Re: Restoring Black Trim

I have a 93 Ford Mustang GT Convertible with bad weathered black trim. Has the chalky whiteish look. I have tried 303 protectant and mothers back to black on it. I am not satisfied with either result. I am wondering if wet-sanding the black trim would bring back the orginal color. I have been told by autopia not to use and kind of wax on it. If you guys tell me wet-sanding will not work, I will be removing all the black pieces on my car and painting them with semi-gloss or flat black automotive spray paint. What do you guys think? Parts include: front windshield lower cover, crowl, mirrors, wiper blade arms, side door top moldings, rear trim, and spolier from luggage rack. I know that improving this part of the car will dramatically improve its looks. I want something permant and not a temporary fix that will have to be replied all the time. If it can be restore via wet-sanding what grid? 2000? 1500? Thanks

Call Steve at Poorboys www.poorboysworld.com to get the phone number. He has years of experience owning and running a body shop, detailing business and now manufacturing his own line of detailing products.....which...I might add ;) :D are among the very best out there.

He`ll advise you how to do the trim. Don`t sand on it until you`ve talked to an expert. I believe sanding will ruin the trim and require replacement. Painting may work but you`ll need special primer made to hold paint on vinyl/plastic. It`s tricky.

Poorboys Trim Restorer. Works wonders on my 96 Jeep Grand Cherokee`s cladding. It was faded and and also had that chalky white stains.

If the trim is textured (couldn`t think of a better term), then Poorboys Trim Restorer should really do the trick. If it is smooth and supposed to be shiney then try a mild polish. On some really bad textured trim that was almost white I thinned down some black laquer paint and with a soft cloth dabbed it on the trim. This took some time to get it even but it looks like new now and it stays looking new. I just applied some TR to it and it looks even better.

I use just last weekend in fact, Poorboys Trim Restorer. I got caught in some rain since then and it still looks great. I have the textured hard plastic wheel flares and they had some white wax stains on them. The trim restorer not only hid (or was it removed) the white wax stains but really gave a nice look.

How long will this last without repeating the process? I don`t know, but I bought the whole bottle - I plan to use!

I am very pleased with this product. As a side note, I had been using the Mother`s Back to Black and thought it did "ok". But Porboys does have it beat hands down in my opinion.

I apply Trim Restorer monthly. I am not sure about durability.

I agree that PB TR is the stuff if its the plastic trim that is textured. I used it on my BMW trim with a tooth brush then finished up with PN natural look!

If you want to permanently repair weatherbeaten trim/moulding, you`ll need to use a dye type product to do so. Why not give Dwayne a ring at Premium Auto Care and see if he has something that fits the bill. If not, check out something called the ETR kit which is available from Automotive INternational (www.autoint.com). The ETR kit will fix the problem, not temporarily mask it.

I would check with Dwayne first since the ETR kit will be a bit on the expensive side because you`ll be paying for a lot more product than you`ll actually need. The kits are designed for detail shops and dealerships and will do more than one car. Dwayne may have something just large enough to tackle your problem and designed for the enthusiast market thus being more cost efficient for you.

Dwayne carries a product called forever black. This is also a traditional trim die that isn`t quite so expensive and does an admirable job. Not sure i would use it on a showcar but it`s great for even high end cars. It`s a paintable product that uses it`s own foam aplicator. That`s the reason i downgrade it. If you want it perfect you almost have to spray the die so you get it perfectly even.

Well i used 3M fine cut rubbing compound and then mothers back to black

There is a product from P&S car care products that will die the trim. Its called Restore Black comes in a bottle that looks like a shoe polish thing. I"ve used it on real weathered trim and it does a great job. it does wash off after a while but is easy to re-apply