90s car detailing challenges.

[BryanH]

Does anyone have experience with the following? Some of these seem like distinctly 1990s car problems.


1) Restoring the appearance of the exposed part of a thin rubber gasket. I could painstakingly use a tiny paintbrush (one of the ones that comes in the Dr Color Chip kits for example), but what product(s) to use that will darken rubber for more than a week? Solution Finish maybe? I think rubber usage is off-label. Any experience, and does it wipe off paint easily when it's fresh?





2) Door ding trim. These are plastic parts, painted, but I don't think they're clear-coated. I'd like to A) get some water stains off and B) make them look as good as possible. Is it safe to machine polish these? Or should I do something else entirely?







3) Getting something off EPDM trim. I have no idea what this is. What's effective and is mild enough not to begin a degradation process of the EPDM? Whatever I use will inevitably get on the glass and paint as well.

[Mike Phillips]

Those are tough areas to address and makes me appreciate classic cars with chrome and stainless steel trim and real paint.

For gaskets around door handles about the most you can do is scrub with an APC and a tooth brush, (before polishing the paint), to remove years of oxidation and wax build-up and then find an exterior trim dressing and rub it in. For the most part, there's really not a lot you can do outside of replacement. I'd also say if these 1990s cars are daily drivers, then that's just the way it goes... it's what we get from car manufacturers, crappy materials on the outside and even inside of the car.


For the EPDM trim, I was able to bring this type of trim back to decent shape but it took about a year of repeated rubbing with a piece of terry cloth towel and Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant. It looked oxidized and splotchy when I first started detailing the car. After each wash I would rub the trim down with the Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant and a small piece of terry cloth towel. The terry cloth acted as a mild form of abrasive and the trim sealant was the lubricant, the gentle rubbing action slowly removed the years of oxidation and restored a uniform black appearance. This was on a 2004 Honda Accord.


Hope that helps...

[JKDesign]

I had a 92 Celica for 6 years that I absolutely loved. The door handle gasket is actually a flexible piece of plastic- it can be cleaned with an APC or a trim cleaner and then treated with a trim restorer or dressing- a cotton swab or q-tip might be your best friend in this situation. I was a painter by trade so i removed my door handles and removed that piece and cleaned it that way.

As far as the side trim goes- the least aggressive method to take care of the water spots would be to try a water spot remover. There are also matte paint cleaners available here on Autogeek that would help. McKee's 37 Matte Finish Cleaner & Protectant removes dirt and grime from matte finishes without adding gloss. This advanced formula also protects the

Is your MR 2 a turbo model?

[eaksqueak]

I have a 2001 Subaru daily driver with exactly the same kind of door handle. I have used Black Wow on the gasket applied with a q-tip. I think it lasts more than a week, but maybe not more than a month. I just got a bottle of solution finish and I’m also interested in knowing whether it could be used here.

I’m afraid I’m not savvy enough to know what EPDM trim is. I have some trim that looks kind of like your photo, and the scratches are actually where a coating has worn off to show metal underneath.

[DBAILEY]

That looks like a MB. I stumbled across something that cleaned the EPDM trim around the windows earlier this year. DG Squeaky Clean really took off whatever build up film it is that builds up on that trim. That trim always looks bad on the 90's MB

[DBAILEY]

I would use Solution Finish for the door handle. Q-tip applicator sounds good. The excess will wipe off easily.

I would just polish that door trim with normal polish

[BryanH]

Good suggestions! This helps me formulate a plan of attack.

It probably wasn't clear enough that the EPDM problem pictured isn't one of oxidation (although there is some of that elsewhere). It's a stain or something, but it doesn't feel like it's sitting on top of the surface when I run across it with my fingernail. I think your WETS/cloth suggestion might be a good plan for this anyway, Mike.

Part of my challenge with this car is that exterior parts are getting hard to find. I already have some new door/window trim waiting to go on, and thank goodness because the original stuff has continued to degrade despite being garaged and treated. I always thought UV is what did this stuff in. Maybe it's simply age. The EPDM pictured above, however, has been discontinued for years. I have to do my best to preserve and restore what's there.

Is your MR 2 a turbo model?

Yeah, a '93. I'll likely post a small write-up and photos in the Show N Shine section after it's done (finally getting paint correction after 11 years!).

The water stains have been there for a long time, although they don't look etched in.

I’m afraid I’m not savvy enough to know what EPDM trim is. I have some trim that looks kind of like your photo, and the scratches are actually where a coating has worn off to show metal underneath.

My understanding is EPDM is essentially synthetic rubber. Usually the smooth black automotive trim that isn't plastic is EPDM.