So many points you raise in your earlier posts above and well worth raising again as no simple answer seems to appear forthcoming.
Some of my rambling thoughts on some of your points for what it is worth.
Soul Black.
This is not full on black but definitely 'off black' with a hint of grey, but nowhere near anthracite in my eyes, I have yet to find a cheap off the shelf rattle can that is an acceptable match, most common rattle cans are too black. The only promising source was suggested by
@depronman some time ago of a £4.99 Lidl rattle can black, but despite numerous weekly visits to my local Lidl it was never stocked and I came to the conclusion the branch was too small to carry it
. [I did actually track down Lidl's suplier who turned out to be what seemed a reputable Germany paint company and I could buy it at £15 + £10 shipping but that was getting silly in my view.]
Have same view with this...
Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for VW AUDI Original Paint Spray Set Soul Black Lv7w at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products!
www.ebay.co.uk
A bit more reasonable, has anybody tried it?
1L Basecoat Ready for Use Kit - Includes Lacquer + Hardener. Base Coat Aerosol Kit - Includes Lacquer. Base coat Single Aerosol. Excellent Quality Paint. Touch up Pen/brush. Choose from the drop down list above with your prefered choice.
www.ebay.co.uk
Had the same thought as Bobbysox and high temperature paint, actually bought a can but not yet tried it for a match, should cope with your. high temperature criteria but wonder how it will fare on hard plastic.
Soft Touch.
Beats me why Audi introduced soft touch, a cynic might say built in obsolescence, at least with their poor grade version. The problem is the touchy feely friendly soft touch is really a surface treatment that practically is beyond the home rattle canner, never heard of any success yet there was a hope of DIY solution (not cheap) in the old thread I think you refer to, this one.
Took the A2 in for its first valet yesterday. it has a beige interior. Chap reported back that some of the paint around the gearstick has come off with rubbing to hard. So after investigation I know its soft touch paint.......do they still do it in beige???? .......if not is there a colour match...
www.a2oc.net
The company Wicked Coatings mention in the thread are still in business and seem a good option for a professional refurbishment but I imagine it is not cheap.
Personal view, forget soft touch.
Hard Touch
This is doable, Audi's colour name is 'Satin Black', a full on black. Any off the shelf simple 'black' will be a good match, but my view is that hard touch buttons tend to be slightly shiny I would go for common or garden 'satin black' to to give a hint of sheen. Seen PlastiDip mentioned a few times and might go some way to giving the the soft touch feel and if you are not happy with the result you can simple peel it off apparently (not tried it).
Surface Preparation
Seen mention of ordinary household cleaners (Ajax/Vim) to remove soft touch paint but I went a chemical route, very quick
It was missing the spring clip and fell out! The lower front panel was broken as well besides being in very poor condition. Some previous owner had had out to add something extra (USB etc?). Evidence of meddling with wiring but it's not there now and all that's left is a hole in the centre...
www.a2oc.net
One last thought, if you intend to spray the radio as well bear in mind you will lose the lettering eg. 'Audi Concert' unless you mask it.
Better not ramble anymore.
Andy
