1sickz51vette

Mines a garaged 97' and I always use meguiars leather cleaner on the seats, dash, door trim and basically everything. Noticed my wheel was "sticky" so i will have to try this! Are all these products bad, or just the "cheapo" stuff?

Cybermind

I know that the old formulations of protectants can be very detrimental to plastics after a while. This is especially true of the ones containing silicone, notably Armorall. But, I do believe that Armorall have since changed their formulation (not sure).

You need to choose your vinyl and plastic protectants very wisely.

bjw4311

I ordered a bottle of goof off 2 from Athens Specialty Store on Amazon and received it today. It really works! I tried alittle different technique I thought I would share. I was wearing latex exam gloves and as I would spray the cleaner on I would rub it in with my gloved hand. I could see the black residue on the glove. I would wipe the glove off on a towel rub some more and repeat. This way seemed easier because the glove had less friction than trying to rub the towel on the air bag surface. Also, since it was 49 degrees in my garage I heated the cover up alittle with a hair dryer.

silver408z

Does this work on the console as well?

Tyteflows

Guys,

I went to Walmart and purchased the Goof Off product. Took an old t-shirt and used it on the steering wheel. WORKS PERFECTLY!!!

It removes ALL of the sticky residue and leaves the steering wheel like it was on the showroom floor. It was a bit dull after I removes all of the sticky gunk, so I hit it with some Armour All and it looks and FEELS great now. Couldn't be happier with the results.

I also used it on some scuffs near the foot well, took them right off immediately.

The steering wheel took about 15 minutes to clean completely, had I to rotate the steering wheel to get all angles. Hope this helps.

Good Luck!

REZ1

Did the rubbing alcohol thing..two old face cloths...one to apply and rub hard like you have and extra air bag in case you screw up. Used 2 fingers wrapped in the terry and rubbed hard. used the other to wipe away. This took maybe 30 minutes.....washed with
Murphy's oil soap to neutralize and then used luxor conditioner on the entire wheel. NO color loss and looks factory new.
Let it dry and buffed.

This forum is incredible. You can find ways to fix anything...I am a Proud Member.
"SAVE the WAVE"

Mr.Bill

I had the same issues when I first bought my Vette, It was really noticeable after a few spirited runs with the car, Now that I have had the car for sometime the issue is gone.

hxrly

I started noticing the stickiness after a month of doing some serious driving (2000+ miles) in Miami this past summer. I drive with my windows down most of the time, and it was definitely hot, so I'm thinking is the heat that causes makes it sticky.

Definitely cleaning mine today, it looks like crap from a couple times I ran my nail through it.

BLUICIDE

Incorrect. A waterbased vinyl cleaner will certainly clean the contaminants from your air bag cover, which is vinyl. It probably has leather cleaner, armor-all, windex, Pepsi, and etc...

When YOU clean it, which will require scrubbing, you'll know the previous chemist hasn't a clue.

Just do it. I did. So did 4 others that had sticky wheels. Damn, why wait to get perfect? I'll put it this way. If you don't, you're not capable, and should be quiet. Get someone else to do it for you. They'll be happy to read this, and charge you twice. Yeah, bring it to me, I'll sell you a new air bag, steering wheel, turn signal switch, cruise ctl module, breath mints, flags, and half my mortgage payment. Stop by any time. Oh, or is your car in someone elses carwash? Wonder what's in those rags?

Mr.Bill

Ib4tl.

WetteVette

After all these posts, do we really know what causes the problem in the first place? Factory defect or improper use of or faulty products?

I have an early C5 (#502) and my steering wheel looks pristine. I have no idea what the first three owners used on it, but I stick with 303 Aerospace Protectant.

1powdercoater

I can't remember where I found the idea to use this but it was from someone else with the same problem. I used non-acetone nail polish remover.
I dabbed it on a micro fiber cloth and started rubbing. The black sticky stuff starts turning gooey and this process took me about 45 minutes. The steering pad is stick free and is a bit duller then before which I actually think is how it was when new.
It has been about 8 months since I did it and no problems.

yogi 2001

I was able to remove the sticky residue from my horn button using a white cloth that I dipped into isopropyl alcohol. Clean a small area at a time with the cloth pulled tight on your finger. It took me about 15 minutes to clean the entire horn cover.

clockman

I too have a sticky horn cover. Tried lots of different cleaners. Chevy dealer acted as if they had never heard of such a thing. I finally tried putting some "ArmorAll Extreem Tire Shine on it . PROBLEM SOLVED.
The stickness is gone.

BLUICIDE

Follow my instructions next time. If need be.
http://www.corvetteforum.com/.../c5....r-melting.html

Helped many. Congrats on your fix.

BLUICIDE

Sorry, thread is called, "Airbag cover melting..." If the attachment doesn't work, just do a search.

R1 Rider

The entire center section of mine was sticky.. I just now took 10 minutes and it's like new!

Just used plain rubbing alcohol and a microfiber towel, rub lightly with a wet spot of alcohol on the towel until it turns black then use a clean spot of the towel , repeat until complete, after that I cleaned with a light soap and water, then dried.. 10 minutes looks and feels like new!

G'S50TH

cleaned mine with fast orange the used a little glove oil and it never came back

jbpesh

BRILLIANT! Shoe polish is the repair for a sticky leather steering wheel. What an amazing difference, Thanks again! This was such an amazing tip that I went thru the process of registering just so I can thank you

fgetter

I used a spray can of commercial strength Goof Off and 4 rags and it cleaned up easily in less than 5 minutes. Then I let it air out a few minutes and came back with 303.