Vinyl damage
 

Well several months have passed by and I am still having problems removing these scuff marks from my dash..

I've used as mentioned Simple Green with a wet brillo pad with no luck..

I've used countless vinyl conditioners but all they do is hide the scuffs at certain angles..

I even tried to cover it up by colour matching the black vinyl but that didn't work..

The scuffing came as a result of kicking the dash..I suppose the previous owner's children had a good time :(

Anyways, is there anything I could do or should I bring it in to some upholstery shop and see what they can do..it really looks awful in the sun..

Are there ANY products that may get rid of this? Colour matching the dash and covering it up seems like a great alternative but I'm not sure which products would do that..

Thanks

What process is this? Did you try to use some kind of vinyl repair paint or something?

Since a lot of scuffing is actual physical damage to the material itself, it's often hard to do anything about, other than to hide or try and recolour... I haven't dealt with this kind of thing much myself. Good luck though.

I was unable to find a vinyl repair kit..

The first thing I tried (which was recommended on another forum) was to use a crayon..completely strange in itself but it hid it OK, problem was it rubs off easily..

Second thing I tried was I went out to buy vinyl dye..since the vinyl was a cross between black and grey, I wasn't able to match it at all..

I have gotten a quote from Nissan to replace the entire dash, it's about $1,400CDN including labour..after bending this bum over, I don't think I'll be able to walk again...I believe I could hide the damage, but I've exhausted the methods I've come around to..

Are the scuff marks actual physical damage (abrasions) to the vinyl, or just rubber transfer from shoes? If physical damage, I would think it would have to be repaired/replaced (vinyl has a "skin" that when compromised, will allow the vinyl to dry out).
If rubber transfer or other type of "crud" on the surface, try rubbing softly with a pencil eraser. Try it in an inconspicuous spot first. This can usually take off the scuff marks. Make sure you only rub gently (so as not to damage the "skin"), and treat with a quality vinyl protectant afterwards.
Some people (myself included) have used Soft Scrub (WITHOUT bleach). Using a damp rag, rub a small amount on the scuff gently (when working with vinyl, everything has to be gentle). Rinse well by wiping with a damp rag several times. After dry, apply vinyl protectant. I use this method with a toothbrush as a general "deep" cleaning of my vinyl to remove the crud from in the texture. I prefer the citrus Soft Scrub, as the citrus oil may help with the cleaning (or it could be in my head). Either way, it does smell nice, and cleans extremely well.

Dave

Thanks for the detailed reply. Unfortunately, it IS damage; I have tried the white eraser method and it did not do anything :(

I did take my car to an upholstery repair shop in my area; apparently they do excellent work. They said it would cost $75CDN to have that passenger side area done, I believe they said they will dye the area but I'll see what exactly they're doing. I'm hoping this is all that's needed.

When I was conditioning the dash, I noticed there were a few areas that had a black felt mark on them. I tried to get them off, including using hairspray but it didn't work. I believe it's a permanent felt. Any ideas on how to get rid of this?

What else have you tried? Rubbing alcohol?