What Happens To Old Armor All?

Not long ago I bought an older vehicle that has a gray interior. Some of the dashboard components have a yellowish appearance that I originally thought was sun-fading. I decided to do some cleaning and much of this yellowing started coming off revealing a relatively normal looking surface. Could years of "detailing" using Armor All or similar product cause this? (FWIW, I thought of the possibility of it being cigarette residue, but there's no smell and the yellowing is isolated to plastic panels in the front of the cabin below dashtop level.)

The detailing snobs would probably say "yes". Apparently, Armor All is unacceptable as a dashboard protectant.

It wouldn't surprise me if layers upon layers of it would cause yellowing, but then again, I've used it forever and never had any issues (11 years on my '99 Civic Si). Different climate, maybe.

I thought old Armor All is what caused mutations like those referred to as "Snooki"

I could be wrong though.

Per Schroeder wrote: I thought old Armor All is what caused mutations like those referred to as "Snooki" I could be wrong though.

That episode of South Park was great.

It's a Jersey thing.

The yellow stuff is probably the top layer of the plastic starting to degrade thanks to years of sun exposure.

It doesn't die...it just fades away.

ansonivan wrote: The yellow stuff is probably the top layer of the plastic starting to degrade thanks to years of sun exposure.

Nah, this is something that has either accumulated like cigarette smoke (which I still don't think it is) or something that was deliberately applied. The panels that are most noticeable are lower ones that wouldn't get a lot of sun, if any. The top panel is much darker colored, so it may be coated too, but not as noticeable because of the darker color. The plastic material seems to be in good shape and not deteriorated. I've been cleaning the stuff off with upholstery cleaner and a mild bristle brush. It might be good to know exactly what it is that I'm cleaning so I might find something that works better.

Old Armor All doesn't die, it just haunts the dreams of paint and body guys.

In reply to carzan:

When I read the title to the thread, my first thought was "It falls down behind the chest freezer in the garage and sits there for a few years until you have to defrost the freezer. By that time, the bottle is so covered in cricket E36 M3 that you just scoop it up with a shovel and toss it into the bin."

To answer your question, yes, it is possible that is armor all or smoke residue, and since it was down out of eye level it just didn't get cleaned as well as the dashboard area.

I was thinking this was a theory on what happens to the bottle to make it self-empty. I find one every couple years, floating around on the back of a shelf in the basement or garage, always empty. I wouldn't put one away empty, so I guess they evaporate.

Maybe the p.o. applied cosmoline to keep the old plastic from rusting. Or more maybe it is the same crap that accumulates on the walls of my bathroom and makes it look like someone used the entire room as a giant snot rag. Stupid old house doesn't have an exhaust fan, so all the steam from showering runs down the walls and somehow turns E36 M3 yellow in the process.

Old plastic will still 'outgas' solvents. That's what makes that white haze on the inside of the windshield just above the dash. Combined with all the crap floating around in the air and maybe some old Armor All, yeah it could make yellow goo.

I quit using AA several years ago when I ruined an MGB dash with it. The stuff has solvents which can quickly turn old vinyl brittle, BTDT. Now I will only wipe off dust with a damp rag, I use no 'preservatives'.