LexVan

How do you cabriolet owners detail the rear cloth speaker shelf area on our cars?

In mid-October, as I was prepping my car for winter hibernation, I did a good cleaning of this cloth area with Adam's Fabric & Upholstery Cleaners (clear liquid, mild, spray bottle). The area was very dirty, as expected from over 12,000 top down miles, of wind, dust and dirt. The area actually looked fine, but once you start washing, you quickly see just how fast your wash water and micro fiber towel get. It was pretty easy, and the most work involved removing (vacuum and sticky tape roller) the lint deposited from my towel in the speaker cloth.

Fast forward to this past weekend. I was doing a little work in the heated garage. And decided to hit the cloth area with a thorough coating of Scotch Guard Fabric Protector. I let it dry about 24 hours before closing back up the top. Very easy to do. Took all of 10 minutes. I used blue painter's tape on the forward edge, and laid a few towels on the back area to keep the over spray off the ragtop. Pulled off the tape, wiped a couple areas, and used a Q-Tip on a couple others. Done.

Thoughts and other ideas? How do you do it??

Thanks.

Larry Cable

I use a sticky tape roller and vacuum cleaner ... scotchguard is a good idea

LexVan

I did the Scotch Guard step for easier & future cleanups. I thought about using some of my new can of RaggTopp Protectant, but I'm saving that entire can for the top. This is my late February project. One can is good for about 3-4 light coats. I do this every-other-year.

As for the cloth speaker shelf, I was hoping the Scotch Guard has UV protection, but I don't think it does. Oh well.

I at least wanted it better protected, and easier to clean in the future. This past June, about 5 miles from Porsche Parade, I got hit with a huge bird bomb. About 95% hit the windshield (no problem, easy to clean) but about 5% flew over the car and landed on the speaker cloth. It cleaned up pretty well with bottle water and a rag, but it got me thinking about how to clean and keep clean this area.

Larry Cable

I should imagine that solvent based cleaners would be best!

Larry Cable

have you tried the Porsche product for this purpose?

LexVan

No. But good idea. The Porsche product is probably re-bottled RaggTopp Proetectant. The parent company, Wolfstein, is the OEM cabriolet top protectant spray supplied to Porsche and used at the factory.

Larry Cable

good to know ... I have some here waiting to go on once I replace certain "components" that were recently de-installed!

beaverlake

BMW makes a citrus-based interior cleaner that I purchased a couple years ago in our pre-Porsche days. It does an excellent job on fabrics and carpet with no apparent impact on the material being cleaned. It even smells good. In addition to using microfiber, I've also used it with a soft bristled brush on the cab "shelf". And of course vacuum, lint roller, etc.

Your thoughts about Raggtop hit home - I have been thinking along the same lines, using Raggtop instead of Scotchgard. I really like the way Raggtop turns the charcoal grey (black) fabric into a deep, dark "true" black.

Although I have no facts to back up my opinion - it seems like this is an either/or situation and not both/and.

Gordon

sandbar

I use the Porsche product and agree it's likely relabed RaggTopp. Works great though. Over spray on the paint wipes right off, great beading for months, but does take about 2 weeks for that odor to go away!

cajerseyboy

the porsche product works great and on my first application I used much more than recommended to get a solid waterproof base. Purchased ragg top as well for my second application. Focused on the seals and made sure to tape and use drop cloths on the glass and paint. The odor went a way in a few days for me.

coreyco

Some great comments regarding RaggTopp, which leads me to this inquiry:
I have gone through the proper application of 303, including 2 coats of their protectant on the top. Water beads exceptionally well. However, darker lines are still noticeable in some areas along the panel lines. Does RaggTopp provide a darker finish overall, which would thereby eliminate the look of line contrast? If so, could I put an application of this product atop 303 and, if so, has brushing it on served as a good means of applications?