B-Pillar Help Please

6

65redcorvette

New member
I have a 2001 Lincoln LS Sport(Black). The B-pillar on the car has a kind of plasticky coating on it that I cannot get to shine. Right now it looks like a blotchy rainbow. I have tried Sonus, Klasse, BF polish and wax, bug & tar remover, Eagle One Wet, etc. Anyone with any ideas? Thanks
 
I use Vanilla Moose on them. I have a regular customer with a Lincoln LS8 and VM works great at keeping the pillars looking good. Meguiars Swirl Free Polish will also work.
 
PT Cruisers have the same problem, particularly when they are run through automatic car washes.



I've had good luck using a cleaner wax to remove the film.
 
65redcorvette said:
I have a 2001 Lincoln LS Sport(Black). The B-pillar on the car has a kind of plasticky coating on it that I cannot get to shine. Right now it looks like a blotchy rainbow. I have tried Sonus, Klasse, BF polish and wax, bug & tar remover, Eagle One Wet, etc. Anyone with any ideas? Thanks
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I had a Saturn SL2 that had a glossy black-plastic insert that was mounted just below the windshield. It drove me crazy for a long time with the oily, sometimes oil-slick, grubby, dirty look. I tried a bunch of different cleaners, glazes, and waxes on it - none would last for very long (if they worked at all).



I only found two things that would keep it "clean" looking for any amount of time. The first was Zaino (just Z1 & Z2 like you're going to do paint) - the Zaino kept it looking brand new for over a year without redoing it, and that was a true and honest test because the other half was done differently. The second was Mothers Reflections. I have to admit that I only had a few months with the Reflections before I sold the car, but it seemed to keep it clean and black - no oily grubby look to it.
 
65red, try to be aware of where your hand is placed when closing the door. I have that same problem with my mother's car, and she was causing it by placing her hand there while shutting the door. It was the oil from her hand that was staining the trim. Soapy film will stick too. Forrest was right, I just saw a PT cruiser that had the same problem last week. Once you get it clean, make sure to keep it that way.
 
My procedure depending on the type of plastic is baby oil,valvoline tyre shine and meguiars endurance tyre gel. My mums ford explorer responds well to the valvoline followed by baby oil.
 
Keeping the car shampoo from the black plastic pieces of the car will prevent them from going white or discoloring again

My AU falcon has these such plastics and when any fingermarks get on there i simply wipe down with 3M gloss enhancer.
 
4th generation Maximas have a black vinyl tape on the B-pillars. A common mod is to remove them, as the pillars are painted (and cleared) bodycolor underneath. Removal isn't ridiculously hard from what I'm told; heat loosens the adhesive (sunny day, hair dryer, or heatgun). Once the tape is removed, Goo-gone or other adhesive remover to remove the glue. Then polish and wax. This may be an option for you. You can also check a "sign shop" to see if they have vinyl tape in the color you want, and replace it. Mine are faded/scratched, and may be removed in the near future (if I don't like it, a local sign shop has the black vinyl I can replace it with for about $10).



Dave
 
FYI. A lot of cars have a black film on the pillar and sash areas. Some are painted underneath, most are not. Hondas have a stainless steel finish for instance. The film is a paint replacement product from 3M or competitors, that helps save the auto manufacturer $$$ by not having to paint, therefore reducing emissions from the paint department.

As for cleaning that area, I'm not all that sure. This is a poly film, so any tire shine stuff should work. The cheaper films like that PT Cruiser are pretty much hopeless to get back to a deep black. (not a 3M product) :)
 
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