Instrument Cluster/Gauges Plastic

[João Pereira]

Hi guys I'm new here.

I have a question regarding the plastic/plexiglass on the instrument cluster.

I've had my car for nearly 6 months. More less a month ago, I started noting, particularly in direct sunlight, that the cover of the instrument cluster was completely filled with spider-like scratches.
I've only cleaned it a handful of times with a very soft, slightly watered microfiber cloth.

It's not easy to capture on camera but I did my best (see attachment). I went to my dealer, they said they polished it but it only got worse. I also tried warranty but to no avail ( I'm from Portugal).

They said that the cluster is one cohesive piece and, therefore, the cover cannot be separated from the instruments themselves.

Of course a brand new unit is in the range of 500-600 EUR...and the dials and everything are in perfect working condition.

So my question is, has anyone come across this situation? If so, how did you handle it?

Sorry for the long post!

Best regards,

JP

 

[Gargi]

Hi guys I'm new here.

I have a question regarding the plastic/plexiglass on the instrument cluster.

I've had my car for nearly 6 months. More less a month ago, I started noting, particularly in direct sunlight, that the cover of the instrument cluster was completely filled with spider-like scratches.
I've only cleaned it a handful of times with a very soft, slightly watered microfiber cloth.

It's not easy to capture on camera but I did my best (see attachment). I went to my dealer, they said they polished it but it only got worse. I also tried warranty but to no avail ( I'm from Portugal).

They said that the cluster is one cohesive piece and, therefore, the cover cannot be separated from the instruments themselves.

Of course a brand new unit is in the range of 500-600 EUR...and the dials and everything are in perfect working condition.

So my question is, has anyone come across this situation? If so, how did you handle it?

Sorry for the long post!

Best regards,

JP

Go to a car detailer. He might have a solution with compounds.

 

[Rowan83]

Always avoid rubbing any types of microfibre cloth over the plexiglass, it will cause fine scratches/marring even if you are very careful.. if you are tring ro remove dust use a lens cloth or small air blower.

Unfortunately I doubt you will be able to improve this without making it look worse. I have seen people try....

My instrument cluster was left with fine scratches from the dealership, even after several attempted fixes they had to replace the whole unit with a brand new one.

 

[João Pereira]

Always avoid rubbing any types of microfibre cloth over the plexiglass, it will cause fine scratches/marring even if you are very careful.. if you are tring ro remove dust use a lens cloth or small air blower.

Unfortunately I doubt you will be able to improve this without making it look worse. I have seen people try....

My instrument cluster was left with fine scratches from the dealership, even after several attempted fixes they had to replace the whole unit with a brand new one.

Thanks for your reply.

I been investigating this issue for the last couple of days and it adds up to what you said.

Unfortunately I’ve been caught off guard with this, since my previous car (that I owned for 14 years), never had this problem.

It’s a shame that the brand doesn’t cover the issue under warranty.

Now I’m left with living with it or spending close to 600€ for a brand new unit as well.

Hope no else gets caught up in this.

Thanks again for your replies,

Best regards,

JP

 

[Rowan83]

It does seem like the plexiglass in the Ibiza is easily marked.

The problem is that you can't apply enough pressure to remove the scratches and if you do your are normally left with hazing.

How long do you plan on keeping the car?

 

[João Pereira]

It does seem like the plexiglass in the Ibiza is easily marked.

The problem is that you can't apply enough pressure to remove the scratches and if you do your are normally left with hazing.

How long do you plan on keeping the car?

A long time if all goes well...

 

[DigiMagic]

Not sure if this is going to be useful: there is a guy on Youtube who fixes toy cars, and among other things, fixes scratches and polishes "windows", which is just a piece of soft transparent plastics in a model. Maybe his procedures - using some kind of polishing paste, and a floor polishing solution - can be used for Ibiza's instrument cluster too? "Marty's matchbox makeovers".