I jsut got back my car from a repair shop (for front bumper. And for those who know me, this is the 3rd time my front end needed fixing due to parking lot hits) and I noticed scratches under the radio buttons on the paneling. I scratched my nail on it, and I GOUGED(sp) the plastic. Almost like it was made of tar. ITs sticky. Anybody know whats going on? THe repair shop said they didnt' do anything. I also noticed that the plastic under A/C is the same way. feels sticky and if I rub my nail on it, black goo seems to scrape off. now my center looks ugly!

 

you are not the only one. I had this problem on all the dash pieces, mainly on the door lock switch panels. Anytime you scrathed it stuff would come off and it looked like ****. I dont think all maxima's are like this because I have asked the question before and nooe knew what I was talking about. I went out and bought a molded dash kit that covered most of it and ordered new pieces from Dave B that the dash kit didnt cover. They were just replacement pieces and they were made out of something different, but the same color. I'm not too sure nissan didnt make a few maximas in 2000 with the crappy pieces like you and I have experienced. We seem to be the only ones but I am sure there are others.

 

are there others who had this problem?

 

here.... u can see my home page. i have black on the left button corner of my climate control unit.. which when i 1st got my car i noticed some oil on the paint but after i wipe it... the paint went off...><... but luckly it's not da noticible....

 

I am experiencing the same problem with my 2000 SE Max. Only my center console is doing this, I plan ti buy the molded on kits. I will probably go with the aluminum look!

 

My 2000 se has it on the doors and a little on the radio...

i want to replace the trim but its expensive anyone have any sites that are cheap?

 

So, did anyone ever find an answer to this? I love my 2k Max, but I've now given to my daughter and I wanted to clean it up for her. Over the last two years, this rubber coating on the ac/controls, clock and main vent area has gotten worse. I've searched various words, but this is the only post that I've seen address this.

I'm to the point of trying to use goo-off or something to remove the rubber and just leave the plastic as it seems to be the same color.

Any advice would be welcomed.

 

Sand it down with a fine grit making sure not to dig grooves into it and paint it. That's what I am doing soon. I live in Los Angeles (Traffic Central) and I would scratch it off while sitting in traffic . This has been bothering me for some 2 years now so It's time to actually do something about it.

 

Update: I am sanding the trim pieces right now and it gets messy. I have to scrape off the sticky part with a butterfly knife otherwise, the sandpaper does nothing to it! Ugh this is frustrating

 

This has happened to my moms i30
too. I think its only 5th gen related. Havent done anything about it bc shes prob gonna sell it and buy an 07+ g35 but I would think sanding smooth and repainting would work. You may have to go with a heavier grit.

 

Same exact thing is going on with my 2000 SE... From what I understand this coating gets "soft" over time and also from someone I know that used to do interior work/restoration it can also be caused by dressings put on the dash and trim. If i'm not mistaken the 02-03 5.5 gen's don't seem to have this problem as much as the 00-01 5th gen cars. I'm assuming the coating is more durable. Any 5.5 owners wanna chime in on this?

 

try removing it with strong ACETONE and some terrycloth towels that you can throw away afterwards.

what usually causes this is improper cleaning solutions that cause a reaction for the coating of the plastics. Most likely it was the detailer at the autobody shop..after the car is finished it should have been detailed, and the chemicals they used to clean it were possibly too strong. This is why I made the decision to remove all my plastics and paint them with PPG Epoxy Primer and PPG DCC Silver paint. photo's are in my album if you'd like to take a look. I didn't have any scratches before I painted...but I wasn't going to wait until it looked bad to do it.

 

So, You did it with the Acetone? If so, what exactly did you use? I am tired of sanding it down. I only got one section done and not everything was removed

 

There have been other threads. The general concensus is to paint the stuff, but removing the old crud isn't easy.

Here's a link -

http://forums.maxima.org/5th-generat...r-console.html

 

Haven't tried acetone, but I did try lacquer thinner on my shifter trim, and I left it on too long and it etched into the plastic under that coating.

 

So lacquer thinner is out of the question . I'm gonna try Goo Gone first. I really liked how it came out on that link up there ^

 

Try just wd40 first. Wd40 is great at removing sticky residue leftover.

 

if your scratches are deep and rather bad you should tape off the Climate Control LCD screen, and cut with razor/exacto knife in the groove, wear nitrile gloves to avoid skin oil contact with plastics, scuff with a scotch-bright pad and soapy water, remove tape, let air dry in the sun or microfiber towel dry, retape, epoxy prime in 2-3 thin layers, then shoot with a professional autobody buildable & sandable polyester primer, after fully cured wetsand with 1000grit wet/dry paper(preferably wet), if need be apply another 2 layers of polyester primer, sand with 1000grit to desired smoothness. Now you are ready for paint. I used a Single Stage PPG Professional Show quality paint(DCC)...single stage means it's the color, flake and clear in one shot! you'll be without a stereo for a couple days, but IT'S WORTH THE TIME! Remember to always wear your gloves or your fingerprints will bubble your paint!!!!!!!!!!!! If you decide to go this route, don't rush it or it'll end up looking like s**t!!!!

 

WD40 will soak into your plastic and make it IMPOSSIBLE to restore your dash and console. Remember, you are not removing an adhesive, you have dash paint that has been severely compromised. you need to harden the stickyness of the paint, then repaint over it.

 

I don't think there's any way to re-harden the coating/paint that's on the plastic.

 

You can purchase SCOTCH-BRIGHT pads from your local hardware store and scrub the parts under water until the coating is removed. ***********you MUST remove the fascia's and buttons from the units and stereo before you scrub and submerse. Underneath that crappy sticky coating there is quality plastic that can also be painted.

 

use a small screwdriver covered in electrical tape to pop out the sides here:<P>


remove the parts in this order: **remember there is a philips screw below the insert for your coin tray<p>


While you're at it you can paint these bezels to match:<p>


when you're finished the quality should be just like mine:<p>
<p>

 

00Lightsout, that looks effin' sharp!

 

This is very helpful, as I just purchased a 2000 Maxima with this problem in the center dash and the door trim. Which do you think is more cost effective, repainting or just buying new? Where can I find paint for this project if this is the option I go with?

Also, I noticed you have pictures of the door trim painted, how easy is it to remove those pieces? I've heard they can be tough.

 

denatured rubbing alcohol will take the coating off without damaging the parts. acetone if left on too long will start melting the plastic. the trim around the stereo and climate control looks fine if you just take the coating off. the center vent is smooth glossy black plastic that does not match the rest of the trim once the paint is removed.

 

This is so freaking common it's unbelievable.
Nissan really messed up on this. I want to know what exactly did they use because
it's not paint. The stuff scraps off like a paste.
Feels like bouillon!

 

This is absolutely correct. I've replaced the pieces I had problems with... especially the shift console... and used 02-03 parts. Easiest solution.

 

Denatured alcohol does the trick! Best part is that it doesn't mar or discolor the surrounding plastic areas. Takes the crap on those dash pieces right off showing a matte to semi-gloss black underneath.

A $1 fix...thanks for the suggestion!

 

I have the same problem on my 00' SE. Figured it was a bad reaction to interior dressings or harsh cleaners but read of the same problem with one or two people that claimed they used nothing but a dry chamois to clean their consoles--so it's the same problem regardless.

I use a Garmin in my car and the excess power cord zip-tied near the 12V plug dangles on the console and after repeated use the cord now has this charcoal metallic sticky paint adhering to it. The cord also left scuff marks on the console near and around the coin box. Very unsightly for an otherwise immaculate car. Glad to have the resources to fix it contained within this great thread. Many thanks.

00Lightsout, your repainted console trim looks great. What made you decide to go with the silver? The OEM color is the charcoal metallic, is it not?

 

I've never seen this... FWIW