Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I am a mobile automotive detailer. I have a fair amount of experience with automotive dyes and this product caught my attention. Actually, Duplicolor vinyl and fabric spray caught my attention but I have always liked Rustoleum brand slightly more than Duplicolor. I wanted to try out this product for my detailing company for potential spot treatment for pesky spots that just won't come out and potentially even a color change for my fabric seats that are currently tan (I desire them to be black). Prior to getting all irrational with this product I decided to test it first on some fabric floor mats, to help determine if it is worthy of using a product like this on my seats. I was actually lucky enough to have two sets of floor mats from my old vehicles in my garage. The first set was a "tan" set and the second set was a "black" set, (we'll leave it at guestimated colors to keep things simple). So, I purchased two cans of this vinyl and fabric paint. The first color was called Sand, it was in a satin. The second color was black, which was a flat finish. Just to really put these products to the test I decided I was going to try and make my already black mats tan, and my already tan mats black. I followed all of the instructions on the can. Which were pretty basic. Thoroughly clean the surface and allow it to dry, first. For coating, they advise to spray 1-3 light coats within a few moments of each other at a temperature anywhere between 50 and 90 degrees with humidity less than 85%, simple enough. Here is the breakdown of my results: For vinyl (There was vinyl material around the fabric of my mats) Both colors covered the vinyl quite well and I was surprisingly satisfied with the outcome on the VINYL. I was worried that if the material flexed enough that it would perhaps cause the paint to peel or at least crack. So after it dried completely I started manipulating the material, bending it aggressively, and it help up just fine, no cracking or anything. Nice. For fabric/carpeting cloth upholstery: Honest opinion, long story short... Avoid it. Here's why: If you are thinking of changing the color from a darker color to a lighter color, guess again. I tried making my already black fabric floor mat tan and all it did was look like I spilled creamy coffee all over the surface and soaked it in. Not the exact effect I was looking for by any means. Mind you, this was using the ENTIRE BOTTLE on a small rear seat floor mat no bigger than 12x10. Bottom line, dark to light, forget it. Now came my 20 year old tan fabric floor mat. I sprayed on the 3 suggested coats and surprisingly it was looking like this was going to be an achievable goal going from light to dark. However, again, it took one full entire can with about 8 coats going from left to right and top to bottom to obtain an "acceptable" result. Here's the reason why I say "acceptable"... Because after allowing the mat to fully dry the mat fibers are now all sort of "glued" to each other leaving the floor mat considerably stiff and lifeless. It was originally very plush and soft. If you were to do an entire carpeting and or all seats and headliners I would imagine if you were to go from a lighter color to darker color you are going to need at least a bare minimum of 8-10 cans. At $7.50 a can you are looking at a bare minimum of $75.00 and a very lengthy fumy process. Especially if the material is still in your vehicle, which I highly recommend it isn't for over spray and safety/ventilation issues. This stuff is extremely strong smelling/fumier than a lot of sprays I've used. I tested a few methods since I had 4 mats to work with. One thing I saw on youtube were people rubbing or brushing the fabric during spraying it. I would actually recommend this for the first coat or two but afterwords just leave it be and spray it on, if you are going this route. I've tried just about all I could try and needless to say my seats will be staying the same color that they are. I have no doubt that you can obtain decent results on vinyl though with this stuff if you take your time and spray light coats. But for the cost and time this will take you, buy new floor mats and replace your carpeting if it's bugging you that much and or just buy seat covers for your seats. Hope this review helped, I don't typically write negative reviews unless a product merits it but seeing it took a full can to change a tan fabric mat black, it's a messy time/budget consuming process. One last note I want to mention is I wonder how well a product like this would withstand the test of time, and will the dye bleed out when washed/shampooed. I will update after I simulate/wait a good two months before trying to steam clean these.