Help! Upper Door Pad Vinyl ???

[buckeyecharger]

So I bought a nice set of upper door and quarter pads today at the Nats. Got a good deal too  Yes, good deals are still found in the swap meet  Anyways, they need a good cleaning. Is there a product out there that will clean these up really good and bring some life back into the vinyl? The rears are in perfect condition but the fronts have a few small cracks starting but the vinyl is still soft. I am hoping to save them from cracking worse.

They are the correct color, but 40+ years darkens the green. I am thinking about dying them the correct original green. Has anyone dyed these pads before and had success with wear over the years?

Thanks for the help!

[bill440rt]

Jason, try Meguiar's Heavy Duty Vinyl Cleaner for cleaning. I use this on my white top. Works VERY well.
For the cracks, you can try buying one of those small vinyl repair kits. I found one from Permatex at the local Pep Boys. That might hold it off for a little while.
If you are retaining the same color dying them shouldn't be too much of a problem, and they will hold up better vs a color change. You can check with SEM for a close match, or have it mixed up at your local auto body supply store. Be sure to get the SEM vinyl prep before you dye them so the dye adheres better. 

[bull]

I've used all sorts of cleaners on mine, mostly because some yahoo painted them and it looks like he did it with a paint brush.

Anyway, I used SEM Solve, soap and water and 3M adhesive remover at first. When that didn't touch it I ended up using thinners and even a wire brush. I kid you not. Honestly, those things are tough because after scrubbing on one of them for a good four hours it finally looked good enough to dye with SEM Color Coat (after all the proper prep work once the paint was gone). It turned out great. Now I've got two more to do.

[buckeyecharger]

Thanks guys! I got to work yesterday on the cleaning. The Meguiar's is working great!  I've heard a lot of good things about SEM, and it sounds like they are the leader. I did buy a can of interior paint and adhesion promoter from Herb's at the Nats just after I bought the pads. Does this stuff work just as well as SEM?

As always, I appreciate the knowledge from you guys!