Black Gunk on centre console

[GPGrobler]

Hallo all,

My guess is everyone with E46's with a black interior will know what I am talking about - the black gunk on the utility and ashtray lids. When you scrape your fingernail across it, black gunk comes off from the console lids and sticks under your fingernails. It looks like it is years of dirt and oil, but how to get it off? Any ideas, did anyone here manage to find the solution to clean it off?

As always, any advice and input is highly appreciated.

 

[Pho3niX90]

I have never had this problem, is the coating coming of or is it just dirt?

 

[Nikhil]

I think you taking off the rubber coating on your console dude :fencelook:

 

[DROP IT - ZN]

Its dirt...comes off clean with normal sunlight liquid, warm water and a toothbrush

When i bought my E46 it had these in most touched places and i cleaned it off easily

 

[dyllindd]

Its dirt...comes off clean with normal sunlight liquid, warm water and a toothbrush

When i bought my E46 it had these in most touched places and i cleaned it off easily

Me too. Only advice on this is to be cautious and make sure you are using only something mild like dishwashing liquid and a soft cloth. NOTHING ABRASIVE:yuck:

 

[boxerulez]

I dont know about this cars but I have come across a lot of rubber coatings disolving from dash polish and a couple of years or skin oils and fats disturbing its cure.

My Getz is clean. Rubber coating is coming off all over.

Like black snot basically.

 

[GPGrobler]

This is like a black paste, I managed to clean the lid for the cig lighter, looks a lot better, my problem is it is next to the ASC button as well, so I have to strip the dash so that I don't "drown" the button. BTW "DASH" is rubbish, I think it ismultiple "DASH" or Shield Sheen coatings which I have to clean off!

 

[Nastaliq]

Just be careful with what you use to clean.
Overdo it and you will rub the composite coating completely off and be left with deep gouges.

Start with the mildest option and then get more aggressive incrementally.

 

[Demontec]

Try using Sheen dashboard spray again but the one with active cleaning agents , Cant remember what its called


I've never used it my 3 but have on the mazda that has hard plastics, Just spray on and watch it bubble away, It somehow loosens and lifts the dirt and then just wipe away clean

 

[GPGrobler]

I Google - d this and see that most of the E46 centre consoles have the same problem, it is some kind of coating that ages, and it looks quite horrible after a while, like a cat used it for a scratching post.

I managed to get most it off the cigarette lighter cover and cleaned it with Blade cleaner, it looks a lot better than it did, and better than the utility cover and the trim strip with the ASC button in it looks like at present.

 

[herr bmw]

black rubber coating peeling off my steering wheel on the 90,so decided to help it along so as it the shiny plastic,looks much better

 

[DieselFan]

black rubber coating peeling off my steering wheel on the 90,so decided to help it along so as it the shiny plastic,looks much better

You can also have it wrapped if you prefer the matte black look, it's what I did with my steering wheel

 

[GPGrobler]

I'm just wondering how come that this was not tested for a car environment before it was used? It clearly does not work, so how and which tests were done?

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If I know now how to revamp these centre consoles and how to remove all the gunk, would anyone be interested to help me earn an extra income with it?

 

[boxerulez]

I'm just wondering how come that this was not tested for a car environment before it was used? It clearly does not work, so how and which tests were done?

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If I know now how to revamp these centre consoles and how to remove all the gunk, would anyone be interested to help me earn an extra income with it?

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It was probably tested. Just not for 3 + years...

 

[GPGrobler]

I'm just wondering how come that this was not tested for a car environment before it was used? It clearly does not work, so how and which tests were done?

---

If I know now how to revamp these centre consoles and how to remove all the gunk, would anyone be interested to help me earn an extra income with it?

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It was probably tested. Just not for 3 + years...

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:roflol:

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Just be careful with what you use to clean.
Overdo it and you will rub the composite coating completely off and be left with deep gouges.

Start with the mildest option and then get more aggressive incrementally.

Feedback: The black gunk is this coating, it disintigrates over time and looks horrible, turning into a sticky black paste full of scratches. You just need to scratch and clean it off being careful not to scratch the plastic underneath, and you will be left with a neat-looking (OE look) matt black finish. Just be careful around the silver (chrome) touch tabs, so that you don't scratch that off as well.

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I used my fingernails to scratch the gunk off (takes a lot of patience, but it won't scratch the plastic underneath) and after that I used Shield's "Blade" All purpose cleaner and a micro fibre cloth to get the final finish.