debadging - thanks bw!

[RegalGS]

Just wanted to openly say thanks to bw for his excellent article on how to debadge a car. One of my door badges broke, and I ordered a replacement. I followed the article exactly, and rubbing alcohol got the foam residue off without too much trouble. After a shot of Meguiars PPC, the paint was clean and smooth, but there was just enough of a faint mark for me to place the new badge. :cool:



I should have taken before pics, but didn`t realize it until the old badge was already off. So after pics wouldn`t really mean anything.



If anybody is thinking about debadging, either for looks, or to replace old badges, follow bw`s article! Worked like a charm!

[rstype]

Hey, no problemo! It makes me happy to hear everything turned out great. Depending on the car, I like how much cleaner the trunk looks when unnecessarily/poorly placed badges are removed.

[piratekeith87]

i recently took the badges off my 95 240sx, mainly because of the cleaner look, but now i have a faint outline of the lettering on my trunk lid (visible from say, 5 feet) from where the paint has faded (much like a sun tan, but in reverse?) :( is there anything i can do to take care of this?

i will post pics if i can figure out how :nixweiss

[rstype]

Hmmm, I have a few questions:[list=1] Is the faint outline of the lettering sticky? If you were blindfolded, could you tell if it’s there?



If you are positive that it is from fading, do you mean that the paint outside the outline is “duller�, while the paint that had the badge previously is just like new? [/list=1] If it is number one, then some of the adhesive hasn’t been removed. Try isopropyl alcohol or 3M Adhesive Remover with lots of elbow grease. If it is number two, you need to polish off any oxidation, etc. so the whole trunk lid matches with the section where the badges were on.



I recommend using a mild surface-prep type product. If you want to purchase it locally, Meguiar’s Body Scrub or Mother’s Step 1 should be decent. Be sure to apply it using the proper polishing techniques (http://autopia.ws/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=5540) found on this site. If the trunk is in a condition that even a mild polish can’t improve, step up to 3M Finesse-It or, if that doesn’t work, maybe a rubbing compound. Be careful with strong abrasives, though…



To post pictures, please do a search! A lot of questions have been posted and answered already. A lot of info can be found...



Good luck!

~bw



:)

[ryncarzk]

BW,

Since you are also a 5 series owner I was wondering if yours has been debadged? I am thinking about taking the 525i emblem off (for obvious reasons), but thought there might ba some alignment holes under the emblem or some other reason that I might get half way in to the job and then wish I had left well enough alone!

Thanks!

[rstype]

FatSound,



I haven`t debadged my 5-series, but I do know that there are no alignment holes. The 525i emblem uses a sticky adhesive similar to the Passat`s. As long as you have something similar to an adhesive remover, you should be fine.



The blue and white roundel is different of course...