Interior materials of new cars

**al_motor** · April 16th, 2006 12:04 PM

I noticed that the interior materials of cars have deteriorated ever since the onset of the new millenium. Auto manufacturers use so much hard plastic! New cars feel so awfully cheap--I know cars like the Mazda3, Honda Civic and RAV4 are supposed to be entry-level in the world market, but it shouldn't feel that way given what you're paying for! Actually even the expensive Camry has plastics that feel out of place in a midsize car! Audis have rubberized switches falling off! UGH! Our '88 Crown feels more solid than any of these cars!

Ironically, Ssangyongs at the recent Manila Motorshow had so very plush interior trims!

**empy** · April 16th, 2006 12:54 PM

ok naman ang sa honda at toyota ah...they are hard plastics and cloth to be sure, but they don't look cheap, shiny or rubbery. kind of more like a nice textured matte yung mga plastic nila. the cloth is likewise nothing special but not cheap either.

they are definitely much better than the korean and american interiors, that's for sure (imo)

diba yung crown is comparable to a lexus or similar upscale vehicle? i remember my mom's office had an '85 cressida - puro plastic and cloth din yun, but the seats were very very plush and comfortable...but then again mas upscale yata yun kaysa sa camry/corolla.

someone correct me if i'm wrong

**delprado** · April 16th, 2006 02:27 PM

... Parang baliktad yata, base sa napansin ko, mas better yong itsura nung interior nung cars ngayon compared sa mga car nun 90s and much much better compared sa cars nung 80s ...

**al_motor** · April 16th, 2006 02:35 PM

itsura maganda, pero yung material quality panget na, lalo na mga dash materials. they feel so cheap!

Case in point: EK Civic soft-touch yung mga surfaces vs. ES and FD Civic...Puro hard plastic pati sidings!!! YUCK!

Yung interior ng Ssangyong Kyron ganda ng feel, parang European car (circa late '90s...yung mga European car ngayon tuklapin yung mga materials!)

**oldblue** · April 16th, 2006 04:43 PM

after 3 months at nag-fade na yun amoy bago, lagyan mo kagad ng armor-all. sa mga cars namin ganyan, masipag kami mag-lagay ng armor all. even our 11 year old civic esi, preserved na preserved ang dash. try to apply armor-all every quarter.
our first car na halos puro plastic is yun chevy venture, pero na-preserve naman.

**niky** · April 16th, 2006 04:44 PM

Well, new cars are now using much harder and sturdier plastics, that's a given. At least there's an effort to make those plastics look soft (of note, the Hyundai Coupe's dash has the same plastic quality as the crappy Accent dash, but looks way better).

Other cars, like the Focus, have strangely cheap looking pebbly plastic that actually feels quite nice.

But many older cars have dull plastics, too... and the very nice and soft texture of vinyl dashes and interiors of some older cars aren't very sturdy compared to the materials they're using now.

I'm trying to remember what it felt like inside the FD at the show... while I wasn't impressed with the color of the dash plastic, the feel wasn't that bad... and the steering wheel and gearshift felt all right... which, I guess, is all that really matters to me.. :lol:

**number001** · April 16th, 2006 04:47 PM

Originally Posted by oldblue

after 3 months at nag-fade na yun amoy bago, lagyan mo kagad ng armor-all. sa mga cars namin ganyan, masipag kami mag-lagay ng armor all. even our 11 year old civic esi, preserved na preserved ang dash. try to apply armor-all every quarter.
our first car na halos puro plastic is yun chevy venture, pero na-preserve naman.

OT

Doesnt Armor-all make the plastic surface too slippery to the touch? Does is clean the surface or is it just to prevent the surface from cracking.

**oldblue** · April 16th, 2006 05:01 PM

Originally Posted by number001

OT

Doesnt Armor-all make the plastic surface too slippery to the touch? Does is clean the surface or is it just to prevent the surface from cracking.

accdg to the description in packaging, it protects the plastics from heat of the sun even yun mga nasa pinakaloob. that's why mayroon mga dash and interiors na madali mag-crack. dati nga may naiwan ng dad ko yun casio organizer nya sa loob ng glove compartment ng civic for almost a week, pagbukas nya tunay na yun plastics ng organizer.

yes it's slippery to touch at first application. pero matutuyo din yun. pero yun chemicals can last for months. usually, we will re-apply kapag maalikabok na yun dash and interiors. yun tipong pag hinawakan mo eh maaligasgas.

i got so used to armor-all na even sa cellphones, computers and TV in-aapply ko na din hehehe

**Chip** · April 16th, 2006 05:31 PM

Originally Posted by oldblue

i got so used to armor-all na even sa cellphones, computers and TV in-aapply ko na din hehehe

hehe now thats an armor-all fanatic hehehe

pero i dont like it sa dash kasi it makes the dash shiny which makes it hell to drive at noontime kasi kita mo reflection ng dash sa windshield.

**BlueBimmer** · April 16th, 2006 06:04 PM

meron Armor All Semi Gloss for milder shine..

the thread starter has a point, like the Gen1 CRV and Gen2, the Gen2's dash and shape look better but everything is plastic as in only the middle sidings are covered in leather. the Gen1's dash look older in design but has better rubber/leather like materials.