[drbenson]

What have people tried / had success with in terms of cleaning and protecting the plastic in the '04 Prius? The shiny stuff I figure I'll use the same antistatic products I've used in other vehicles, but the textured plastic on the dash, doors, etc. looks like it could be damaged by something that has sheen- I've noticed greasy fingerprints show up well on the door plastic!

Your experiences would be appreciated.

 

[hedwigtheprius]

I've been using a microfiber cleaning cloth meant for eyeglasses (pretty much any optical store carries them - I got mine for two bucks at Target Optical). It works great on the touch screen and if you rub the plastic areas with it, it does a pretty good job getting ride of the dust and fingerprints that get stuck on there. No cleaning product is necessary, unless your surfaces are getting really filthy.

 

[gfranklin]

cleaning materials

With respect to the touch screen, I'm told that purified drinking water and a clean old T-shirt will wipe away fingerprints nicely. I'm sure that's true, but give a thought to a box of small, foil-sealed alcohol "wipes" (available in drugstores for a buck-fifty for fifty or more), intended for use by folks who regularly have to "stick" themselves for, e.g., diabetes control. Keep a few of them in one of the storage "cozies" in the driver's compartment. Wipe the screen with one of them, followed immediately by a wipe with the t-shirt ragt, and that screen is standing tall until the next inspection.