Taming Trim

[Quiksilver225]

Could I have some help in trying to tame the window trim.



The car spent 15months in the showroom before I bought it, and I have tried Megs Trim detailer without much luck. Whatever is contaminated on the surface comes back again.

After that effort, tried with Megs paint cleaner, and the pad was black as the ace of spades as it was applied. It looked OK for a time...

I thought i got most of the gunk off, but it`s come back again after about a month of applying the paint cleaner.

I don`t know what kind of paint is on the window trim, perhaps it`s powder coated? I don`t want to go too aggressive with say megs #80 or #2, perhaps there`s a chemical bonding to the paint that`s used for shipping purposes that needs to come off first.



Any help appreciated, thanks heaps!

[Setec Astronomy]

Is that rubber, plastic, or paint? Or you don`t know? Hard or soft? My new car has some weird shiny trim around the windows that I thought was painted glossy black but it`s some soft rubbery stuff with a really glossy surface :nixweiss

[Quiksilver225]

The base is metal, and covered in a black compound... it looks painted on, but comes off very easily with the Megs cleaner.

[classAdetailer]

it looks faded to me... If it is a new vehicle you should talk with service to get it fixed under warranty.

[evo77]

The base is metal, and covered in a black compound... it looks painted on, but comes off very easily with the Megs cleaner.



I was going to say that if it was rubber then it might be because a harsh cleaner or very hot soap was used at one time to clean that car and essentially stained the trim. It happened to my rubber trim while using a manual car wash in the winter.



http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f27/evo77/Trim01.jpg

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f27/evo77/Trim02.jpg



And with some sanding with some fine grit sand paper...

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f27/evo77/Trim03.jpg



The rear is partially done while the front is not.

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f27/evo77/Trim06.jpg

[Quiksilver225]

My wash was at 25C about the same as the air temperature. Perhaps there`s something in the water that reacts to the black?

Evo77, the results I get are similar to your photos.

[abbeysdad]

Are you sure the black compound isn`t a synthetic rubber coating? In which case, you need to clean and apply a good dressing like 303?

[imported_Grouse]

sounds like it needs to be conditioned more frequently. A lexus i did recently had similar staining, but it was layers and layers of black shoe polish like material. I had to scrape it off with a plastic library card to get an even look.



Try steaming that area and wiping it down with a clean MF towel. Then condition, let soak in for about an hour wipe the excess off. Come back the next day condition again let sit an hour and wipe the excess off. Firgure on spending several hours on the trim.

[Accumulator]

I`d see if you can find out for certain *what* kind of coating you`re dealing with. If it`s metal, then paint, powdercoat, or anodizing come to mind.



Of those three I`d lean towards paint, as anodizing is hard (yet fragile) and powdercoating wouldn`t transfer as readily as that stuff seems to with the Meg`s cleaner.



Whatever it is, I`d be careful how much you take off until you positively ID it. I`d see if somebody at the dealer knows what it is (do they have a bodyshop? that`s where I found out about the trim on our Audis) or maybe somebody on a marque/model-specific internet forum.



If it`s some kind of residue from the transit film, a solvent oughta clean it right off. Doesn`t sound like that to me.

[Quiksilver225]

Great thanks for your replies!

I will post pictures of an applicator pad on a small portion and check with an auto shop to see what covering it is.

Thanks again, more info soon.

[fstop128]

call a dealer and ask them what it is or a body shop that works on that model of car.

[Quiksilver225]

More info:

The trim is a medium hardness rubber on a metal base, similar to what used to be on bumpers. Tried a bout of NXG wash, followed by Vinyl & Rubber protectant. With ambient around 29C, the protectant tended to evaporate quickly, leaving globs of the stuff behind, so application had to be completed again.

Maybe that was a saving grace because the finish came up better than with Trim detailer. Suggestions welcomed as to non Megs to use, thanks again!