Leon ST “B Pillar” trims

[Sk8ir]

Weird question… I am having a senior moment…

Are the black plastic exterior B pillar trims on a Leon ST meant to be gloss black?

I’m sure the trims on my 2015 ST used to be gloss finish.

But I was about to polish them to remove any scuffs and found they are matte black!

I’m fairly sure that’s just happened with age, but it’s such a uniformly even finish, with almost a “soft touch” feel to it, that it’s got me second-guessing myself!

I looked at some images online but couldn’t quite make it out and I don’t have another one locally to compare it to.

 

[tracktoy]

No you are not alone, my 2014 Hatch started with Gloss black trims now they are no longer Gloss, not fully mat but not Gloss either.

 

[Seriously?]

They are gloss. Ours were until the garage washed the car ( even though we told them not to ) and now after a while they go matte and need to be polished back up : I use this:

 

[Sk8ir]

Ah, brilliant, thanks both - much appreciated!

I've got some Zaino Z-14 plastic polish in the garage so I'll give it a go with that first and see what the results are.

 

[Sk8ir]

Just in case anyone else is thinking of doing this - I had a very quick go at one piece of trim this afternoon. Just a test really but the results are good enough for me, for now.

I didn't have time for a full wash and you can see how dusty the car is (and it's a very sunny day). A quick spray with some rinseless wash, then clay bar, then panel wipe, purely on the trim itself. Then a hand polish with Zaino Z-14 (which is fine to apply in direct sunlight).

Here's a "before and after" comparison:

As you can see it's not perfect - there are still some deeper marks left which I'll never get rid of and a lot of quite deep vertical score marks (presumably from the previous owner using one of those "broom" things at the jetwash). It needs another go over when I have more time. But with a filler wax over the top it'll hide most of the imperfections between washes (I like Bilt Hamber Auto Balm).

I'm couch-surfing at the moment so all my proper detailing stuff is in boxes. When I can get at my decent polishing pads I'll have a go at the rest of the trims. Meanwhile I'm happy enough with this as proof of concept!

I'll update this thread with the finished article, whatever the results

 

[Seriously?]

Just in case anyone else is thinking of doing this - I had a very quick go at one piece of trim this afternoon. Just a test really but the results are good enough for me, for now.

I didn't have time for a full wash and you can see how dusty the car is (and it's a very sunny day). A quick spray with some rinseless wash, then clay bar, then panel wipe, purely on the trim itself. Then a hand polish with Zaino Z-14 (which is fine to apply in direct sunlight).

Here's a "before and after" comparison:

View attachment 53865

As you can see it's not perfect - there are still some deeper marks left which I'll never get rid of and a lot of quite deep vertical score marks (presumably from the previous owner using one of those "broom" things at the jetwash). It needs another go over when I have more time. But with a filler wax over the top it'll hide most of the imperfections between washes (I like Bilt Hamber Auto Balm).

I'm couch-surfing at the moment so all my proper detailing stuff is in boxes. When I can get at my decent polishing pads I'll have a go at the rest of the trims. Meanwhile I'm happy enough with this as proof of concept!

I'll update this thread with the finished article, whatever the results

100% better

 

[LeylandVCDS]

Toying with the idea of wrapping in carbon fibre effect - anyone done this, and any photos?