Advance Auto Parts

What NOT to do for your 1998 Mercedes SLK 230 console vinyl paint-​peeling factory defect problem (when it is waaaay out of warranty):
— Heed advice of car wash detailer and go across the street to Advance Auto Parts on Calle 8 and 43^rd street in Miami
— Take distracted Advanced Auto clerk’s response of «yes» when asking if a particular paint remover product can be used to remove peeling vinyl from interior console
— Against car detailer’s words of warning, impatiently take spray paint remover bottle and apply liberally to entire console
— Watch while horrible peeling vinyl you’ve had to live with for the past five years miraculously curdles and is easily removed
— Watch in horror as plastic covering tachometer, carbon trim and radio display begin to cloud over, never to be clear again
— Feel horror escalate as radio buttons and other various important console parts begin to melt away and turn white
— Utter a pathetically muted «oops…»
Alas, not all is lost. This story does, fortunately, have a happy ending, no thanks to the distracted clerk from Advance Auto and my own «do and then think» character flaw.
What to do if you are an idiot like me, and were compulsively unable to avoid the above:
— Order new tachometer cover from
(about $ 70)
— Order pseudo wood trim kit (that really does look like wood, it would be hard for anyone to tell the difference) from www,
(about $ 130)
— Scrape off the last of the annoying old peely vinyl
— Purchase a bottle of black shoe dye with a foamy thing on top
— Apply black shoe dye liberally to the now black-​and-​burned-​grey console (this really, really worked!!)
— Ask expert husband or friend to replace tachometer covering
— Stick on pseudo wood trim (even I could do that, it was soooo easy and looks awesome!)
And voila! Not only was the damage completely salvaged, but the console looks spanking new, elegant and amazing.
Needless to say, no more purchases will be made from this particular Advance Auto Parts, and any future car enhancements will be handled ONLY by Mr Lalotto. I will, in turn, focus on what I’m relatively good at… which is… which is…