Restoring interior plastic

Somebody (my wife) has scuffed the plastic backside of the front seats with her pointy shoes... The scuffs are not that deep but they are lighter in color than the rest of the plastic and although they are not in a very obvious spot I tend to always look at them when I open the back door..

My wife has been debriefed about it and now I'm looking to restore the plastic. I've tried to just use a good plastic cleaner and gently buff the area but no luck. They kind of disappear when the plastic is moist but as soon as it dries up, there they are again.

I thought of trying some Gtechniq trim restorer or dash coating on them but those products seem more like protectors and not restorers. Does anyone have an idea that might work?

Was it a 'debriefing' in the back that caused the issue in the first place ?!

(16-03-2013 06:19pm)Kimv Wrote:  Somebody (my wife) has scuffed the plastic backside of the front seats with her pointy shoes... The scuffs are not that deep but they are lighter in color than the rest of the plastic and although they are not in a very obvious spot I tend to always look at them when I open the back door..

My wife has been debriefed about it and now I'm looking to restore the plastic. I've tried to just use a good plastic cleaner and gently buff the area but no luck. They kind of disappear when the plastic is moist but as soon as it dries up, there they are again.

I thought of trying some Gtechniq trim restorer or dash coating on them but those products seem more like protectors and not restorers. Does anyone have an idea that might work?

Careful application of a felt tip, with a bit of solvent on a cloth to hand to get the result you want?

(16-03-2013 06:26pm)cjfp Wrote:  Was it a 'debriefing' in the back that caused the issue in the first place ?! :wink:

While I was typing the description of my problem, the possibility of someone's imagination going ballistic crossed my mind... :)

(16-03-2013 06:36pm)Donny Dog Wrote:  Careful application of a felt tip, with a bit of solvent on a cloth to hand to get the result you want?

Is that a tested and proven technique?

(16-03-2013 06:49pm)Kimv Wrote:  While I was typing the description of my problem, the possibility of someone's imagination going ballistic crossed my mind...


Is that a tested and proven technique?

I've used it successfully on black soft vinyl before, although not in a car, and on hard black plastic in a car. Obviously it takes skill and a good eye, plus ensuring that you work in the light that the location will be seen in/viewed from. If the mark is fine, you'll need a felt tip of similar fineness. Also, you need to check in advance that you can smear/smudge/remove the felt tip you are using with whatever solvent you use to get the desired effect. (If you use normal non-permanent felt tip, a bit of spit will do, but obviously you won't then be able to clean the surface with water). No warranty offered, though!!

(16-03-2013 06:26pm)cjfp Wrote:  Was it a 'debriefing' in the back that caused the issue in the first place ?!

That's why I should of went for the black headliner the footprints show too much on the ivory

Hi,

Give Chips Away or a similar company a call, they willl restore the plastic and they will visit your home or office too.

Depending on how bad it is a permanent trim restorer like Gtechniq C4 will do the job if you have some already however its quite expensive stuff and it may be cheaper to replace the seat back - surprisingly for LR some plastic parts are very reasonably priced.