refresh plastic body cladding

[Flo4Run]

My girlfriend has an Xterra and she never takes care of it. The gray plastic bumpers and all other gray cladding are now all faded. Does anyone have any suggestions of what product to use (other than armor all)? Are there any products that are long lasting? 03 owners help me out here, thanks.

btw...Happy New Year!!!

 

[jharris2]

My girlfriend has an Xterra and she never takes care of it. The gray plastic bumpers and all other gray cladding are now all faded. Does anyone have any suggestions of what product to use (other than armor all)? Are there any products that are long lasting? 03 owners help me out here, thanks.

btw...Happy New Year!!!

I use 303 Aerospace Protectant and like the results.

 

[Sac State]

I use Toyota brand vinyl/leather treatment. Brings back the dark luster.

 

[greasefingers]

I actually have a problem with my T4R

 

[broncosi]

I actually have a problem with my T4R

 

[Flo4Run]

thanks for the replies...I'll have to give the toyota brand a shot and then the 303. thanks again.
Broncosi...i agree with you about using nothing, but in this case, it's too late, i need something to bring it back to life.

 

[RonMAIDEN]

Mother's Back To Black keeps my black flares dark looking for over a month at a time which is better than most of the stuff out there I've tried and I've tried a lot of stuff on various types of trim for years.

 

[broncosi]

Mother's Back To Black keeps my black flares dark looking for over a month at a time

Yep same here, i liked that one more than the others

 

[greasefingers]

I hope this picture shows what I need for you to view. It is the faded lines that I am trying to display here. I have been using Meguiares Natural Shine vinyl & rubber protectant. It will make the fading lines disappear for a few days (2 or 3) then my lines come back. It is not only the place that I show in the pic, but it can be found on every section of cladding, on my truck It is very upsetting to see so early. It is not garage kept, but out in the sun all day. My garage is full.

 

[broncosi]

It is not garage kept, but out in the sun all day. My garage is full.

you have a garage??:awais: why dont you spend a weekend and clean it out or yard sale it or something, i wish i had somewhere to keep my 4runner, then i wouldnt have to clean it every weekend. Thats one of the key things when i get a house, will be to have a garage to work in.

another funny thing, some friends live in these townhouses with individual garages under them for each house and its against the rules to use them for storage, you have to park your car in it or you get fined . . . thats alittle excessive.

i assume your talking about that "mudflap" type piece. Thats going to be hard to keep in shape because of the placement and the functionality of it. It gets hit with whatever you run over and it gets washed everytime you drive in rain which in turn washes whatever product you have on there, off. ive heard from detailers that black show polish works and for some reason thought it to be water resistant to some point. but like i said ill stick with the back to black but im not sure how much it will help in that situation.

 

[greasefingers]

No it

 

[Flo4Run]

Ronmaiden & broncosi will the mothers back to black work on gray cladding or does the liquid/paste have a dye.

greasefinger those faded lines you're talking about...the cladding of my girls xterra is all that color...instead of just streaks the entire bumper is faded that color. her truck is also kept outside in the sun. it drives me crazy just looking at it.

i haven't had time to try the other products mentioned..but i think i'll try the back to black first if it is compatible.

 

[delzo]

black stuff

I agree with the Mother's Back to Black is good. As someone said before,,,, a month or so is about all it'll last. I also still go back to an old classic occasionally; Turtle Wax brand Black Chrome. It doesn't last as long as Mother's but does fairly good.

Whether black or gray color,,, they restore just fine.

I wipe the door weather-stripping once in a while too with either product. I hate the faded/dirty look around the doors and windows and it really takes little effort to make it look slick again. A buddy uses Vasoline on his vette's weather-strip before a car show, but it collects dirt during everyday driving. Sure looks good though.

 

[rook]

Forever Black

performance products has a cleaner/restorer kit to bring back faded plastic its on pg 102 of the new catalog 14.95

 

[pipspeak]

I was told to steer clear of any protectants using silicones (303, armor all etc.) on exterior planels because it supposedly accelerates the fading over time.

I'm not sure if that's true or not but it seemed to be the case with my old Jeep with the dark gray wheel arches and bumpers. Armor-all brought it back to a nice dark lustre but it faded within a few months. Next time it faded within a month, and so on.

Black Chrome worked a bit better but still faded over the course of a summer.

I ended up finding some product online that actually dyes the plastic back to its original color (Perhaps Back to Black?). It was a pain to get all the built up silicone residue off the plastic to apply it evenly, but once I got it done it actually lasted and the cladding was still nice and dark when I sold the Jeep a few years later.

The best protectant is to protect the car from the sun if at all possible. I street parked my Jeep and it was noticeable that the side of the car most exposed to the sun had faded the most too.

 

[4RunnerRon]

Meguiar's Gold Class Trim Detailer... use it on running boards, mudflaps, grille, door frames, etc. Will bring back black color without looking too shiny or oily. I use it every time I wash the truck, but my friend tried it on his older car with fading black trim and it worked just like the Back to Black stuff.