OK, does Armor All really crack dashboards?

[mac]

I've heard more than one detailer tell me that it does. What do you guys think? I've used it a lot on my cars, and yes, I did get some cracks. I'm just not sure that the two are related. It might be like the old saying that drinking milk as a kid will make you a bank robber when you grow up. Sure enough, when 99% of bank robbers were asked, they drank milk as a kid. Does anyone have any definitive evidence? Might it be because so much crap is made in China? Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[rph9168]

Armor All does not crack dashes. Dashes crack because of design flaws in the dashes themselves that cause them to crack due to either the curvature of the dash or the vinyl covering drying out with age. There is nothing in Armor All or any water based dressing that would cause cracking. However, continual use of solvent base dressing could cause the vinyl on the dash to become brittle an crack or even discolor. Solvent based dressings should never be used on a vehicle's interior. In addition to possible dash problems they may also damage clear plastic and other plastic parts as well as any interior leather.

 

[I.B. Washincars]

I had a 99 Dodge truck before the one I have now. It had 256K on it when I sold it 5 years ago. It spent every day of it's life outside. The dash developed a foot-long crack while it was sitting in front of my car wash for sale. Other than that, it was in great shape. I never spent much time cleaning my truck, much less applying AA. I saw the truck a couple of days ago. Where that crack was over the instrument cluster, was a hole as big as a bowling ball. Judging from the level of filth in my old truck, the closest it had been to AA was driving past a store that sold it. In this case, I say that AA was not the cause.

OTOH, I hate milk and almost never drank it as a kid. I have never robbed a bank either...makes you think

 

[robert roman]

Cracks in dashboards have several causes.

Interior components like dashboards are usually made from polypropylene (i.e. PVC) which has characteristics like thermoplastic (i.e. ABS).

Polypropylene will degrade or oxidize when exposed to heat and ultraviolet light causing shallow crazes to form on surface. Magnified crazes have pattern like crow’s-feet or chicken scratches in dirt. Eventually, these will worsen and form cracks in material.

The rate of degradation is a function of area, exposure to sun (temperature and UV), and oxygen present in the environment – the passenger compartment. Consider 1995 Chevy Camaro with sloped windshield and “huge” dash-top cover area.

Exposed to heat and UV from sun (i.e. Florida), poly oxidizes and alcohol (hydrocarbon) and acid are released both of which have a distinct aroma.

Even with protection, Camaro dash-top cover becomes brittle. After ten years of exposure cracks form and eventually the cover crumbles into small pieces.

Another culprit, that accelerates the process, is ozone - reactive form of oxygen. For example, with windows rolled up on hot day, hydrocarbons released from dash and top cover mix with oxygen in passenger compartment to form ozone in the presence of sunlight.

Ozone degrades rubber, nylon and fabric dyes. It causes colors to fade and elastic materials to become brittle. Other evidence of ozone formation is the haze (smog) that forms on the inside of front windshield several days after cleaning it.

 

[Washmee]

I don't know any professional detailers who use Armorall as an interior surface protectant. Too shiny.

 

[Ghetto Wash]

Interior components like dashboards are usually made from polypropylene (i.e. PVC) which has characteristics like thermoplastic (i.e. ABS).

I've tried and tried, but can't make sense of this statement???

Polypropylene (PP)
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)

These are all thermoplastics and thus all have characteristics of thermoplastics.

 

[mac]

Thanks for the responses. I like the shiny look of it on a dash.

 

[Waxman]

I have been armorall-ing dashboards and vinyl / plastic / leather on vehicles since the 1980's with excellent results! I have found this product to be an awesome way to keep my own vehicles looking and feeling new. my detail shop customers ask for it by name and the car wash vending machine sells alot of armorall pouch paks.

 

[DavidM]

An extension of this old rumor has recently popped up at a local tire shop. They, or at least one of their techs, is telling customers not to get tire shine at the car wash because it causes the tires to dry out faster. I asked the customer if she ever replaced a tire from drying out? She said no, laughed, and said "Good, because I really like shiny tires"

Not to take this thread too far off topic but a local dealer told a customer that his brakes were squealing because we put too much tire shine on his tires.

I don't use Armor All much anymore, I prefer the lower gloss look of Meguiars Hyper Dressing but AA never caused cracks in any of my vehicles.

David

 

[Earl Weiss]

Not to take this thread too far off topic but a local dealer told a customer that his brakes were squealing because we put too much tire shine on his tires.

Had a mechanic show me a brake cylinder was leaking because of oily residue - it was tire shine.

 

[Washmee]

I have been armorall-ing dashboards and vinyl / plastic / leather on vehicles since the 1980's with excellent results! I have found this product to be an awesome way to keep my own vehicles looking and feeling new. my detail shop customers ask for it by name and the car wash vending machine sells alot of armorall pouch paks.

Waxman, I challenge you to use this product instead of Armorall. It's easier to apply and produces a much better result.https://www.professionaldetailingproducts.com/air-conditioning-vent-magic