cleaning hood of VX

[FLBeachgirl]

i've been using armoral to clean the bottom plastic part of my VX and it works great however when i tried it on the part in the middle of my hood it left it all streaky i was wondering if anyone out there knows of anything to clean that and actually make it look good

thanks

amber

[Heraclid]

First of all I do not use ArmorAll because I heard somewhere that over time it makes the plastic brittle. I do not know this to be absolutely true, but I've opted not to take the chance. Right now I use Meguiar's Gold Class Endurance Tire Gel on the cladding and I'm very pleased with it.

The hood insert is a hard one to figure out, and I'm still working on the best way to handle it. It just holds that nice look for less time, no matter what you try. This must be because it is more directly exposed and gets a double-whammy of heat from above and below. It is also not bare plastic like the cladding is. I have used the Meguiar's on it, and it makes it look great. So will regular Son of a Gun or Turtle Wax spray protectant, though. All of these will not have the same longevity there as they will on the cladding, and I'm not sure what the long-term affects will be of applying them to a painted surface, although so far, so good. Done right, it will not look greasy, but even so, things like dust and pollen tend to stick to the insert in particular after you apply any of these to it, so try using a car duster for touch-ups if you go that route. However, I have found that waxing the insert has helped a lot with just maintaining an even look (not splotchy or streaky). It's okay to wax the hood insert because it's actually painted and is not bare polypropylene like the cladding. I think what I'd recommend is doing that first of all so the paint is protected.

I have also seen kits before that are color-specific, where you can use something much like a wax to enhance color and then you wax over it. Usually I think you use a mild rubbing compound first to prep it. If there is anything out there for restoring luster to black paint jobs specifically, for instance, that may be a good way to go too. I did this with my Mom's red sports car and it still looks great after quite a while now. I prepped it first with 3M rubbing compound - the mildest, least abrasive version they had.

[Arachnid J]

I have been using the Meguiar's- nxt generation Tech Protectant on my hood insert. It doesn't give it a glare in the sun and makes it look brand new. I also was using it on the cladding until I applied the TS-1 by Armor-Dillo. The TS-1 is great and after a couple of cleanings and a mild rain today it is still holding up. I love this stuff so far.

James

[Offroad vx]

Try the color match wax. I think it's Turtle wax, but I can't find the bottle in our garage of junk. I used it once and it doesn't look too bad after 1 washing and all the rain/snow we've been getting. No prep use just like wax.

[FLBeachgirl]

thanks so much for all of the help! not to be stereotypical but im a girl and dont know much about cars let alone a vx, but im learning

thanks again!

[t2p]

I use Rain-X on the hood insert.

[Heraclid]

t2p, I just treated my windshield with Rain-X, and the instructions say to avoid using it on painted surfaces and plastics.

FLBeachgirl, don't sweat it - before I had a vehicle I was this crazy about and before I found this website, I don't think you could have found many folks who knew much less about cars than me.

[redline]

Make sure you unblock/check the little clear drain tube's under the front of the insert-they fill with crud and will prevent water from draining off .You can get to them from under the hood ,If I remember correctly you might have to pull the fire blanket(insulation) down a little to get to them. Just pull them out and blow some compressed air or remove them and run them under hot water.

[WormGod]

I would actually wax mine. I have used all sorts of wax and it was fine. Being the middle fo winter, all cleaning products and wax leave my memory since it's been a LONG while since my VX has been cleaned now. Using wax, the insert will get a bit more shiney than the stock matte color should appear, but it looks pretty good nevertheless.