After waxing my 4runner I see that i got wax on the cladding but didnt really become visible til it was dry...now it doesnt come off so easily...anybody who has waxed their 03 with cladding have any tips for me to get it off?

 

Wax on the unpainted plastic, right? I'd just hit it with a little spot remover or a quick swipe of acetone or even paint thinner. You could probably even do it with 409 or some other household cleaner...just be extra quick and careful if you go the acetone or thinnner route.

Billy

 

Try some creamy peanut butter. Put it on the affected areas and let it sit for a few minutes then wipe the area clean. I know it sounds weird, but it works.

 

I carefully inspected a grey cladding 4R before I got mine. The grey cladding is actually painted, I think. It seemed to have a light paint of metallic particles that were not mixed into the plastic but sprayed on top. I thought it was a subtle but nice touch.

The reason wax is difficult to take off is because it is textured and matte finish- just like it is harder to take wax off the matte black paint of the grille.

Some paint cleaner like Meguiars cleaner. Peanut butter worked on non-painted plastic but I'm not sure about the 4R. It's kind of coarse for a painted surface-but why not try a little.

 

What are you using/planning to use on the cladding?

I've used Meguiar's Clean, Shine and Protect with good results, but the product is no longer made and I need to find something to replace it.

 

Yeah, disregard my help...I didn't think it was painted. I was setting you up for failure...my bad. Good luck with the cleaning.

Billy

 

Dawn will cut right through that wax. Just plain old Dawn dish washing detergent mixed with a little water should do the trick.

 

i will personally vouch for the peanut butter. use an old toothbrush, especially if you have textured fender flares.

i have not had any luck with anything else, especially dawn as previously mentioned.

bob

 

I just used armor all...
I need to find a better protectant for the cladding but the armorall seemed to work pretty well.

I know peanutbutter has been mentioned several times before this post but is there anything out there that will give this stuff a nice *lasting* gloss?

(Sorry for the hijack )

 

303 Aerospace Protectant, Meguiars Gold Class Protectant or Meg's #40 (pro line) work super but . . . 303 will probably last the longest with the best (matte) appearance. I don't think the sillicates in AAll are good for the physical make-up of any ruber/plastic surface. JMO.
-Stu.

 

Yeah, I didn't think so... more a temporary fix than anything else.
Thanks for the suggestions

 

Peter,

I'm not sure if the application is correct but the Griot's Vinyl and Rubber dressing is none silicone based and I use it on tires and all vinyl/rubber on my truck.

 

Can you give more details on this product -- I've never heard of it before. Pardon the ignorance!!

 

Never mind, I found their web site http://www.303products.com

Sounds like great stuff!

 

Yeah, I will second the 303. Way more permanent that armorall, and seems to work/adhere to about anything...i go thru bout a bottle a week.

Billy

 

The unorthodox products that I have used are, Corian countertop cleaner(diluted on a cotton rag) and Simple Green. Of course after I wash the area with the aforementioned concotion I wash with Meguirs Gold soap and follow up with Toyota brand vinyl and dash protectant. So far so good. The above is good for tar, etc. also.

 

My friend has a Lincoln Mark VIII that he has owned for about 7 years. He has always used Meguiars Tire Gel on any interior/exterior plastic components. All his stuff looks brand new. He uses the stuff on his tires. But, I have started using the stuff as well, and it looks great. It seems to clean off wax like that when I use it. Later,

Joseph

 

Zaino's Z-16 Perfect Tire Gloss works on my running boards rear bumper trim and all the other rubber /plastic trim nicely. Before this I used STP Sun of a Gun on all rubber and plastic trim on my 93 Runner.

Also, Zainos Polish does not stain black trim at all.

 

Sounds like some of this stuff...like in the last post there would work really well on my running boards...hmm...I think a light bulb just turned on!!

Fink

 

For me, the dish soap thing didn't work. I used to use Black Magic Tire Wet on all my outside trim. I love the product, but will never use it on my outside trim. Now I use Meguiars Trim Detailer. I bought it at the local Meguiars dealership, but it might be available at AutoZone. The difference, at least the way I understand it, is this stuff is not water-soluable (sp?). It has cleaned the residual wax off the trim, and has kept it a very nice black ever since. It does eventually wear off, but I am quite pleased overall.

The Black Magic Protectant/Tire Wet is GREAT for inside the truck. It has a nice cherry smell, vs the vomit smell of Armor-All. It also seems to last longer than that puke-smelling stuff.

After years of having wax streaks on the trim of my vehicles, I have given up trying to keep the wax off the trim through careful application. Now I take the time to mask off all the trim with tape. It definitely takes a while to tape all that stuff off, but it makes waxing much easier, and the truck looks SO much better without those nasty wax-on-trim streaks.

-S