Restoring Bumper and Trim Plastics
 

Hi Guys,

Without spraying the black (now going grey) bumpers and trims need refurbing. Is there any treatment I can give them a better shade of black from the faded un even colour they are now?

Heat-gun or careful use of a blow torch works. Tried and tested!:tup:

Hi,,if you don't want to go to the rounds of a heat gun,,,,,,I would recommend 'plasticare trim dye'' excellent for faded black or grey trim/bumper's the pug crowd love it:tup:

I have seen many a discussion on this as it is a problem with that trim when it gets old. I have the luxury of selling cleaning sprays at work so I have tried alot of things on it. In the end I found a simple method was a can of silicone spray. I go round with a can and absolutely soak them in the stuff then go over with a cloth and just lightly buff it in.

Not permanent but looks like new for a good month or so before I do it again.

I once paid a triple figure some for a professional valeter to come out and after cleaning he told me theo nly thing they couldnt clean up was the trim and that they had never come across such a difficult trim to clean up!

Wasn't Craig on about using peanut butter a year or so back....apparently the oil in the peanut butter works wonders, altho' I have yet to "risk" it...scared a flock of sparrows might steal my car! :smilewinkgrin:

Autoglym Bumpercare (i think thats it's name) gel is what i use. easy. clean. apply every few months. Its all just simple maintenance. worked a treat on one of my renovations where the mirrors were really grey, and turned nicely black.

That's it's name and I agree it's very good as I always used it,,,,but when someone recommended plasticare I tried it and could not believe the results and lasts easily twice as long :tup:

Autoglym won't make any money out of me with bumper care, though. I have the same bottle for over a decade, now. Possibly even 2 decades. It's gone a bit lumpy, so I might invest in another!

I restored all the faded plastic on the 200 with black plastic dye, very simple to use, 3-4 coats using a cloth and they were like factory new. I would highly recommend using heavy duty surgical gloves and old clothes however, it's serious stuff and it doesn't come out (especially skin!) Can't remember the make of the stuff, bought it off ebay but it's worth getting decent stuff. Oh, and don't bother with any of that off the shelf bumper black shite in Halfords (sorry MSH!), no matter what the make, you end up redoing the stuff every couple of months cos it fades. I did the dye on the 200 5 years ago and they still look new! For the same price the dye lasts and you only have to do it once.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psseykrgd9.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psbvmdwysl.jpg

Forever black or g-techniq , never need to bother with anything else after that tbh

[quote=theschmallfella;397258]I restored all the faded plastic on the 200 with black plastic dye, very simple to use, 3-4 coats using a cloth and they were like factory new. I would highly recommend using heavy duty surgical gloves and old clothes however, it's serious stuff and it doesn't come out (especially skin!) Can't remember the make of the stuff, bought it off ebay but it's worth getting decent stuff. Oh, and don't bother with any of that off the shelf bumper black shite in Halfords (sorry MSH!), no matter what the make, you end up redoing the stuff every couple of months cos it fades. I did the dye on the 200 5 years ago and they still look new! For the same price the dye lasts and you only have to do it once.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psseykrgd9.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psbvmdwysl.jpg[/QUOTE

Bet it's plasticare ,,,,it's a black dye and recommends at least 2 coats and gloves as hard to remove

Thank you for all the feed back, I would rather go for the dying option that the heat gun because I am less likely to get it wrong.

I have looked around for Plasticare but can not find it, however after searching interent and fleebay I see there are to main names come up:- Forever Black and Genuine Wurth Plastic Dye. Which one would people recommend?

Looks like your right they have stopped importing it ,,,,,,I think I would go with the ' wurth ' not just for the name but because the pug crowd are using it now:tup:

Found it, here's the stuff I was talking about. Auto Smart as far as I can make out, I had a look at ebay but I can't find it so it may not be available anymore.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...psa0pbcobm.jpg

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This

Forget all the snake oil concoctions,i mean peanut butter :nonod: if your that skint you should be on skateboard for transport. :lol:

Blowtorches can work for some,many it has not, not sure i like the idea of a nice blue flame next to your freshly painted bodywork. That one needs nerves of steel imho. :nono: unless you want to take the lot apart but why would you when you can just wipe on some bumper care. :wierdo:

It's very simples fellas, Autoglym Bumper Care been using the same as Mark for decades now and it's awesome stuff!!

Black spray paint/dyes works but what if the colour doesn't resemble the original. :yikes: Oh dear. :lol:

:tup:

Black is Black in fairness, no matter shade they want to call it, and that's what the bumpers etc were on day one so I don't think this is an issue. Everyone will have their own thing that works, in this case this was mine and it has held it's colour for 5 years despite rain/sun/washing etc. Quick fixes are just that.

I was deliberately being ironic.

The reason for my reply is i have seen this question several times and i find it amazing how most choose everything but the simplest inexpensive easy to apply products that you can also use to dress your tyres.Great buy,read the reviews below.

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rc..._BPfOAYmahTSxg

Sorry vdt, misread the intention of your message. No denying Autoglym's products, I use only their stuff for all manner of cleaning and treating my audi's, it's the best of stuff.

Another :tup: for AG Bumpercare, used it for years on various Peugeots and Audis :)

So that has confused things, was going to get the Wurth stuff now this is been thrown into the equation and is cheaper too :confused::idea::confused:

Buy both and you can tell us which faired best :tup:

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: like that one :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

No worries,i'm a creature of habit until something better comes along. I used to use an auto tin of black type of boot polish with a sponge applicator back in 84 on my first car. That stuff was good especially on vinyl roofs so think Cortina mk3's and Rover P6's but messy until Autoglym bumper care along. I'm just passionate about the stuff been using it ever since,it really does perform miracles.

:tup:

What's it like for lasting power? Would you get long out of it?

It doesn't last more than about 4 months,it's not like i've timed it but that feels about right ... ... ... ish. So do it 3 times a year if the car is left outside all the time. I can't say how long it would last for a garaged car but i would guess much longer.

:tup:

I'm a peanut butter man myself Mark! wonder product in my opinion great at restoring black plastic and removing the odd bit of way wood polish off any black trim.

I do worry that the squirrels may take a fancy to my mirrors though :lol:

If I have to redo it 3 to 4 times a year that has made my mind up.... I am going to try the Wurth stuff as want to redo at most once a year, ideally longer than that between coats.

As long as they don't nibble your nuts! :smilewinkgrin:

It just needs care, that is all........and then some linseed oil rubbed on(about a fiver for half litre).
No nerves of steel, just big cahoonies..........I'm off out on me skateboard!:lol:

:tup:

boiled linseed oil
goes on lovely on my skateboard too ;)

Had the same issue with plastics as you. I used a heat gun and bought some forever black via eBay.

http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/...psajddlw3q.jpg

http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/...psje00debh.jpg

:lol: Aye Royston,them clever squirrels get up to all sorts mate. :tup:


:rock: https://youtu.be/6X0DhUImcHk :rock:



Pardon me John?

:lol::lol::lol:

:tup:

Aye that's the stuff.
Everyone have a skateboard except Mark(VDT)?!

Well the Wurth Stuff arrived and done first coat. Once the bumpers are done I will write up my thoughts with pictures. :tup:

When I worked for a large multi car dealership (many moons ago) the valeters used Wurth valeting products.. (Peugeot/ Suzuki/ Renault/ Citroën/ Honda).

Before I shell out £25+ for the Wurth stuff kzracing, what's the verdict and is one 75ml tube enough? :confused:
I currently use Autoglym but find I'm having to redo it every three months or so, so I'm looking for something a bit more permanent

From tests one tube is enough to do front and rear bumper plus enough left over to do wing mirrors and door handles.
Also car has been left outside and no signs of fading.