I am embarrassed to admit that during the months I was prepping my car for paint, apparently a light mist of overspray made it onto the dash. Although it isn't a perfect dash, I really don't feel like changing it out.

When I clean it with leather cleaner it comes out looking pretty nice. But, then when it dries, the white comes back.

Suggestions as to how I can clean it?

Lacquer thinner first.
Acetone if required, but clean that off quickly with windex.

Thanks. I was afraid to use lacquer thinner on it. So I figured I'd check with the world. So, lacquer thinner should be ok?

Test I. A corner, but it should be fine.
Acetone is a lot more harsh....

Both should be cleaned right off with something else, windex or something to cut the oil based product, then soap.

Try on a small piece first, maybe somewhere that isn't readily visible.

Actually goof off works great.
It's soap mixed with lacquer thinner.

I have all of it here already, so I keep taking it up a notch until it works..
Acetone is one end of the scale, a wet rag is the other.

You may need to use a tooth brush to get into the texture, sad to say.

What about simple green ,way less toxic

And orange hand cleaner and stiff brush. It'll take paint off if it's fairly fresh.

Throw everything mentioned here in a bucket. It's bound to work

Any of the mentioned paint removers are going to dry out the vinyl. Go with a vinyl cleaner and a tooth brush. It all won't come off the first time, let it set. Try again in a week, and another week. The paint will lose it's bond.

clay bar?, it was originally designed to remove overspray.

acetone or laquer thinner

How about just re-dying the dash? Remove as much as possible, and clean before dying.

Just a thought.

-- brett

Most likely the best solution if you use acetone to clean it ,seriously don't put the stuff near it,it dulls the surface and stays like that,I have used universal thinners which is for laquer and enamel paints and it is weaker.
Use small amounts on a white cloth then you can see if the colour is coming off ,do small area's at a time.

Try some white vinegar mixed with HOT water in a test spot.

Before messing around with chemicals or anything else, I would try a magic eraser.

http://www.mrclean.com/en-us/shop-products...eraser-original


These things are literally about as close as you can get to magic. I have used them to to remove graffiti from all sorts of different surfaces with minimal effort and no impact to the underlying surface.

Haven't personally tried them with paint on a dash but i have used them to remove heavy grease staining from white door panels, sharpie writing off plastic, and many other surfaces, paint off of glass and metal. I am always finding new uses for these $2 gems.

I used fine wire wool and water to remove the overspray on my dash. Came up a treat

Try rubbing alcohol first before the paint thinner. It's not as harsh.

Lacquer thinner will be the best, but as others said try a small spot first. I think the problem you're going to have is the chemicals are going to destroy the outer coating the vinyl has that makes the sheen, and acts as the UV protectant.

Many years ago, I cleaned a set of FILTHY tan seats ( 914 ) with Purple Stuff and a soft plastic bristle brush and ended up removing that coating. The seats ended up very dull, and over a couple years time started to crack apart

Thanks everyone for their suggestions. I am trying Simple Green first. It seems to be working well so far. I will let you know how it goes.

try the Magic Eraser or a generic brand first, we use these all over the house to clean up after the youngin's (pencils, pens, markers, crayons and whatever else twin 4 year olds think will liven up a wall). If that doesn't work, maybe a little simple green or blue liquid dawn in some water. I wouldn't use anything else harsh that would damage the vinyl or cause the paint to thin, smear and then dry again.

I second the "Alcohol" suggestion...this was recommended to me just a couple weeks ago by a painting professional. Worked like a champ...good luck.

Tony

Thanks. What did you use it on? Dash? To clean off overspray?

Yes. It was over spray...not on the dash (I took mine out) but on the rockers and paint. I taped everything off but obviously well enough. I bought fine thread cloth and the alcohol from Sherwin Williams. Hope it works for you.

Tony

Thanks. Maybe I'll try it. I am working with the diluted Simple Green now. I'll see how it goes.

Either way, I'd use a small tooth brush to work in the cleaning solution much like you're cleaning your teeth. Just don't use your wife's...

Tony

wanna use my wife's?

I would skip trying to clean it and just lightly sand it if there are any raised paint globs and then use a high quality leather dye and dye that sucker black or any color you want. I changed colors of the dash on my SC and it came out great. Lots of thin coats and let it dry in between.