Sunscreen Lotion / Sun Block appears to discolor Maverick Blue Door Plastics and BAP Black Vinyl

[FischAutoTechGarten]

Folks,
I've owned my Maverick about 6 weeks, regularly vaccuuming it and wiping down the interior plastics/vinyls with a clean damp cloth (no cleaners).
As I was cleaning it the other day just prior to taking my inlaws to the airport, I noticed allot of damage/discoloration on the left rear passenger area... (It reminded me of this thread: https://www.mavericktruckclub.com/forum/threads/what-the-heck-is-this.36848/). It does not wipe off with soap and water. My wife and I struggled to figure out what it was.

Then as my 78 year old father-in-law got into the back of the truck, we knew.... He suffers from lympatic cancer and skin cancer. They live in upstate NY, therefore, they are a bit concerned over the harsh sun in Arizona USA and Sonora MX. He applies liberal quantities of very strong sun block on his exposed skin. WIth the warm temperatures he has been wearing short sleeve shirts the entire 20 days they have been with us in Arizona and Sonora. The truck plastics and vinyls are discolored only where his elbows and forearms rest as he's seated in the left rear passenger seat (favors that seat).

My wife and I decided not to mention it to the inlaws (we didn't want them to feel bad) and simply suggested he wear a long sleeve shirt for the 8 hour drive back to the US as the AC might get a little chilly in the Maverick. Oh well..

So, I'm going to do a little bit of research to see what can be done to repair the damage.

Let me share the photos:

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[710-oil-614]

Oh wow - that is awful.

Thanks for the heads up so I make sure my kids keep their greased up selves....to themselves.

Any chance you know what type of sunscreen he was wearing?

 

[James Garner]

I wonder if a little diluted white vinegar would work.

 

[FischAutoTechGarten]

Oh wow - that is awful.

Thanks for the heads up so I make sure my kids keep their greased up selves....to themselves.

Any chance you know what type of sunscreen he was wearing?

I'm going to have my wife ask.... They missed one of their connecting flights on Monday.. so they did an extra night in DFW and flew again on Tuesday, arriving late yesterday. No doubt they are exhausted today and resting... I'll have my wife ask when we call again later today to check up on them.

 

[Waterick]

Let us know if you find a solution/repair for these conditions, will follow.

 

[CurtisB]

Ok, I keep telling people a cool inexpensive fix for this and I keep getting laughed at and shut down. Get a white terri cloth towel. Spray just a "dab" of WD-40 on the towel and wipe it on the affected areas. Spray more as necessary. I have been doing this for decades and it works. Just try it. The worst that can happen is it doesn't work.

 

[NextTruck]

Ok, I keep telling people a cool inexpensive fix for this and I keep getting laughed at and shut down. Get a white terri cloth towel. Spray just a "dab" of WD-40 on the towel and wipe it on the affected areas. Spray more as necessary. I have been doing this for decades and it works. Just try it. The worst that can happen is it doesn't work.

Looks like it might be a lotion with Zinc. That stuff stays on your skin for days. You could wipe it all down with more lotion so it look uniform. And then you won't have smears anymore.

 

[Ozarkbeard]

Any product with oil in it might damage the appearance of the recycled plastics in this truck. 303 Cleaner might help, but not too optimistic anything would do much good. I would not try WD40 or any petroleum-based product.

 

[dalola]

Interesting for sure...

Have you tried a soft bristle brush, and a cleaner such as Simple Green? My guess, those plastic surfaces have a "micro-texture" to them, and it may just be the sun screen residue embedded in the surface texture, vs. discoloring. At least, I hope so!

 

[Builder]

This removes just about every interior stain including sunscreen. Have been using it for a few years on all my cars and their different surfaces. Does a great job on removing sunscreen. Highly rated and very reasonable on Amazon. You can use it full strength or diluted. I dilute it at 10:1 which is still relatively strong by the product recommendations.

 

[rlhdweman]

A number of years ago I noticed a warning on the back of my sunscreen about this, more for clothing, but cloth interior falls under this category & I have made sure to cover seats with a towel when using sunscreen, hopefully the product in the post before me will help you.

 

[Jah.]

Folks,
I've owned my Maverick about 6 weeks, regularly vaccuuming it and wiping down the interior plastics/vinyls with a clean damp cloth (no cleaners).
As I was cleaning it the other day just prior to taking my inlaws to the airport, I noticed allot of damage/discoloration on the left rear passenger area... (It reminded me of this thread: https://www.mavericktruckclub.com/forum/threads/what-the-heck-is-this.36848/). It does not wipe off with soap and water. My wife and I struggled to figure out what it was.

Then as my 78 year old father-in-law got into the back of the truck, we knew.... He suffers from lympatic cancer and skin cancer. They live in upstate NY, therefore, they are a bit concerned over the harsh sun in Arizona USA and Sonora MX. He applies liberal quantities of very strong sun block on his exposed skin. WIth the warm temperatures he has been wearing short sleeve shirts the entire 20 days they have been with us in Arizona and Sonora. The truck plastics and vinyls are discolored only where his elbows and forearms rest as he's seated in the left rear passenger seat (favors that seat).

My wife and I decided not to mention it to the inlaws (we didn't want them to feel bad) and simply suggested he wear a long sleeve shirt for the 8 hour drive back to the US as the AC might get a little chilly in the Maverick. Oh well..

So, I'm going to do a little bit of research to see what can be done to repair the damage.

Let me share the photos:

Yes . sunscreen will effect the plastic . wife's Camry plastic is discolored from it as well as some interior house painted surfaces she touches . I haven't tried to address the issue so don't know what would work to correct it .

 

[FischAutoTechGarten]

Ok... Got the brand. Let the research begin.

Neutogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 70.

 

[Dad]

My guess is that the Super Cleaner from Chemical Guys would be your best bet along with a small soft-medium plastic bristle brush. You might also want to look at this hydrogen peroxide based cleaner. We've used it successfully, but as with any cleaner, I would test it in an inconspicuous place first. Good luck!

 

[Montana]

ooh yea some of that stuff contains a chemical that will stain pretty much anything it touches. I forget the name of it but it's the same with bug sprays containing DEET.

First I'd use a dry microfiber to remove any excess, then I'd use warm water on a microfiber towel. Finally I'd get some 303 and a light bristle brush (horse hair) and agitate it into the surfaces all around the door. That stuff works miracles. Allowing it to fully dry for a day or two and soaking up any excess with a dry microfiber towel in between new applications.

I'm willing to bet after a couple applications of it you might not even notice the difference in colors. It helps to hide light scratching too.

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