Armor all or not?
 

I use to armor all the shit out of my cars when I was younger. And now I have very nice interior on my vert. Should I armor all it to keep the sun from hurting it while the top is down, Or do you think once you start using it and stop, it will actually be worse?

Ya know I've never really liked how armor all'd interiors looked and felt. I've heard of armor all causing interiors to deteriorate if you stop using it, but I don't personally have any experience. I prefer the Meguiars interior products.
-John

I lost two dashes in my s13 due to armor all. That's all the experience I've had with it really.

I think I used it in my 7 a couple times but not that often and its still doing fine.

I used the old "regular formula" Armor-All for many years on dashboards myself. The old rumor was that it caused your plastics to crack if you stopped using it. I'm not sure if that was scientifically proven or not, but aside from that, I really don't care for that greasy appearance it has. Plus you have to deal with the issue of glare from an Armor-Alled dash.

There are some nice, non-greasy products that seem to me to work better on a dash, door panels and interior trim. Meguiar's Natural Shine Protectant is nice. For a little less money, there is also Armor-All's own "Natural Finish Detailer," which is also not slimy. Both claim to offer UV protection without anything that breaks down the plastics. I use the Armor-All Natural Finish Detailer in my van and it is a decent product.

So if I used it 2-3 times and stop. I will be ok?

no i would say your dash is most likely shot. Better start looking for replacement dashes or a nice molded dash that will go over your existing one. Black Dragon auto carries replacement parts.

Good one there Jerry Seinfeld. :rolleyes:

Seriously, if you do a google search on this subject, you'll find opinion divided down the middle. Some people swear up and down that the silicone in Armor-All takes the oils out of plastics and causes them to crack. Other people will tell you they put Armor-All on an old car that they then parked out in a field somewhere and in 25 years they went back and the dash was still perfect. Probably the most plausible stuff I found is that in the 1970s when Armor-All first appeared, it was allegedly solvent-based and actually did cause some discoloration and damage to some cars. Supposedly there was even a class-action suit and a settlement, but I can't even seem to find any hard data to confirm this.

If you like the oily dash and aren't afraid of the rumors, go ahead and smear it on!

Meguiars!

I use ArmorAll on tires all the time. No blow outs yet LOL

The thing about plastics and rubber is that they contain a type of oil, and over time that oil wants to evaporate causing them to be brittle. What ArmorAll does is coat the surface with a material to slow down the oil loss process. Problem is the material on the surface is very thin and hardly protects the plastics/rubber at all. You could even wipe the surface down easy enough to get rid of the armorall, which makes protection from direct sunlight kinda non-exsistent and almost detrimental as heat is trapped in that thin film. With meguiars, (specifically meguiars40) the material used actually penetrates the plastics/rubber and restores some of that oil. Which is why people who have used meguiars on their dashes dont experience cracking but people who have used armor all have.

Use Vaseline.
Seriously.
Actually, what you want is generic, non-scented petroleum jelly...a big jar from the drugstore or megamart is like a buck.

Slather it on all your soft plastic parts (it won't hurt hard plastic like the idiot light surround), do not wipe off or rub in.
Let sit for a few hours, adding more if it appears to be absorbed and you get dry looking spots.
Finally, rub off/buff with dry cloth.

I've only done this in warm weather, not sure how it works if it's cold.
Pre-application prep is just removing dust and any spills or sticky stuff.
I leave my car in the sun before applying and then move to shade during the process...the hot vinyl seems to absorb better.

You'll end up with a low gloss, natural sheen that seems to repel dust- or at least make subsequent cleanup easier- and uncracked vinyl.

Saw this on a car detailing forum a few years ago, tried it and have been very happy with the results, not to mention cost.

Also works very well on door/hatch seals.
Make sure you clean the mating metal surface also.

I've read in a lot of car books and heard from a few guys who specialize in interior work that the vaseline thing is the way to go for most interiors.

I use the armor all wipes for like heavy spills or to get up sticky crap they are good for that,

A good alchohol cleaning and a resurfacing spray with Duplicolor vinyl and fabric will do more to *restore* the surface. You then basically have added a new coating of vinyl.

Then do what you want to *preserve* the new surface, Armor All, Vaseline, Meguiar's whatever.

I'm still looking for scientific proof that armor all speeds up the aging or cracking. I've used it myself in four cars varying from 10-15 years. I'd like to know either way for sure.

The Vaseline actually sounds crazy enough to be the right way to go. lol

There is no scientific proof, just opinions. I have heard all the arguments one way and the other.

I don't like it. The best thing I can say about armor all is that the dust accumulation rapidly reduces the sunglare from the surface. :)

I say if you like it use it.

Ok, so I tried the Vaseline today. My wife and I put it on all the interior parts that were plastic - headliner, dash, window switches etc. We left it sit for about 4 hours with the windows up and it was around 70 temp today. The heat makes the stuff thin out and it just looks like a oil on the plastic. After we wiped it all off (we got it all off with lots of wiping and new clothes). The interior looks fantastic. My ashtray was almost a faded grey color from the heat of whatever that made it stay hot. The ashtray is now black again and matches the rest of the black around it. I am truly amazed at how much nicer my interior looks. I can't believe how well this trick works. I hope more of you try it and see for yourselves how awesome this is.

Now that my interior looks the way it does. I will just wipe it down with a dust rag here and there to keep it clean. I figure I will do this trick every start of a new summer.

Thanks clokker for the tip/suggestion.

And you thought I was kidding.

You might wait a few weeks and see how it holds up.
I found a few areas that get more sun exposure (like the top of the doorpanel) that seemed to dry out a bit.
A few reapplications did the trick.

It is nice when something so cheap and easy works.

Armor overspray all is awful shit. Silicone makes it balls hard to prep anything for paint.

It seems in some cases, final wash just smears the armorall.

Plus it makes the interior look "cheap".

john ny

if you decide to use something in between to clean stuff up i prefer the turtle wax ice interior stuff. it usually comes with a microfiber cloth. I use it and it does an awesome job on all my cars

Hmm...I'm skeptical.

Just because some vinyls are made to look like leather doesn't mean that the same protectant will work on both.
Despite appearances, they are fundamentally different materials.

Baby oil on tires is another great trick.

Def. trying the vaseline. What about tires?...Baby oil...huh...I've always givin' Armor All baths which does leave a mess to clean up. Will try that as well. Vaseline on tires?.....