The bumpers on my car are showing their age. Not the chrome, much of which has been re-chromed, but the rubber. I have tried using products that are supposed to help make rubber and plastic trim look “blacker”, but most of it looks fine when applied, but then simply wipes off.
The local autobody/paint store sells SEM paint, and VHT. I bought a can of SEM Bumper Coater, satin black.
I prepped the bumpers using a Scotchbrite pad and Simple Green cleaner, until all the oxidation had been removed. The bumpers wound up with a flat dark grey look. As I had sections of old bumper that I had replaced laying around, I thought I would experiment with different paints before making a commitment.
The photo shows, from L to R, VHT satin black wheel paint. Prepped small section with no paint. SEM bumper coater.
I was really impressed with the SEM, and masked off the front bumper, which now is done, and looks like new. Rear bumper next, maybe today.
SEM products are excellent; their Trim Black is great for the window frames and vent appliqués on there facelift cars.
Has anyone tried SEM, or anything else available in the EU, on the black surrounds of the door mirrors? I’ve tried a couple of products but they revert to grey in just a few weeks.
SEM Trim Black would be perfect if you can get it.
I’ve done mine more than 6 years ago. I used something which was amber in colour and was having probably 7 out of 9 COSHH symbols on the bottle. By the smell I am sure it was ammonia based. The effect was brilliant. It dissolved the top layer of rubber - not painted/dyed it. Simply you just need to wipe bumper very gently with delicate fabric soaken in it. Final effect is still there after all those years. I’ve done windscreen seal first to check the effect. Unfortunately - I got rid of the magic solution as it was smelly even with bottle closed… Really doubt it is easy to buy due to H&S risks…
A couple of decades back I used a product on a friend’s Honda. I think the stuff was called “Black Again”; basically I just went to AutoZone and bought whatever spray paint they had intended for black bumpers. Did bumpers and windshield wiper arms. It looked great for as long as she owned the car.