[Brumby]

Hi friends,

This is my first post regarding a DIY in the forum. Apologies for any mistakes or incorrect methods used for posting. I am not good at clicking pictures so please bear with the poor quality. This DIY was done over a period of time, starting with first treatment somewhere in April 2018.

I had an issue with the center console/ac panel looking ugly because of swirl marks, minor scratches and fine mist of clear coat caused by the MASS on my Swift while a body shop job was done on all 4 doors. Why a body shop job on all four doors is a separate story

I follow a practice of taking pictures of my car (interior and exterior) in the presence of the service advisor with his attention towards the minor details. It was a bit difficult but I could easily prove that the MASS technicians caused the scratches while the car was at the service centre. The service centre assured to help with resolving the issue and did put in their best efforts. After a lot of trial and error methods, they were successful in removing the scratches as well as the clear coat to an acceptable level using some rubbing compound (they did not disclose the name/brand of the material used). Once the results were acceptable to me, I did not ask them to complete the job on the whole console and borrowed some of the rubbing compound so as to do it later as per my convenience.

I really feel worried with lots of glossy surfaces inside the cars these days in view of how pathetic the sense of responsibility the technicians have at the service centers. Almost all the cars from across the segments have glossy black surfaces inside the cabin and how well these are treated is a well-known fact. Since the last few years I always make it a point to notify the service advisors about the condition of interiors in my car and how I want them to be when I take the delivery after service.

There were a lot of swirl marks on the speedo console of my Innova and Activa and on the central & air con console of the Swift caused by the guys who carry out the cleaning at the service centres.

This set me thinking about how to get rid of such swirl marks and minor scratches. After a little Q&A sessions with Mr Google I was convinced to a certain extent that there are a few things that I can try.

The simple ideas that I got from google were:

1. Use Brasso with wax
2. Use a fine grit-rubbing compound with wax
3. Use acrylic scratch remover

!!!CAUTION!!!
This DIY will only help to improve the look and visibility through the acrylic trim and will not in any way restore to "as new" condition. The fine swirl marks and scratches will be visible under focussed light.

Acrylic scratch remover was slightly expensive option, and I wanted to try the options for which all the material was available at home. So I decided to go with either option 1 or 2 or a combination of both.

Materials required:

1. Brasso polish


2. 2000 grit rubbing compound


Scratch out rubbing compound


3. Car wax


4. Microfiber cloth


5. Abro tape for sealing gaps (this tape leaves residue of the glue on some surfaces)


6. Soft bristled brush for removing the residue after completion. I used my trimmer blades cleaning brush


Disclaimer : This procedure is for the acrylic/plexiglass surfaces only. This was the procedure that I followed to remove the swirl marks and minor scratches form the speedo console and the center console of my cars. The products used may or may not be suitable for all cars. Before following this procedure carry out a test on a surface, which will not cause any serious damage to the vehicle. I do not endorse any of the products used/mentioned in this post. The procedure may not be suitable for glossy black trims inside the cars. The people following this procedure will do it at their own risk.

For a trial and to be on safe side I followed this procedure on one of the free watches that my son got from Benetton, followed by one on my own Casio Tough Solar and the results were good. A sincere apology as this was an unplanned post and I do not have the pictures before the scratch removal was done.

My son's free benetton watch after scratch removal.


My Casio Tough Solar after scratch removal

Procedure:

1. First of all wipe the surface clean with a moist micro-fiber cloth and let it dry.
2. Seal the gaps using the Abro tape to prevent residue falling in or trapping between the fine gaps at the joints.
3. Shake the contents of the bottle of Brasso to mix well.
4. Using a microfiber cloth over your finger, cover the opening of the brasso bottle shake it to soak the cloth with the contents of the bottle.
You can also use the rubbing compound instead of Brasso polish in this step.
5. Rub on a small area of the surface in circular motion till the area becomes dry and looks shiny. You can also use your finger directly (without the cloth) for this purpose (at your own risk).
6. Clean the area with a dry micro-fiber cloth and check the condition of the surface. You may have to move around and change the angle at which you look at the surface to judge the condition.
7. Repeat the procedure till you get a shiny surface with faded or light swirl marks. Cover all areas one section at a time.

Now we are ready to fill these light/faded marks with wax, which will make them almost invisible.
Apply a coat of wax polish on the surface as per the procedures given on the container. Wait for it to get a bit dry till it appears hazy, rub the wax off using a soft micro-fiber cloth.

The end result though not perfect but was good and satisfying. The haziness and swirl marks are not visible anymore. For my swift this procedure was done about 5 months back and the scratches and swirl marks have not yet re-appeared.


The air con console of the swift (before)


Central & air con console with rubbing compound applied


Center and air con console (after)


Air con console (after)


Central and air con console (after)


Speedo console of Innova (before)


Speedo console of Innova (after)


Activa speedo console (after)

Thank you for giving your valuable time.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the DIY Section. Thanks for sharing!

[arunphilip]

Thank you for the DIY, this is good to know, and is of particular use for two wheelers, as well as central consoles that often annoyingly come with a black piano finish.

5. Abro tape for sealing gaps (this tape leaves residue of the glue on some surfaces)

FWIW, I have used 3M's masking tape and have been happy with it not leaving any glue residue.

6. Soft bristled brush for removing the residue after completion. I used my trimmer blades cleaning brush

I thought I recognized this Braun, if I'm not mistaken.

[lazy]

Very useful post.
These scratches are a major irritant for me, especially because unlike exterior scratches, these are visible all the time to me (as a driver).

Thanks for sharing

cheers
lazy

[rulerofsun]

For finishing off you can also use Colgate Tooth powder and for the chrome, use tooth paste, apply the paste on chrome surface and leave to dry. polish off with dry microfiber cloth.

[Brumby]

Originally Posted by arunphilip

Thank you for the DIY, this is good to know, and is of particular use for two wheelers, as well as central consoles that often annoyingly come with a black piano finish.


FWIW, I have used 3M's masking tape and have been happy with it not leaving any glue residue.


I thought I recognized this Braun, if I'm not mistaken.

I am paranoid about getting the glossy surfaces soiled and this always worries me while my car is at service center.

Originally Posted by rulerofsun

For finishing off you can also use Colgate Tooth powder and for the chrome, use tooth paste, apply the paste on chrome surface and leave to dry. polish off with dry microfiber cloth.

Thank you for the reminder. How could I forget the good old Colgate tooth paste and tooth powder. I have successfully used the paste for removing weeping rust marks from alloy wheels.

Originally Posted by lazy

Very useful post.
These scratches are a major irritant for me, especially because unlike exterior scratches, these are visible all the time to me (as a driver).

lazy

This was a major irritant, I once even approached 3M car care for a solution, but they said they do the headlights but nothing was available for the centre and speedo consoles.

Regards.

[Dead_Pedal]

Nice DIY. Not perfect as you said but, good enough. The process will enhance the look of these panels and a transparent film over them once the polishing is done will make it look 95% new. The film will further hide the remaining minor hairline scratches(especially on the gloss/piano black surfaces). But, you seem to have tried it on the speedometer cluster plastic cover too. Does it by any chance leave a haze layer on the plastic making visibility difficult? I am unable to figure it out from the photos hence asking. My car's cluster is all scratched up and I'd want to try this process. Any help or feedback would be highly appreciated.

[batish]

Originally Posted by Dead_Pedal

My car's cluster is all scratched up and I'd want to try this process. Any help or feedback would be highly appreciated.

I know this sounds stupid to say, but this part is available as a standalone spare in cars like Verna, Creta etc. Check this:

[Dead_Pedal]

Originally Posted by batish

I know this sounds stupid to say, but this part is available as a standalone spare in cars like Verna, Creta etc. Check this:

Hi, thanks for the link. It's definitely possible to replace the cluster lens but it requires ripping apart several pieces of the dashboard(AC vents, infotainment unit etc) and I feel the re-fitment may not be factory level and rattles may creep in. I tried an acrylic glass cleaner and a polish and got pretty good results. Most of the minute scratches disappeared after several passes and the haze layer that remained was taken away by the polish. So, I now have a clear lens with nice visibility. However, the area to work on is very cramped and it's difficult to get perfect results unless the lens is taken out. Once, taken out it makes more sense to trash it and get a new one