Being an owner of an `86 4Runner (and being red), I thought I would chime in...
I agree with resisting the temptation to use a product with a heavier cut. Being a 30 year old vehicle, it`s condition, a repaint and a questionable past would make me cautious personally. Heck, I know the complete history of mine (used to be my father`s who owned it since new) and I still refuse to do any real correction on it. All I do to it now is light correction with something like Optimum Polish or even just an LSP that contains solvents to help remove any oxidation. It creates a good shine. ....enough to get looks, comments and offers when I take it out 3-4 times a month.
They are not really good shots but below are a couple of pics. IIRC, this was after just using some CG Pete`s `53 I had sitting in my cabinet. The plastics were a bit shinier than I like but I was using 303 AP in this case and didn`t buff it down (usually use C4). You can notice some of the oxidation on the removable top. The stock finish was satin-like and these things oxidize horribly. If the top had nothing on it, it would look very washed out and chalky. 303 AP really helps bring back the color although it only lasts about 3 washes. ...easy enough to apply though and buff down.
A couple of other notes that might help....
- On my truck, the white TOYOTA letters on the black piece above license plate will rub off with abrasion or even an LSP. I tend to take a little care there while trying to polishing the surrounding plastic. From the pic of the customer`s truck, it appears that may not be a problem since it looks to be already worn.
- Most of the plastic tends to react well to restoration. The exception being the bumper guards on top of the bumper and the front of the rear wheel wells. The products I have used on those areas just don`t last. I have been intending to try some Solution Finish I have on those bits. ...also may not be a problem in your case.
- The black window frame on the removable top is known for rust. The bottom part is simply painted metal. The paint on these pieces really didn`t take well to polishing and if I hadn`t repainted them, I would have likely just continued to dress those areas. The black b-pillar pieces are just black plastic although the face of it is textured.
Anyhow, I wish you luck on it.
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