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      06-18-2019, 08:33 PM   #1
gphung
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Novus Plastic Polish on LCI Cluster?

First time creating a thread on bimmerpost, sorry in advance if it's in the wrong place .

I searched throughout the various subforums (M3/M4, 3 series, etc) regarding micro scratches on the instrument cluster, and many have reported success with Novus plastic polish, particularly #1 and even #2 in some cases. However, I feel like the LCI cluster in the M2 and M2C use a different material compared to your standard cluster with the plastic "shield" looking cover which I suspect is what everyone who reported success was dealing with. The LCI cluster is not exactly glossy and smooth to the touch; it's rather matte and porous IIRC.

Has anyone used Novus plastic polish (or something else with success for that matter) on their M2 LCI cluster?

I purchased the Novus already and will definitely use it on the gloss black trim around the HVAC. But I have my doubts with the LCI cluster.

Thanks!

For reference, here's one of the M2 threads where people have talked a bit about it, but I'm not sure if anyone there has actually tried it for themselves:
https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1483239

3 series thread but AFAICT, they have that glossy smooth cover overtop of gauges that most clusters have:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1074263

M5:
https://f10.m5post.com/forums/showth...ighlight=novus
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      06-18-2019, 10:55 PM   #2
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The problem is the M2 screen is kind of textured, as you mentioned. I personally wouldn’t use any sort of polish. I suspect it’ll either get glossy at minimum or at worse wouldn’t be uniform. I’m personally not brave enough to try it on my car. Godspeed to any who try.
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      06-19-2019, 12:49 PM   #3
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That polish is waaaay too aggressive for either the LCI display or the piano black HVAC surround, especially if you try to use it by hand. You're going to shred your gauges and get nothing but micro scratches on your HVAC surround if you use that stuff. Better to remove the surround and machine polish it (with an orbital) and some very fine compound like Menzerna 4000. Just leave the gauges alone and if they get dirty blow them off with compressed air or, at most, lightly wipe them with the fluffiest microfiber towel you can find.

There's nothing you can successfully polish the gauges with. They have a matte texture/coating on them - hand polishing will scratch them all to hell and machine polishing will make them shiny and illegible in daylight. Either way you'll get to buy a new gauge cluster for $1K.

I've had luck polishing the piano black surround in my wife's X3 with a 1" pad on a Flex rotary polisher but honestly it's quite a PITA if you don't remove the trim first. If you leave it installed, don't mask properly, and are otherwise not careful the compound slings everywhere and it's hard to clean up.

Heed my words - don't polish glossy plastic by hand! You'll be sorry you tried! Either just buy a new HVAC trim piece, remove and machine polish it, or leave it alone.
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      06-19-2019, 01:32 PM   #4
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At all costs you try to avoid anything coming into contact with the LCI cluster. It doesn't matter if it's the most gentle microfiber cloth or what lubricant you use. It will scratch. If your display has scratches (many of us got them right on delivery) just live with them as trying to fix them will make it worse. Use a compressed duster if you want to clear dust build up but nothing should ever come in contact with the cluster film as it's quite possibly the most delicate surface known to man.
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      06-19-2019, 09:54 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kfscoll View Post
That polish is waaaay too aggressive for either the LCI display or the piano black HVAC surround, especially if you try to use it by hand. You're going to shred your gauges and get nothing but micro scratches on your HVAC surround if you use that stuff. Better to remove the surround and machine polish it (with an orbital) and some very fine compound like Menzerna 4000. Just leave the gauges alone and if they get dirty blow them off with compressed air or, at most, lightly wipe them with the fluffiest microfiber towel you can find.

There's nothing you can successfully polish the gauges with. They have a matte texture/coating on them - hand polishing will scratch them all to hell and machine polishing will make them shiny and illegible in daylight. Either way you'll get to buy a new gauge cluster for $1K.

I've had luck polishing the piano black surround in my wife's X3 with a 1" pad on a Flex rotary polisher but honestly it's quite a PITA if you don't remove the trim first. If you leave it installed, don't mask properly, and are otherwise not careful the compound slings everywhere and it's hard to clean up.

Heed my words - don't polish glossy plastic by hand! You'll be sorry you tried! Either just buy a new HVAC trim piece, remove and machine polish it, or leave it alone.
I'll take your advice and take the HVAC trim out before working on it. I have a Griots Garage DA polisher that I can put a small plate onto. You think even the Novus #1 plastic polish is too abrasive? It's more of a finishing polish than anything else as far as I know. I likely won't be doing anything to my cluster as yeah it's not smooth/glossy; just curious whether anything can be done with it.

Quote:
Originally Posted by heavyD^2 View Post
At all costs you try to avoid anything coming into contact with the LCI cluster. It doesn't matter if it's the most gentle microfiber cloth or what lubricant you use. It will scratch. If your display has scratches (many of us got them right on delivery) just live with them as trying to fix them will make it worse. Use a compressed duster if you want to clear dust build up but nothing should ever come in contact with the cluster film as it's quite possibly the most delicate surface known to man.
Thanks for the tip. I actually did scratch it using a MFT. I'll be using compressed air going forward, and well, haven't figured out what to use if I end up sneezing on it or something lol
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      06-20-2019, 09:15 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gphung View Post

Thanks for the tip. I actually did scratch it using a MFT. I'll be using compressed air going forward, and well, haven't figured out what to use if I end up sneezing on it or something lol
You do what I do - cover your mouth as best as possible, and when you do get a spot on it, you live with it until someone invents a way to clean it without scratching it.
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      06-20-2019, 09:33 AM   #7
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Omg I'm so glad I read this thread.

I'm not going to try to polish now.

But, at the same time, feel my pain — I took my car in to have it washed and TOLD the guy not to touch the LCD display ... and he did it anyway, and left it with horrible swirls.

FML.
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      06-20-2019, 09:53 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gphung View Post
I'll take your advice and take the HVAC trim out before working on it. I have a Griots Garage DA polisher that I can put a small plate onto. You think even the Novus #1 plastic polish is too abrasive? It's more of a finishing polish than anything else as far as I know. I likely won't be doing anything to my cluster as yeah it's not smooth/glossy; just curious whether anything can be done with it.
The #1 might be okay if you use your DA but it might leave a haze in which case you’ll have to follow it with a finer polish anyway. I’ve always had luck using super mild Menzerna polishes on plastic...it doesn’t take much aggressiveness to remove fine scratches in plastic.

I’ve very gently used these MF towels on my LCI cluster to remove water spots. I only have a few very minor scratches on my cluster that can only be seen under direct LED lighting so I’ve been lucky compared to others.
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      06-20-2019, 10:02 PM   #9
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Would ceramic coating help?
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      06-20-2019, 11:14 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kfscoll View Post
The #1 might be okay if you use your DA but it might leave a haze in which case you’ll have to follow it with a finer polish anyway. I’ve always had luck using super mild Menzerna polishes on plastic...it doesn’t take much aggressiveness to remove fine scratches in plastic.

I’ve very gently used these MF towels on my LCI cluster to remove water spots. I only have a few very minor scratches on my cluster that can only be seen under direct LED lighting so I’ve been lucky compared to others.
I guess it won't be the end of the world if the #1 leaves a hazy finish. I could pop the trim back in, order/find some of the Menzerna 4000, and finish it off with that afterwards if needed. I have the following Lake Country Hydro-Tech foam pads: blue, orange, and crimson (red). I'm thinking of maybe just using the red as that's meant for applying wax so it shouldn't be too rough for the plastic. If it doesn't work, I could go up to the orange. Definitely won't be using the blue.

Thanks for your help!
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      06-21-2019, 11:36 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by omasou View Post
Would ceramic coating help?
No.
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      06-21-2019, 11:40 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gphung View Post
I guess it won't be the end of the world if the #1 leaves a hazy finish. I could pop the trim back in, order/find some of the Menzerna 4000, and finish it off with that afterwards if needed. I have the following Lake Country Hydro-Tech foam pads: blue, orange, and crimson (red). I'm thinking of maybe just using the red as that's meant for applying wax so it shouldn't be too rough for the plastic. If it doesn't work, I could go up to the orange. Definitely won't be using the blue.

Thanks for your help!
Yep, I'd do the same - start with the red and go to the orange if necessary. That might work just fine with the Novus #1.

You don't necessarily need a Menzerna polish if the Novus doesn't work out; those just happen to be the automotive polishes I have lying around so that's what I use. A gentle swirl remover or something a little finer plus your red (or a white) pad should work great also.
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      07-25-2020, 02:11 AM   #13
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anyone end up doing this?
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      08-27-2020, 08:01 PM   #14
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Used 1 to clean off but really only 2 removes the scratches.

Under most lighting the scratches are gone but in heavy glare situations you will notice that the matte finish is gone from where the buffing is done.

However, I rather have that then the scratches in your face most of the time.
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      02-13-2022, 02:57 PM   #15
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Bumping this thread to see if anyone else has had success with Novus #1 & #2 on the M2C LCI cluster.

acl26's results look great. However, I'm curious if anyone can chime in with how bad the sun glare truly is with the matte finish removed.

As I posted in the other LCI scratch thread, my Speedo and Tac are so caked with micro scratches from the dealer that I can barely see through it when there’s sun glare anyway. Making me think it's worth the risk. However, if removing the coating makes the gauges truly unreadable with direct sun glare, I may just have to live with the scratches.
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      03-10-2022, 04:07 PM   #16
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Here is a guy who polish the hole cluster with a heavy polish. Now its glossy, but no scrathes. He also tried an additional windows (at the end of the tread).

https://www.2ertalk.de/threads/4647/page-9

My cluster has a few small scratches. Only use air to clean but if it will get worse i also will polish it glossy.
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