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Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

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  • #1

    Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

    I'm looking for some advice on removing what I assume are pollutants or minerals that have accumulated on the top half of the thin bumper strips along the side of my car. This car has lived outside in the Pacific Northwest for most of its 20-year life. The photo below shows the brown stuff that's accumulated on the plastic trim:



    The brown stuff is extremely hard and somewhat abrasive. Magic Eraser does not work on it; steel wool cuts the abrasiveness down and smooths it but does not remove it; denatured alcohol doesn't work, nor does brake cleaner; carb cleaner mostly works but not completely, and requires a lot of rubbing.

    Do you know of a chemical that will remove this stuff, or have any suggestions on how to get rid of it? I prefer to not have to remove the strips from the car (the one shown above fell off) but obviously will if I have to.
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  • #2
    Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

    Wow, if you hadn't told us that we were looking at plastic parts we would have thought that was very heavy surface rust on steel trim. But on plastic?

    It sounds like you've used some very aggressive products to try and address this problem, none of which seem to be doing anything. This may be one of those cases where you just can't restore/repair the item any longer and it needs to be replaced. Not everything can be fixed, unfortunately. What kind of car is this? Have you looked into places like Year One, Hemmings, etc that might offer replacement trim for this?
    Michael Stoops
    Senior Global Product & Training Specialist | Meguiar's Inc.

    Remember, this hobby is supposed to be your therapy, not the reason you need therapy.

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    • #3
      Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

      I know, it looks like rust! Whatever it is, it's extremely tenacious!

      The car is a Saab 900. I can still get the trim but it is very expensive brand new. These cars are drying up in the junkyards but I can still get used pieces in better shape than what I've got if I'm patient enough. The problem is, it's a challenge to figure out how to clean the darn stuff off.

      I am going to try a one-hour carb cleaner soak on the piece in the photo above. If that works, great; if not, then I'll try to track down some used strips.

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      • #4
        Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

        That's pretty amazing.

        Perhaps someone with experience with the Marine products can suggest something.
        I'm kind of thinking they are done. I assume they must be quite dry/brittle.

        Comment

        • #5
          Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

          Nothing in the Marine/RV Line is designed to tackle this either. The problem is that this is on plastic trim, not metal. It would be a piece of cake if it were on metal - steel wool and some WD40 would strip it down, then you could polish the metal back to a nice high shine. Well, OK, so "piece of cake" may be optimistic even then!!!

          But on plastic? And since the OP even mentioned having tried steel wool, well........

          Like we said, not everything can be fixed. Sometimes you need to replace.
          Michael Stoops
          Senior Global Product & Training Specialist | Meguiar's Inc.

          Remember, this hobby is supposed to be your therapy, not the reason you need therapy.

          Comment

          • #6
            Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

            I'd like to see what the remainder of the car looks like (just for fun), particularly with the remaining moldings intact.

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            • #7
              Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

              That stuff looks similar to the deposits I get on the tuned pipe of one of my boats. You're right, it is tough stuff and I tried many things like you to get it off. What has worked for me is CLR. If it is the same as the deposits on my boat pipes the CLR will take it off pretty easily. I just brush or pour some on and lightly agitate with a soft brush like an old toothbrush. The CLR will slightly foam as it is dissolving the deposits. After a few minutes rinse with fresh water and check the results. Occasionally another application may be needed but it cleans it up nicely.
              All this of course is assuming that it is the same deposits I get, so based on that a small test spot would be in order to be sure of compatibilty with the trim material. As an FYI the pipes I use it on are made of polished aluminum and the CLR doesn't dull them or otherwise negatively affect them.
              Hope this helps, it's worth a try, and CLR is relatively cheap and easily available in small quantities.

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              • #8
                Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

                @Bill D. -- The paint is a single-stage white that, after some work, actually cleaned up pretty well, though I'm a noob, no hard-core detailer. It's a slow process, though: for just the hood and roof, wash/clay/multiple potion rubbing (M105/M205/etc.) with the PC took me over 4 hours.

                @laclede -- Thanks for the tip on CLR; I will try it before reverting back to the carb cleaner soak.

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                • #9
                  Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

                  Originally posted by gpteitz View Post
                  The paint is a single-stage white that, after some work, actually cleaned up pretty well, though I'm a noob, no hard-core detailer. It's a slow process, though: for just the hood and roof, wash/clay/multiple potion rubbing (M105/M205/etc.) with the PC took me over 4 hours.
                  Just so you know, single stage white is some of the hardest paint you'll ever encounter! The pigment used in titanium dioxide, so you're essentially polishing titanium. Just what a self proclaimed noob wants to hear, huh?! That explains the slow process, so don't think it's just you being new at this - you have a serious challenge ahead of you but it sounds like you're doing things right, so keep it up!

                  By the way, any pix of this 900? Terrific cars those older Saabs, so it's nice to see someone doing their best to keep one rolling and looking good.
                  Michael Stoops
                  Senior Global Product & Training Specialist | Meguiar's Inc.

                  Remember, this hobby is supposed to be your therapy, not the reason you need therapy.

                  Comment

                  • #10
                    Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

                    Originally posted by Michael Stoops View Post
                    Just so you know, single stage white is some of the hardest paint you'll ever encounter! The pigment used in titanium dioxide, so you're essentially polishing titanium. Just what a self proclaimed noob wants to hear, huh?! That explains the slow process, so don't think it's just you being new at this - you have a serious challenge ahead of you but it sounds like you're doing things right, so keep it up!

                    By the way, any pix of this 900? Terrific cars those older Saabs, so it's nice to see someone doing their best to keep one rolling and looking good.
                    Thanks for the info, Michael. Yeah, it's been a slow process, made slower by rain and lack of time. But when I'm done with the remaining panels, yes, I will post some pictures!

                    Comment

                    • #11
                      Re: Removing hard brown pollutants from trim

                      I can't offer any suggestions, but I have a couple of questions/comment.

                      Is the trim plastic very brittle?

                      Reason I ask is I lived in the NW for many years and remember seeing certain
                      plastic(s) with that same look, and there was NOTHING that would touch it.

                      You'd think that the NW weather is pretty benign (not being to hot or too sunny), BUT we kinda figured out it was caused by 'fallout' from Western Red Cedar trees. The rain along with the UV from the sun just baked the plastic to a fairtheewell. We even found the problem on exposed PVC irrigation pipes.

                      Wish I had an answer for ya.

                      Bill

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