Background
Volkswagen coated nearly all the plastic trim in the New Beetle with a soft-touch rubberized coating that may have appeared acceptable in the showroom, but hasn’t aged well. These surfaces scratch easily (just run a fingernail along it for example), feel tacky like someone spilled Coca Cola all over, and look depressing. Something must be done.
Pure isopropyl alcolhol
The bad news is that the soft-touch infection is everywhere — the dash, the under dash panels, the center console, and door handles, and so on. The good news is that this rubberized goo actually protects the plastic underneath pretty well. Removing it leaves a clear surface ready for painting.
The removal trick is to use a solvent that quickly takes off soft-touch without harming the underlying plastic part. Acetone, paint thinner, mineral spirits, paint stripper, gasoline, Goof Off, Goo Gone, brake cleaner, xylene … these all impact the ABS plastic to some extent.
