warranty. They used a protectorant they spread on , and when it dried the scuffs were gone. That was a week ago, and the dash still looks great.

Take it to them.

Then, as I said above, the salesman told me to get the Maguires pop-up wipes, which I will do this week. He says they will keep it protected.

Go back to the dealership.

curri

Try the Maguires. My salesman say wipe it all over the interior, except the carbonize metal surfaces. Then let it sit for about 45 minutes. Then go back and buff with a soft cloth.

lembowski

iTrader: (1)

Ok tried the Meguiars pop-up wipes this morning after going to pep boys and getting them last night. Nothing.....happened. I do have clean scuff marks though. My marks are mostly on the center column, in-between the front and rear doors. They really aren't scratches, but scuffs on the harder plastic column. I found this stuff on line that appears to remove scratches on arcylics and plastics. Do you guys think this might work on removing the scuffs?

http://www.noscratch.com/novus/

Also if a mod sees this can you move this thread tot he wash & wax subforum so we can get those guys in onthe solution?

lembowski

iTrader: (1)

Ok recieved this message about plastic polishers, so its no good:

Textured and rough finished plastics like those that can be found on the interior of an automobile or on electronic equipment are textured for a reason. It is a lot less expensive to make a molded part with a rough looking surface than it is to make it with a glass like smooth finish.

The way that a scratch is removed from a plastic surface is by polishing the area to blend or feather away the scratch. If a plastic part has a textured or matte finish, there is no way to duplicate this finish look. If you try to polish it, you will remove the scratches but you will leave a flat shiny spot where you used the compounds.

In short; if the plastic has a textured surface, there is not way to repair it.

slimmyjimmy

I talked to the service manager at my local Acura dealership and he brought in some guy who specialized in interior repairs. The guy was able to fix those scratches up and make it look brand new. It doesn't even look like there were ever scratches in that area.

I was also only charged $50 for the repair even though it cost more because the service manager quoted me at $50.

Awesome!

Andrew McCarthy

what did he do or use? Or is it a $50 secret?

lembowski

iTrader: (1)

Yeah this has been bothering me, but I just asumed that there was no solution to the problem. Let us know please

trancemission

I cant move this lembowski. You can start this thread over there if you like.

slimmyjimmy

The Acura service manager just called someone that he knew over to fix the scratches. I'm assuming that maybe it was either a friend of his or someone that works with the dealership to do interior repairs.

I left my car overnight and got a loaner. When I went back the next day to pick it up, the service manager told me that the total cost of the repair was actually around $225 but that because he quoted me at $50, he had no choice but to charge me only $50.

I guess I got pretty lucky

Andrew McCarthy

He probably just replaced the panels!

lembowski

iTrader: (1)

Ok your lucky, now call the service department and ask how they corrected the scratches

slimmyjimmy

I really don't think they replaced the panels. According to my service manager, he just had some repair guy go over the scratches with some of the materials he uses for repairs. I guess they can't give me specifics.