Simple solution for scratched center console?

Has anyone tried something like this for their scratched center console? Seems like a simple solution that could be a lot easier than refinishing a scratched up gray one. https://www.ebay.com/itm/175371270462

I'd rather remove and have a body shop prep and paint in body color or complimentary color. Just my .02.

Yeah� I don�t think I would be satisfied with this after some thought

not too hard a job to DIY, use patience and SEM paint, I did and I'm glad.

Quotes source post: 19259536

^^^^This Or you have the option to sand and prime yourself and have a professional paint it. Just went thru this exercise and should have done it years ago. Just waiting for weather to warm up a little more this week and I'll be in the garage installing it.

@yaz996 had a pretty good method to remove the coating. He�ll pop in here to give good advice.

Quotes source post: 19259714

Easy Off oven cleaner

Quotes source post: 19259719

Serious question , which color can of Easy Off did you use ? I think they make yellow and blue . I used yellow to strip anodizing off Fuchs wheels . Too strong for plastic ?

Definitely don't do this, it will look cheap in the end. Better off refinishing it or just buying a used one. You can wrap parts and it can look nice but I don't think this is one of those instances.

Quotes source post: 19259948

Yellow I guess. I haven't had any issues with damage to the plastic. Forgot to add that lots of people (myself included) use the Color Bond LVP Refinisher for the repaint.

Quotes source post: 19260015

Thanks, like to try the stuff out. Was looking for a color match but can't find what LVP matches my Biarritz white Porsche color, or for other small interior parts, my Lobster red interior color... I guess anything close would be ok.

I've done many repaints of consoles in these cars over the years. It all depends what type of surface your center console was finished in. For example, the early 996 cars (i.e. MY99) had a textured color-molded plastic. Very durable, but seemed very cheap feeling. Porsche then moved to rubberized "soft touch" surfaces (similar to Plasti Dip paint) on the center consoles which had a nice feel to them, but like Plasti Dip, it would easily scratch and even flake off from the plastic over time. Some owners opted for painted surfaces (BASE+CLEAR COAT) to match the exterior paint colors or the silver accents, and those consoles seemed to hold up very well since Porsche basically used the same paint process. But again, the worst is the "soft touch" rubberized paint surfaces. All that being said, if you're dealing with the soft touch rubberized paint, you really need to remove all the old BEFORE repainting. It's frustrating to remove, but can been done with patience. Be careful using paint removal chemicals that are really made for metal, glass, and/or ceramics... they can BURN plastic. I usually just recommend a little elbow grease and sand it off safely, but I know people have successfully used house hold cleaners to speed the process up. I'm a big fan of ColorBond paints. I've used them to restore many of my old cars in the family, not just the Porsches. Again, Colorbond refinishers are VERY chemically aggressive and act more like dye than a surface paint. If you're painting soft vinyl (seating or armrest), it's important that you use their Adhesion Promotor first before using the colored Refinishers. If you don't it can peel or flake from some types of vinyl surfaces. Leather and ABS plastic... don't need it in my opinion.

Quotes source post: 19260319

Yes I have the soft touch rubberized finished in my 2001. It has not held up well over the years. I�m also considering removing the most scratched pieces (the center console is the worst) and having them wrapped. Possibly in carbon fiber. i have a gray interior and seal gray exterior, so wrapping in carbon fiber should provide some much needed contrast. I also just got some hardback sport seats which I could have wrapped in the same material to match� sanding and refinishing is an option, but I don�t want to simply repaint them in gray.

OP - I recommend you refinish the horseshoe first, if you diy. The plastic is a little less flexible and is easier to strip and prep. It�ll give you a good gauge of effort required to properly reface the center console. I went with paint, but there are a few viable options for you to consider: Paint, wrap, hydrodip or actual carbon fiber. For my skill level vinyl wrap is too difficult to do well on a curved surface like the interior pieces. The smaller piece on the driver side of the e-brake might be a nightmare to get right for fit and finish. I also suspect the durability of vinyl vs paint. Hydro dipping looks cool on the few interiors I�ve seen done. I have no idea how much that complete process would cost. For my taste carbon is all-or-nothing. I�m not a fan of polka dotting the interior with carbon. But, dang it looks so good in a 996! Check out TheChunkNorris �Slow Build� thread for what can be done for a proper carbon fiber look. No matter which you choose, anything is better than soft touch paint! Do you have black mats? That helps calm the sea of gray a bit.

When I did mine, I decided to pick one up on ebay to paint. That way I could keep my original as a just in case. You can find them for pretty good prices with and without the leather or plastic pads. The one I bought was black. I thought it would have the rubbery paint but it ended up being the hard plastic that didn't need to be stripped but instead just sanded and then use Automotive Touchup for their plastic adhesion spray, then the primer and wet sand. Pretty easy. But I ended up deciding to have it professionally painted and clear coated seal grey instead of spraying it myself. Glad I did. It came out better than if I painted it myself. It looks great and it has enough coats of lacquer to make it pretty durable. If i can get a good look with seal grey painted console, black leather pads and lid, with a graphite grey interior, DB carbon horseshoe and air ducts, black sabelt racing harnesses, black rennline aluminum track pads and various other black bits, I'll use the seal grey console. I think it will all tie in together, but won't know until later this week when I put all of it together on warmer weather. I think the key to getting it to work is a little bit of black with a little bit of carbon fiber.

Forgive me if someone already said this, but I believe the soft touch coating may be removed with isopropyl alcohol. I have replaced the horseshoe around the center console and the door sills with a direct Porsche replacement and the replacement comes without the soft touch and looks a lot better that way. So much so that I am replacing most of the trim with that crap on it. Replacing these trim parts has also allowed me to experiment with other Porsche colors.

Don't know if alcohol would do it. Buy acetone does.

Quotes source posts: 19264224, 19264260

I used 90% alcohol and it worked great. Be careful with Acetone because it will burn ABS plastic.

Good to know. Thanks.