CanMikePlay

Every once in a while I make a mistake and get some wax on the black plastic parts. It is starting to add up so I decided to try cleaning it off. The wax I use is Meguiar's Ultimate Synthetic Paste Wax then sometimes Pinnacle Crystal Mist Carnauba Detail Spray on top. Each of the cleaners I tried was applied with a super soft toothbrush then scrubbed for 30 seconds. I did most of the testing on my front lip since its beat up anyway. In my opinion:
Worthless:
McKee's 37 MK37-530 Wax Remover for Plastic
Chemical Guys TVD11516 Trim Clean
Goo Gone
These products didn't do a thing.

Scary:
Goof Off (Contains Acetone and Xylene)
WD-40
These products appear to damage the plastic. The gloss of the plastic changed. I have to admit the WD-40 worked instantly.

Winner
Jiff
I applied it, scrubbed for 30 seconds with the tooth brush, wiped the excess off with a towel, then washed the car as usual. Not perfect but no damage to the plastic that I can see.

Jerrygreene

Large rubber eraser... works very well too

LexVan

Blue Painter's tape FTW.

Penn4S

Nextzette Plastic Deep.

MJG911

yeah, but can you eat it if you get hungry while detailing? just sayin'

CanMikePlay

The "Nextzette Plastic Deep" looks interesting. And cheaper than some of the other pretenders. I'll have to add it to my lineup. Thanks Penn4S.

Penn4S

I'd say go for it if you're hungry while detailing. Knock yourself out.

okbarnett

did you rub jelly on it after the PB ?

LexVan

Mice love them some PB.

bwiele

One of my favorite products for dealing with these issues is called Oil-Flo Safety Solvent. It cleans up just about anything without damaging the underlying material. I use it to clean stubborn marks on the paint (rubber marks, tar, dried tree sap), I've cleaned pen marks from careless parking lot attendants from the leather in both my Panamera and my wife's Audi. I previously bought a Ferrari 360 that was 4 years old and the warning sticker on the front dash had never been removed. When I removed it, a bunch of adhesive was left behind. This stuff cleaned the adhesive immediately with no damage to the leather. I've very confident it would clean the wax off the plastic parts. Flush the parts with water and then treat with 303 or whatever. It's so effective that my wife is convinced it must be causing me cancer!

It's available on Amazon. A 16oz bottle will last you for years and save you much frustration.

chuck911

None of this is necessary. Wax comes out of the container nice and mushy because of all the solvents holding the wax in suspension. When the solvents evaporate off the wax hardens. The obvious solution to wax residue is to apply more solvents. Dab a little wax on, hold a nice soft damp cloth over it, gently wipe off. Works everywhere wax builds up.

I was working on a Meet Joe Black reference to the peanut butter but nothing comes up so we'll just have to go with that.

2000se

^ So you're saying just put more wax on it?

dkmesa

I prefer Nutella. Catching a whiff of that chocolate and hazlenut when I get in the car is the highlight of my morning commute.

I saw a reference to blue painter's tape. I tape off my trim before I apply sealant, but it will also work if you apply a plastic protectant such as Aerospace 303 to trim before applying sealant, so that any excess will wipe right off.

chuck911

Right. A very old (if counterintuitive) solution. So old I cannot even recall where I learned it. Old enough to have been included in a PCA Tech Session I taught on detailing... 15 years ago. It was a hands-on session with everyone working on a donor car. Some people had really poor skills. Which by poor I mean zero. I'm talking even after you tell and show them they still turn the random orbital on before it touches the car, so it spins and sprays wax all over the place. Or they get way too much in one place and then they miss that spot so by the time you notice what they did someone is rubbing like hell trying to get it off. Or they come up to you and say man I'm beat this wax just won't come off. So you say no problem just put a little more on. Presto. Comes right off.

TheMule