shadowline?

[zandi]

Don't take the trim off the body, you will bend it, fuck it up, scream, cry, and bitch endlessly, just cover it all up, scruff it up, and paint

[nefarious7907]

I like the idea of finding some trim and repainting it then removing your own and installing the new. I am going to have to take my car in the have the front and rear shadowline done. My windsheild gaskets are yellow and cracked and are some serious need of TLC, So after I get all of this done I should be able to get my windows tinted, 10-20% will cost me 169.

[BahnE30]

my car had shadowline from the factory, and it started peeling.

turned out it was black vinyl type stuff glued to the chrome trim

i peeled the rest of it off and now i have some strong ass yellow glue stuck on top of the chrome and it looks like ass

no, it didn't. the 325is never came with shadowline, and shadowline is definetly not black vinyl stuff over stock crome trim. sounds like somebody used electrical tape on yours.

umm my 90 325is came with factory shadow line.....

[robert325is]

my car had shadowline from the factory, and it started peeling.

turned out it was black vinyl type stuff glued to the chrome trim

i peeled the rest of it off and now i have some strong ass yellow glue stuck on top of the chrome and it looks like ass

no, it didn't. the 325is never came with shadowline, and shadowline is definetly not black vinyl stuff over stock crome trim. sounds like somebody used electrical tape on yours.

Well then the "factory" fucked up and put shadowline on my car then I guess. It was definately not electrical tape. It was in fact, real shadowline trim on a 1989 325is. Maybe I really have a 318? But wait, my car has a 6 cylinder engine. Go Figure??

[SebSter]

my car had shadowline from the factory, and it started peeling.

turned out it was black vinyl type stuff glued to the chrome trim

i peeled the rest of it off and now i have some strong ass yellow glue stuck on top of the chrome and it looks like ass

no, it didn't. the 325is never came with shadowline, and shadowline is definetly not black vinyl stuff over stock crome trim. sounds like somebody used electrical tape on yours.

Well then the "factory" fucked up and put shadowline on my car then I guess. It was definately not electrical tape. It was in fact, real shadowline trim on a 1989 325is. Maybe I really have a 318? But wait, my car has a 6 cylinder engine. Go Figure??

How do you know that the factory put it on your car. Just because you bought the car with it like that doesn't mean the factory did it.

Real shadowline trim does not have chrome under, think about it for a second.

[KenC]

Scuffing the chrome and painting will look good for a while, but will eventually chip - mine is starting to look like shit and I scuffed the hell out of it.

[SebSter]

Scuffing the chrome and painting will look good for a while, but will eventually chip - mine is starting to look like shit and I scuffed the hell out of it.

Ditto. But I take mine off and repaint it at the start of spring, will do it again next year and probably as long as i have the car. Takes a couple of hours, makes a big difference, and lasts through the summer, and in winter who cares?

[golde30]

i painted mine on the car..what a PITA. i vote against SEM trim paint, i have seen it chip left and rite. i sanded down my trim to get all the clear coat off, then sprayed with Dupilcolor Engine Enamel, semi-gloss black, and it is holding up VERY well, and also matches the stock black pieces VERY well.

[Bread]

Other options

I'm also looking into re-painting the black plastic mirrors, bumper trim, and rear window trim back to their origional state. I'll likely leave the chrome alone though.

The Duplicolor trim paint is pretty cheap at about $6 a can. But I also see the "Wurth Flexible Trim Paint" here: http://www.superiorcarcare.net/w8930190.html for $13 a can. I like the idea of it being flexible because it's a similar concept to the flex agent added to paint on plastic valances and such to keep the paint from chipping. Anybody tried this?

EDIT: Hmm, I just found this flexible bumper specific paint as well from Duplicolor: http://www.autobarn.net/dupfbseries.html

Perhaps I'll have to purchase both and give them a shot.

[Bread]

Alrighty, I bought the Duplicolor trim paint and bumper paint. I tried out the trim paint on the wiper arms last night. I lightly sanded them, sprayed on a couple coats of Duplicolor "Adhesion Promoter", and then three coats of the trim paint. Came out pretty damn good as you can see by the attached picture. I think I'll do the mirrors, chin spoiler, fog guards, and door handles next with the Trim paint. Then try the rub strips and bumpers with the flexible bumper paint (they're freakin' grey at this point).

Question/Opinions. As long as I'm painting stuff, what do you guys think about painting the chrome window mouldings and kidney grills, but leaving the polished bumpers? I don't want to paint the bumpers as I think it will look way off. But I'm unsure if they will look odd if nothing else on the car is chrome. Opinions?

[Bread]

No opinions, thats ok. I need to find the E30 forum with the most users.

Here's some duplicolor results. I painted the rear window trim and side mirrors today. There was some pitting in the plastic which would probably benefit from some light filler, but overall after sanding and such it came out pretty smooth IMO. Much better than before in this comparison shot. Now just to see how long the stuff lasts. I do a lot of highway miles, so it will be a good test in a few weeks.

[DarkWing6]

That looks really good.

[Jand3rson]

That looks really good.

I agree, I'm anxious to see how it holds up.

[Bread]

I tried out the Duplicolor "Bumper Coating" on the lower valance as it's supposed to be a more flexible coating designed to take a beating. I figured the lower valance is one of those areas.

I'm not certain I like it yet. It took much longer to dry, and was very prone to running. I had to make extra light coats. Fortunately I experiemented on the back side before coating the front. We'll see how this holds up before I apply it to the front bumper strips, and possibly the grills as they get a lot of rock hits. Here's a before shot:

[Bread]

And after: