[ys1219]

So a couple weeks ago I clayed and polished the car, but i accidentally got some on the black plastic cladding near the wheels. I thought I was doing a good job at avoiding the black plastic but turns out I wasn’t at all . Are there any products or anything that can remove the polish from the black plastic or is it going to permanently like that? I was using the turtle wax hybrid polish if that helps. Here’s a pic so you can see what i’m talking about:

 

[ys1219]

Try gently rubbing the white areas with a white pencil erasure. Or use a Mr. Clean Magic Erasure. Also Chemical Guys make a spray called Trim Clean that works well but is pricey. I use blue painter's masking tape to cover the edges of the black trim when claying/polishing/waxing. It's less work and faster than having to clean it afterwards.

I tried the eraser on a tiny test spot and it worked! I'll do the rest soon. I thought I was able to not let any polish get on the black plastic but I was wrong!

For dull plastic jeep fenders or when some paste wax whitens them this product might help you

I heard that these only last about a month or so. I'm trying to avoid this option because the plastic that's coated with this won't look normal. Most of the time these are pretty shiny and oily. Plus this stuff will only built on top of the wax.

I've heard that peanut butter works well. I guess the oils from it works wonders.

I will try this soon. Peanut butter works wonders on the most random things!

 

[ys1219]

Same thing happened to me the other day. Magic eraser and alcohol/water mix in a spray bottle took it off.

Will alcohol dry out the black plastic? I was thinking about trying rubbing alcohol and water but I was worried it would fade the plastic.

 

[ys1219]

I tried the peanut butter on a test spot and it works! Has anyone else tried using peanut butter on their black plastic? I read that it has to be reapplied every couple months, but I’m looking for a permanent solution. Did I permanently ruin the plastic by getting wax on it?

 

[ys1219]

I have, and with strawberry preserves, it's delicious. But you're basically covering up the problem and it's only going to hide it until the peanut oil washes off or evaporates. There is some abrasive cleaning going on but it's hard to tell when you've got it out due to the oil hiding what's there. Hence, an erasure sure seems to work best other than masking off the plastic to begin with.

3M Prepsol gets just about everything and anything off. Professional painters use it to get almost impossible to remove silicones off to prevent fisheye. It's pricey, but a body shop might give you some if you ask nicely. A little goes a long way. I've had a gallon for almost 30 years and there's still half of it left and I've painted a few cars along the way. It feels oily so it doesn't depend on a petroleum solvent and won't "dry out" the plastic.

Fine I'll try again soon with a magic eraser and rubbing alcohol.

 

[ys1219]

Rubbing alcohol is a solvent. It has somewhat of the same effect as peanut butter because it has oil in it to keep the skin from drying out. Just as it will dry out the plastic and the oil will evaporate or wash off. I would stick with the erasure.

Oh I thought you were talking about the magic eraser! I completely forgot about the normal eraser! So will the wax permanently go away with the eraser?

 

[ys1219]

Only until the next time you wax (unless you mask off the black plastic)

Yup I’ve learned my lesson now! I’ll try the eraser trick when I wash the car next time.

 

[ys1219]

The local Honda dealer probably has a detail shop there where they wash/clean cars. I would ask the detailers instead of using a product that might damage the trim with long term use. I have used Armor All product in the past, but I didn't take my own advice.

But a dealer will most probably try to get your car in and out instead of trying to focus on the details. If they do notice the marks on the black plastic then they'll probably use something like armor all to hide it instead of actually getting rid of the wax.

 

[ys1219]

Our former 1995 Volvo 8950 Turbo had plastic trim. I hate it, but unfortunately my 2021 Pilot has it. In the past, I always applied Armor-All to the trim to cover the white from car polish. Usually, the plastic trim got dull and needed it anyway. I did my best to not get polish on the trim. I used a long plastic painter's paint guide to hold against the plastic trim on the sides of the Volvo when I polished it. For many years I used New Finish polish, not wax. It seemed to last longer than wax I'd used for decades.

At my age now, and with having had rotator cuff surgery several years ago, I don't care to polish cars anymore. When they need it I'll take them to a detailer as I did with my '57 Pontiac a couple of years ago. I hadn't polished my former 2012 Pilot for a few years, yet water still beaded up on it.

Oh I didn't realize I was saying wax this whole time 🤦‍♂️ . I used turtle wax polish on my car, but it's more like a wax than a polish. It doesn't hide scratches much but it mostly boosts gloss and water beading. I can't believe this flew right over my head😅.

 

[ys1219]

So I finally got around to washing the car, and I’ve got to say, the eraser trick really worked! Here’s a pic of the same spot after erasing:

 

[ys1219]

Stupid and super lazy question...

Sorry, I spent 4 hours cleaning and organizing my kids bedrooms today.

You used the Vinyl eraser? Where did you buy it?

Thanks

I had a vinyl eraser sitting around so I just used that lol.

 

[ys1219]

Try this stuff after you remove the polish from your trim.


Back in September I used a product for protecting plastic trim for cars / trucks, (Following). A friend of mine had told me about it. I bought it, applied it and a few thousand miles later, thru a lot of snow and salt and about 2 dozen drive thru car washes the trim on my car still shines like new. It's a ceramic coating, not a dressing. Easy enough to apply, just clean and wipe down the trim / plastic with alcohol first. For $17.00 this stuff is fantastic. Amazon.com: FOLLOWIN Plastic Restorer for Cars Ceramic Plastic Coating Trim Restore, Resists Water, UV Rays, Dirt, Ceramic Coating, Not Dressing, Last Over 200 Washes, Highly Concentrated, 30ml: Automotive

Oh nice I was thinking about getting something to protect the plastic! Does the plastic still look original on your car or does it look shiny? I prefer more matte, original looking trim pieces rather than shiny.