[maribambi]

Hi,

I'm definitely getting the Solterra touring. I'm doing extensive availability searches lol. One thing that absolutely bugs me and I hate is the shiny black piano interior.....AND it's in all the places you touch THE MOST!!! It scratches easily, and the fingerprints are insane. How would I cover up/change that? Has anyone ever done that?

thanks in advance for your time.

 

[StevenH]

Hi,

I'm definitely getting the Solterra touring. I'm doing extensive availability searches lol. One thing that absolutely bugs me and I hate is the shiny black piano interior.....AND it's in all the places you touch THE MOST!!! It scratches easily, and the fingerprints are insane. How would I cover up/change that? Has anyone ever done that?

thanks in advance for your time.

I'm just planning on keeping a microfiber cloth handy. Looks great when clean.

 

[Minimal talking]

My thoughts on OP exactly. I could pay couple hundreds for professional mid console and doors wrapping…not sure can it be done well?

 

[JayEM]

My thoughts on OP exactly. I could pay couple hundreds for professional mid console and doors wrapping…not sure can it be done well?

I see the many contours being the obstacle to getting a good job (but I've never wrapped anything, so maybe not?). But I'd be willing to try (or have someone try).

 

[442]

I'm going to see if I can get a sheet of the "swarm" dbrand.com laptop skin (I have it on my laptop) after I tape off the whole center console with painter's tape to build a template to get a better idea of the size needed.

This is with a light reflecting off it similar to those Arizona reviewers (obviously not as bright as the sun).

 

[maribambi]

I have never wrapped anything before, but I searched amazon and found a matte black wrap. I think this would work. It's for cars, but you can use it for anything. This person used it to wrap the expresso machine. I think this could work.

 

[JayEM]

I have never wrapped anything before, but I searched amazon and found a matte black wrap. I think this would work. It's for cars, but you can use it for anything. This person used it to wrap the expresso machine. I think this could work.


View attachment 880
View attachment 879

I like the way the film conforms to the recessed lettering, when all done! Definitely worth a try!

 

[HeyChris]

Rumor has it a little dash of 60grit sand paper will take care of that Piano Black.....

 

[442]

Rumor has it a little dash of 60grit sand paper will take care of that Piano Black.....

Sadly, some people can't read sarcasm. Have you seen stories about those that put sandpaper under their windshield wipers? 🤦‍♂️
<adulting>
I would have never though anyone would be that gullible, but it changed the level of sarcasm I bring into conversations to avoid anything that could be destructive.
</adulting>

Oh, and make sure you only use 600 or 800 grit sandpaper.

 

[n6nl]

I see reports on the Internet of:

XPEL | Paint Protection Film | STEALTH Satin Finish Paint Protection | Self-Healing Clear Bra

Need to protect a factory flat finish, or want an updated look? XPEL STEALTH offers the same self-healing you get from ULTIMATE PLUS paint protection, but with a silky, satin finish.

www.xpel.com

being used on the piano black interior finishes of some years of Tesla models.

I wonder how removable the stuff is from an interior piano black panel when it peels over time or gets scratched up.

I would hate to ruin an otherwise nice interior. Not a fan of the shiny black, either.

 

[JIm_in_PA]

wonder how removable the stuff is from an interior piano black panel when it peels over time or gets scratched up.

I would suspect that a product like that, properly installed, isn't going to peel nor will it scratch up much in an interior environment...unless you regularly wire-brush the interior.

 

[442]

Would be interesting to see how much it would tone down the reflected light. The matte finish itself does a little, but the pictures on their website look like it still reflects quite a bit of light.

 

[Crumas]

Would be interesting to see how much it would tone down the reflected light. The matte finish itself does a little, but the pictures on their website look like it still reflects quite a bit of light.

Is the primary objective to reduce reflected light or to hide fingerprints?

 

[JayEM]

Is the primary objective to reduce reflected light or to hide fingerprints?

Bit of both I'd say, but #1 would probably be the fingerprints/dust. For me anyway.
That said, the shiny black on our 2021 Outback (Limited) isn't TOO bad, but there's not nearly as much of it as in the Solterra.

 

[442]

Is the primary objective to reduce reflected light or to hide fingerprints?

Fingerprints are annoying, but I have piano black all over my 2018 Outback 3.6 Touring and there's hardly ever a smudge. In lots of review videos, this is just downright dangerous:

 

[Bam]

That looks like its coming from that see-through phone box thing. Be a shame to cover it up because it looks cool but that is pretty bad.

 

[Crumas]

That looks like its coming from that see-through phone box thing. Be a shame to cover it up because it looks cool but that is pretty bad.

I never noticed that until now. That‘s a serious amount of reflected light.

 

[442]

So I was sitting at my desk and the sun started coming through a skylight and blinding me by reflecting off my plastic desk cover -- so I thought that might show a good example of the dbrand skin I was pushing earlier.
[It wasn't sunny the day I first posted about this skin so I just used an LED light, and hopefully this isn't too annoyingly repetitive]

I also like the matte black skin mentioned as well and may get some sheets of that for various activities, but I'll have to check if that's the same 3M automotive vinyl I get once in a while from a different source.

So unfortunately as an image this doesn't have quite the dramatic impact I was going for because the camera is somehow compensating for the direct sunlight, but in person this view instantly makes my face hot, eyes water, and I can barely crack open my eyelids. It is like staring directly into the sun.

And if I move the camera a couple inches so the same sun-spot is reflecting off the "swarm" skin, there's almost no glare at all.

The reason the light dissipates so well (I feel like I'm running an ad for dbrand) is that the surface is textured in different directions to make the hexagon pattern and scatters the photons in different directions.

Last sharing session for this stuff, I promise.

 

[n6nl]

I would appreciate it if someone who has a Solterra (or access to one) could measure that glossy black center console area and tell me some reasonable dimensions for it so that I can order some dbrand ”Swarm” laptop skin which I will trim and apply to mine when it arrives in a couple of weeks, I’m not sure if dbrand sells just sheets, but I figured I would order the top skin for a reasonable sized notebook to get a large enough piece.

It would be cool if dbrand expanded their pre-cut skins to include cars which have the detestable shiny plastic like the Solterra, but I am willing to make a template and cut my own. I just want to order some before the car arrives.

Thanks in advance.

 

[n6nl]

My sales associate will be asking the PDI team to leave the plastic protective film on the few shiny black plastic pieces.

I will be very carefully pulling those off and placing them on a sheet of parchment or waxed paper.

I will either just manually cut Swarm style skins to the outline or scan them, convert to vector and see if a friend with a laser cutter can make them for me.

I’ll keep you posted on how well this works out. If it doesn’t turn out well, they are easy to peel off.