I know... Another Trim Thread...

[natewood70]

Hey AGO!

So... the rubber window trim on my wife's car is staring to experience little brown spots that are relatively common on rubber trim down here in South Florida. I've searched the forum for product and technique suggestion on what to do to restore the satin look of this type of trim and really cannot come to anything really conclusive or steering me in one direction or the other.

So far from what I've gathered the following should be done:

1. Clean the trim with an APC, soft brush of some kind, and if necessary some extra elbow grease.
2. Dry the trim completely whether it is in the sun, hwit a towel, or combo.
3. Apply trim protectant/sealant at regular intervals to ensure the trim looks its best.

So the first and second portion seem pretty straightforward, but I'm having a hard time coming up with what would be the best protection I can apply after the trim is cleaned. I see great reviews for WETS, but I'm not sure if that's the one to go with or another player on the market would do a great job of protection.

All that being said, what modification to the process (if any) would you do, and what products would you recommend?

Thanks for the help!

[HockeyCrazi]

Did anyone ever respond to this? I was going to start a new thread about this, but finally found one already started. Those that do this professionally, do you put a dressing/protection on the rubber window trim? Do you use the same products as you do on the tires? Or the plastic trim? Thanks!

[expdetailing]

Personally, I use a sealant. I don't use dressings because they usually stain whatever is below, usually glass, after it rains.
However, I don't know if frequent applications of dressings offer greater UV protection over less frequent uses of a sealant.

[mwoywod]

APC works great but for your situation I would use D108 Super Degreaser 4:1 and cheap disposable microfiber towel, that will remove a TON of oxidation from the rubber trim. If the rubber is so bad that the APC or degreaser isn't cutting it, then you could step up to degreaser and a soft bristled brush. Occasionally when rubber is so neglected that this doesn't restore the stock matte finish I will use a separate microfiber towel and apply a non staining all in one polish. I've had the most success with optimum Poli-seal. Remember to use really light pressure with this product because it does have some extremely fine abrasives. Another all in one "polish" I've used to restore the matte finish to rubber is Klasse AIO. After my rubber trim looks new again I usually protect it with Carpro Reload, Optimum car wax, or Opti-seal...but if you don't have any of those waxes/sealants you can keep your trim looking brand new virtually forever by applying Meguiar's Ultimate Liquid Wax 2 or 3 times a years and/or Ultimate quick Wax which is easier but needs to be applied more frequently if it is all you want to use.

[BMW435]

I would definitely recommend WETS.

[FUNX650]

• 1Z Einszett Rubber Care Stick Gummi Pflege

• Krytox (GPL-105, or equivalent)

• Meguiar's:
-M39 (cleaner);
-M40 (protectant)


Bob

[Eldorado2k]

I love trim threads.

[tenblade2001]

Another vote for 1Z

[Eldorado2k]

A trim thread would be lacking if it didn't recommend Mothers Heavy Duty Trim Cleaner as a starting point. A true gem.

[swanicyouth]

My guess is the trim's coating is UV damaged.

If you are talking about the rubber type window seals that go around windows and doors, the rubber usually has a UV protectant type coating on it from the factory. It's kind of like a "skin"...

The problem is, in places like FL, this coating is not very durable. Once it starts to oxidize, it tends to look bad.

There are a couple of ways to "fix" it, depending on how bad it is. Applying "dressings" will work temporarily - most likely until your next wash.

Out of everything I've used, carefully applied Solution Finish seems to be the best of all worlds. It will last several months and has black pigment in it to restore the black and hide the damage. It will have to be applied every few months though.

If it is REAL BAD, you can actually carefully sand that UV coating or "skin" off down to the bare black rubber - assuming the rubber is still not dried out. Then you will just have plain rubber that needs to be protected.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[natewood70]

Thank you so much for the responses, everyone!

Sorry for the late reply, I kinda gave up since a response wasn't generated after a couple of weeks AND I didn't get a response notification in my email until this morning.

Ever since the forum moved to the new platform, all my email updates in regards to thread responses have been severely delayed.

[Rsurfer]

A year from now, you'll wish you started today.:xyxthumbs:

[ducksfan]

A trim thread would be lacking if it didn't recommend Mothers Heavy Duty Trim Cleaner as a starting point. A true gem.

I don't use much in the way of Mother's products. But, because of what I read on this forum I tried Mother's Back to Black tire renewal. The stuff is amazing. Somehow Mother's figured out how to clean rubber well. It's just too bad the same set of products also has sealants that haven't been reviewed so highly.

I'd hate to see their rubber cleaners go away because of damage to the Back to Black line reputation from their sealants.

[Eldorado2k]

I don't use much in the way of Mother's products. But, because of what I read on this forum I tried Mother's Back to Black tire renewal. The stuff is amazing. Somehow Mother's figured out how to clean rubber well. It's just too bad the same set of products also has sealants that haven't been reviewed so highly.

I'd hate to see their rubber cleaners go away because of damage to the Back to Black line reputation from their sealants.

I feel the same way. Heck, the other day when I was at the auto parts store and saw they had the trim cleaner on sale for only $5.99 it was a no brainier even though I already had a bottle of it at home.. I also picked up a spray bottle of their fairly new All Chrome Quik Polish & Cleaner for the same price. I tried the Mothers Mag & Aluminum Polish for the 1st time the other day and it was A+

I hadn't been a fan of Mothers products for a very long time after initially being let down by their original Chrome Polish, California Gold Car Wash, and California Gold Cleaner Wax Paste [it's been about 15yrs. since I initially bought those products] But I've got to give credit where credit is due, Mothers has impressed me with a few of their products lately.

IMO that trim cleaner is as valuable to my detailing arsenal as the TW Endura Tire/Trim Coat. It'll be sad day for sure when they become extinct.