Rant: interior plastic is going to look horrible in a few years

[Montana]

How an interior ends up looking over time depends a lot on who owns it.

/thread

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[Snox801]

Glad I’m not the only one who thought this. I had my rifle barrel riding out the window for no more than two hours one night. It’s completely tore up. I’ve done the same with my f-150 for years and never had that. Moving forward it’s athletic tape before I head out. It’s crap plastic but it’s also a low cost truck I got for work.

 

[LAClippers420]

Try using chemical guys “vrp” to bring it back to life. After almost three years of ownership I’ve had no issues that vrp hasn’t been able to fix.

 

[surfstar]

Is the truck inexpensive? Is $30,000 peasant money? What if someone else damaged your truck? You still going to say . ahh, it's an inexpensive truck, i'll let those dents, scratches, etc go... no biggie...?

My $24.5k XL was rear ended after a month (and the day after I waxed it). I would have been much more PO'd if it was a 45k+ vehicle. I was upset, but mainly b/c I knew it'd be in the shop for quite a while and now has an accident on the record. Uninsured motorist - fully covered with $0 out of my pocket, but also can't claim diminished value. Damage cherry popped.

Drove by someone weed-whacking yesterday and heard a tiny rock hit my driver's side. Meh. Didn't see any damage. Less stressful way to live life.

Not caring about how perfect your vehicle looks is very liberating. I get the whole "pride of ownership" thing, but feel there are better things to spend my time and worry on.

 

[Dmat]

these cheap plastics are the bread and butter for certain companies that sell products to restore plastics. I'm sure there will be plenty of products out there that help with this problem

 

[Gray Goose]

This thing literally costs less than the Model T did adjusted for Inflation. Buy a more expensive truck if you want nice plastics

Actually it's pretty even using bls inflation calculator. A $600 Model T in 1913 would be $20K today. Of course adjusting for features, then it's much less. However the model T price dropped by more than half as production ramped up, dropping to as low as $260. A price drop like that will never happen with a modern vehicle.

BTW I'm good with the plastic. Is there such a thing as nice plastic?

 

[801Maverick801]

Actually it's pretty even using bls inflation calculator. A $600 Model T in 1913 would be $20K today. Of course adjusting for features, then it's much less. However the model T price dropped by more than half as production ramped up, dropping to as low as $260. A price drop like that will never happen with a modern vehicle.

BTW I'm good with the plastic. Is there such a thing as nice plastic?

Its also interesting to try and figure in what you get in the Maverick that you woudnt get in the Model T. You got reliable transportation for the Model T, for about 20k in todays dollars (circa 1910) and what you get in the Maverick for 25k$ is so much more capability/power/towing/speed/technology. So you are actually getting way more for your $ compared to back then.

But the plastics scratch, FML right???

 

[Suzukiridr14]

Its also interesting to try and figure in what you get in the Maverick that you woudnt get in the Model T. You got reliable transportation for the Model T, for about 20k in todays dollars (circa 1910) and what you get in the Maverick for 25k$ is so much more capability/power/towing/speed/technology. So you are actually getting way more for your $ compared to back then.

But the plastics scratch, FML right???

They didn't have plastic when the Model T was built, therefore no scratches! (I had a 1923 model T that I donated to a museum when I moved to Florida)

 

[RJC]

Chemical guys silk shine certainly minimizes the few scratches i have, really don't have any major scratched in two plus years of ownership.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Either way, 303 is your friend.

Is 303 greasy and slippery like Armor All? I've been trying for over a week to decide if I want to try that or Mother VLR for interior protection. I don't like the greasy, slippery feel of Armor All. Mother's VLR is water based so I'm thinking that might be more of what I'm looking for but it also doesn't say it protects from UV Rays so I'm really torn.

 

[AzureBlueBill]

I wonder if the plastic is paintable? If it gets real bad you could remove all of it and paint it with a satin automotive paint, which would be more durable.

 

[Montana]

Is 303 greasy and slippery like Armor All? I've been trying for over a week to decide if I want to try that or Mother VLR for interior protection. I don't like the greasy, slippery feel of Armor All. Mother's VLR is water based so I'm thinking that might be more of what I'm looking for but it also doesn't say it protects from UV Rays so I'm really torn.

Not at all. Use one cloth to apply and one cloth to soak up any excess. On the hard to get spots like your HVAC buttons, gear selection, steering wheel controls, window buttons etc etc... apply with the damp cloth and use a brush like this then use your dry cloth for any left over. It dries very well, but you still want to clean up any excess. But it's not greasy or shiny at all.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Not at all. Use one cloth to apply and one cloth to soak up any excess. On the hard to get spots like your HVAC buttons, gear selection, steering wheel controls, window buttons etc etc... apply with the damp cloth and use a brush like this then use your dry cloth for any left over. It dries very well, but you still want to clean up any excess. But it's not greasy or shiny at all.

That sounds like it might be perfect in that case. I can't stand the slippery oily feeling of products like Armor All. I'm going to see if I can find some 303 locally today and if not I'll order some. Thank you for the detailed response!

One more question, do you use the 303 on your ActiveX seats?

 

[inline_five]

I wonder if the plastic is paintable? If it gets real bad you could remove all of it and paint it with a satin automotive paint, which would be more durable.

It probably would be paintable. I investigated plastidip and similar. It may come down to that one day if it gets that beat up.

For now I'm just trying not to scratch it.

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