HX 52: Td5 D2 bodywork - Faded Plastic Trim

Ever since ownership began I had noted how the black plastic wheel arch 'brows' had gone all patchy and faded. I noted how the very texture of their surface had become rough like sandpaper in some areas.

It's a pretty common problem and effects all automotive plastic trim to some extent. Apparently it is caused by UV exposure altering the chemical stability of the surface layer.

There are many aftermarket treatments available ranging from 'snake oil' back-to-black gels through more advanced "polymer dye' up to the manufacturers favourite.... costly replacement trim. ..

Over the years, I have tried them all with varying success and my current solution is to spray the afflicted areas with matt or satin black paint.

I can only state that on other outdoor projects I have had good lasting results with 'Pro-Cote' 'tough industrial paint' sourced from Toolstation in handy aerosol form. That is my current (since summer 2015) treatment and is what I intend to do all of Hx with. It is currently on the door handles, the grill, the rear chassis and the towbar plate.

JUNE 2015 - First to step up to the task was 'Back to Black' gel restorer. Little more then a coloured silicone polish. It went on and looked good but had no staying power. I used it on the rear wheel arch trim and it just washed and faded away within days!

It faired better on the internal trim. I treated the footwell kick panels and the seat base trims with it and the kick panels were taken out the other day and still looked good. Verdict ? Only use it where the Sun don't shine!

AUGUST 2015 - The Internet is full of wacky treatments for restoring black trim. Baby oil and peanut butter seem laughable and using a heat gun to 'melt' the black back is perhaps the most extreme.

For Round 2, I purchased some 'Forever Black' from Ebay. Apparently this stuff can withstand the hot Californian Sun and is more of a polymer dye then a polish.

Used it on the rear wheel arches

Three views of the offside rear arch trim showing it's mottled faded brittle state. The texture is really more like sandpaper then plastic. The nearside arches were the same and both needed sanding back.

Initially the nearside arches were only lightly sanded before the dye was applied. This proved to be a false move as the texture just showed through the finish as can be seen here.

The only solution was to sand them flatter and the above photo shows the body arch being sanded while the door arch still has the first coating on it.

The rear arch after second sanding and application of Forever Black.

This stuff was easily more lasting. It is now over a year since application and only now if I cast a critical eye can I see it needs re - doing.

The offside has faded the most. It gets more direct sun then the nearside but also with all the recent spraying and masking, I noticed how the masking tape kind of removed some of the blackness from the arch.

At the time of application, (Aug 2015) I was also sealing the windscreen rubbers and got some excess silicone sealer onto the surrounding black trim. I noticed when I rubbed it off that it gave a pleasing finish to the black plastic.

As an experiment I smeared the A - pillar and plenum cover with some clear silicone sealer. It gave an even black coating that lasted for a while but the best thing was its rain shedding property.

Here is a photo of the silicone sealer smeared plenum chamber. The light grey strip just above the bonnet on the drivers side is the original tone of the plenum chamber. This took no time to apply and lasted months, it was very waterproof but attracted lots of dust. I feel that the static was from rubbing the surface with the cloth when applying it..

The wiper arms in the above photo were also experimented on... The nearest one was left in its faded condition while the other one was treated with 'T-Cut'.

T-cut was trialed in Sept 2015. I have history with this product going back to my time on the work vans and the weekly surface scratch and blemish removal. That was always on white metal so what would it be like on black trim. ...?

Two views of the nearside B - pillar and window frames. Admittedly this is faded paint on metal. I only did the window frames and took the photos half way through treating the front window frame. A fast fix that is still looking good today.

I left the central B - pillar alone. The only action here is to respray the pillar.

Moving on to the roof bars and again a very quick rub down with the T-cut produced a good result that lasted best part of a year.

The current tone of the bars is about midway between the two. The bars have a metallic covering and even today I would consider re-applying T-Cut simply for its ease of use.

And so we come up to date with the new contender, the 'Pro-Cote' matt black spray....

I recently did the grill and headlight surround with it but don't have a good photo 'in situ' as it were. The other day I sprayed the circular plastic plug that sits on the plenum chamber. There are two of these 'plugs' and on every Disco2 I've seen they are standout faded.

A quick spray brings it to this finish. It was then handy to photograph it against other faded trim on Hx..