Speedometer marks left by collision shop

[griff8]

Stupid collision shop :furious1 that did some repairs on my badly damaged roof of my Honda Accord got something on my plastic speedometer cover. Don't know what it is and I haven't done anything to it yet. Any suggestions for curing this horrid mess?:dunno


http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/51361/title/speedometer-stains-and-spotting/cat/500

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/51359/title/speedometer-stains-and-spotting/cat/500

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/51360/title/speedometer-stains-and-spotting/cat/500

[Shawn T.]

Do you have any pictures?

[griff8]

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/photopost/showfull.php?photo=51360

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/photopost/showfull.php?photo=51359

[mswerb]

Take it back to the "Stupid Collision Shop" and be polite when telling them what you have discovered. If they are professionals, they should take care of it for you. If not, let them know that word travels fast.

[griff8]

Took it back to the collision shop not once but twice to get other things corrected that they did while they had the car for 3 weeks. This is one of the several things I demanded they correct - they said they didn't know what it was or how it got there but they didn't do it. Morons. After taking it back there twice to get things fixed that were not part of the original work, I don't want to take it back there again.

[Griff88]

Any suggestions from anyone out there???

[the other pc]

Hard to tell if it's something on the plastic or if the plastic itself is distorted. Can you tell? Have you tried anything on it?

[GEARHEADSOUP]

Sounds like they may have gotten something on the panel during the repair process, a common mistake is for an inexperienced clean up guy to use the wrong product to clean a panel like that, If you can not get the problem resolved working directly with the shop contact the Insurance Co. that paid for the repairs, the shops hate when you do that but sometimes the Insurance company can be a little more persuasive.

[jfelbab]

If you are of a mind to try to correct this yourself, I'd try PlastX or M17 and M18. This plastic is pretty soft so good luck with getting it back to crystal clear with no micro-swirls but it should be improved a lot. If you could get the lenses out too work on it would be much easier but I think that is a big hassle. If you could get the lenses out you could just replace them too. I'm sure there are some Accords in a salvage yard somewhere with good lenses for cheap.

[Michael Stoops]

Unfortunately those instrument cluster covers can tend to be rather delicate, so even if something that's technically safe to use on them is just over sprayed and allowed to self dry, it can do some damage. It's going to be hit and miss with regard to fixing this on your own, but the suggestions made by jfelbab are good ones. We would suggest, however, that you hold off on any of that until you've exhausted all avenues with the shop and or insurance company. No sense in potentially causing other issues that could make those negotiations blow up in your face.

[ARCStig]

Indeed, My instrument panel lens has some light scratches on it, I guess from people using Windex and paper towels on it over the years, Would it be safe to use some of the left over PlastX from my Headlight kit on there? :) Says it removes light scratches, but I don't want to ruin my lens at the same time. :) Roadmaster parts are impossible to find around here and are discontinued by Buick. :(

[Michael Stoops]

Yes, PlastX is perfectly safe to use on your instrument cluster cover. But it is critically important that you do NOT use a terry cloth applicator of any kind to apply it as the loops of the terry cloth can be very aggressive and can easily create a whole new collection of swirl marks. Stick with a foam wax applicator pad, and start off fairly gentle with it. Make sure also to avoid using your fingertips as doing so can create pressure points that may mar the surface.

[ARCStig]

Thanks! I guess I'll be buying some foam applicator pads since I only have Microfiber towels :)