CarPro Dlux Vs 27 Yr. Old Desert Beaten Trim?!

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

I love my car...but i hate the trim on it. Ive tried everything but dye on it and at best i get a few weeks...and even those few weeks, its usually blotchy looking. Last one i tired was Opti-Bond...and as soon as we got a little rain (which OF COURSE was 3 days later)...i had streaky spots from where the rain ran down the back and thus down the trim.

So, i was going to dye it, but Mr Corey hipped me to this: CQuartz Dlux Plastic & Rubber Coating (SKY Kit) - www.CarPro-US.com

After reading coreys review on it and him saying he's gotten 9+ months on his Saturn plastic (God knows that thing was BAD!), i figured what the hell, lets try it...i was in a coating mood!

Well. ... though a smaller area...my trim wasn't half stepping either:








I also decided to pull the plastic piece behind my license plate...it was a bit faded too and i didn't want it to look all crappy if the rest of my trim did end up looking good!




Yeah uhm...the clips were being a bit of a pain lol.




I would say no clips were hurt in the making of this write up but...i tore those mofo's out!


I figured this would be a good comparison. The rubber strip on the bumper was more on the textured side, where the piece behind my license plate was smoother. This stuff is suppose to work on both so, hell lets find out!

I also pulled the metal piece that holds the bottom of the plate, this is a bit off subject but, it was crappy looking!



Via Coreys instruction, i first used a water spot removed (Chem Guys, bout the only product of theirs i own!) Then i used Megs APC at about 2:1 (im sure you can see the bottle in the reflection of the chrome) and a microfiber towel to scrub the holy crap out of the trim (as if there was any dressing left on it...yeah right!)

I rinsed it real well and wiped it down with a wet mf towel and then let it dry (didn't take long in 100 degrees.)

So now that my trim was nice and EXTRA dry...it had a nice ash grey look to it..just lovely. I took out the applicator block and the suede towel that came with the kit and popped open the Dlux bottle. The cap that is on the top of the bottle was very helpful...you dont need a ton of this stuff so the fact that the cap allowed for a small amount of product to come out at a time...made use of it much easier (and waste much less).

I put a few dabs on the towel and began to apply...it spread very well and evenly. I applied in a cross-hatch pattern like the instructions said. Then got the foam tipped sticks out (or whatever you wanna call em)....i LOVED these things. Just a couple drops on them and i was able to easily apply it to tight areas like the thin pieces of the trim up top and on the edges, as well as tight areas (like corner) and into the circular cut outs of the license backing plate.

I let it set a few minutes, then used a dry towel to buff the areas smooth (which didn't take much, it applied quite evenly.)

i was...impressed.



VERY impressed:




Like new...




Out in the sun really showed the difference off well:





I let it bake out in the sun for about 20 minutes...and just watched it. It got down to a slightly less wet look...and then seemed to stay...it didnt fade or get blotchy or "soak in" and make some areas look lighter than others. I had one spot towards the right tip that seemed a bit less dark..so i applied a bit more to it and that seemed to do the trick.

And as for the smooth plastic...well:




Yeah i liked how it turned out too!

It took only about 10-15 minutes, cleaning included, to complete this half...and that was with messing with the camera and taking pics and such.

Im sure you noticed i didn't tape the chrome, well...thats cause it will do no damage to it...OR to paint....no greasy mess to fight to clean up...um, winner?


I went in my car to back it into the shade again....and noticed my faded window trim...which was painted...but faded badly:




"Should I?" I asked myself....um, duh...of course i should! I finished the back strip and then jumped up to the window trim...i didn't expect it to stick to be honest, but i figured what the hell. I grabbed my handy dandy little foam stick (screw it thats my name for it now), added a few drops and started coating...let it set a few minutes and then went over it with a towel lightly. With anything else i know of, this woulda been a streaky MESS...and any attempt to level it with a towel would have just wiped it right off....not Dlux:






It was black again! The only areas that didn't turn black were where the black paint had faded so much that the red primer was showing underneath lol...and even those looked BETTER at least.


Front door not done, rear door done




Front door came out just as nice

On top of this..i was actually texting corey while i was messing with this stuff and getting questions answered on the spot...ummmm i dont know many others who give customer service like that.

I double checked with C about the bit i got on the chrome, he said no problem it'll buff right off, OR i could just coat the whole bumper FTW! ....well i didn't have time lol, but i probably will eventually.

The only damn thing Dlux didn't fix was my metal bracket for my license plate! But..it was metal..and rusty lol...but it too had a happy ending...Rustoleum to the rescue:




While i know pictures are worth a 1000 words...i did a video anyway! It really shows the transition in the end...check it out: [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z-vS8WDB_4]Carpro Dlux Vs 27 year old faded trim - YouTube[/video]

Hope you guys enjoy the write up...ill keep you posted on how long it holds up....9 months would be bad ass...anything more and thats just a bonus...especially out in Az where were are in the 100's already. Let's see if it can beat the heat...

[BobbyG]

I share your excitement and enthusiasm! I performed a test using CarPro DLux last summer and the results were amazing! DLux is one of the finest trim restoration products available today.....

[Yellow06GT]

Thanks for the great review.

How would you compare it to Ultima Tire and Trim Guard?

[dpk20x]

Wow great turnaround!

Are those handy dandy little foam sticks available on AGO?

[FUNX650]

Hi Wills...

Thanks for this review!!
Can't wait to see how DLux holds up for you in this 100 degree temperature range.
[We're supposed to have frost this upcoming Sunday night into Monday morning. ]

BTW:
Tell Dani we said Hi also.



Bob

[Setec Astronomy]

Are those handy dandy little foam sticks available on AGO?

Looks like these are the closest, but these are cotton: Cotton Detailing Sticks

I thought they had the Edge/IAP foam sticks here (which are different than the ones in that kit) but I don't see them anymore.

[WRXINXS]

I have had very good luck with DLUX. I feel it is the best trim restorer/coating on the market right now.

[dpk20x]

Looks like these are the closest, but these are cotton: Cotton Detailing Sticks

I thought they had the Edge/IAP foam sticks here (which are different than the ones in that kit) but I don't see them anymore.

Yeah I could have sworn I've seen the foam ones here before but who knows. Definitely would have been nice to have some of those on hand to get into some tight nooks and crannies.

[sproketser]

Great results , thanx , might order some on a next order .

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

I share your excitement and enthusiasm! I performed a test using CarPro DLux last summer and the results were amazing! DLux is one of the finest trim restoration products available today.....

Good to hear yours is still holding up Bobby...really hope mine does as well. I came up today in our work car and saw my Linc sitting there...and its like...even if you dont KNOW the trim was done...you do know something is a bit different/better

Thanks for the great review.

How would you compare it to Ultima Tire and Trim Guard?

The closest trim i've used UTTG on is the spoiler on this Plum SRT8: 1 of 300 Plum Crazy SRT8s - Corrected & Opti-Coated

It took 2-3 coats and was a bit streaky in some areas and it also seemed to fade from when i first did it by the time the next morning came around. It definitely made a BIG difference and has held up pretty well (we've done 2 washes and an interior on the same car since the initial correction) but it doesn't look as smooth and uniform and what i got with Dlux on my trim which is 20 years older than the Chargers lol.

I think - and so have quite a few others who i've spoken to - that UTTG is definitely the best stuff out there for protecting 'new' trim. It will help faded trim but that doesnt seem to be its primary function. So for faded stuff, i'd go Dlux, for new stuff, UTTG, unless of course you just have extra Dlux left over (which you probably will unless you're restoring an Avalanche!), in which case, just use the Dlux on new trim too

Wow great turnaround!

Are those handy dandy little foam sticks available on AGO?

Thanks, and yeah not that ive seen. I just get mine straight from Corey.

Great results , thanx , might order some on a next order .

Its worth it, Corey is a great guy and was very helpful in making sure i took the proper prep steps so that i got the best (and im assuming longest lasting) result from the product. Plus free shipping over $75 was a nice touch too