Ford glossy black door pillars

[bamablueoval]

ok, so Ford thinks its a great idea to put the easiest scratched material on this planet on the outside of a vehicle. I recently picked up a 2015 F150 and the pillars were pretty scratched already. I have tried to correct them with not so desirable results. The even scratch using revive polish and the blue hand applicator. Does anybody have experience with these demons? I'm more than likely gonna wrap them with some vinyl down the road, but in the mean time i would like to make them look as good as they can get.

 

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! They are driving me crazy!!!

 

 

 

 

[stripesace]

They're nothing more but painted and clear coated plastic. Treat them like paint. Just don't go too crazy polishing. 

[vobro]

They're nothing more but painted and clear coated plastic. Treat them like paint. Just don't go too crazy polishing.

 

Agreed. Usually that clear is very soft, start with the least aggressive approach. Even if you do them by hand start with a soft touch

[ggrrrrrr]

I have the same plastic on my M3 and Suburban - both swirl up no matter what I do.  I'm thinking about correcting them as best I can and then wrapping them with clear bra or Xpel.  Does anyone have any experience wrapping these? 

[Chris@Adams]

I agree, not much clear on those pillars, so if you use a machine be careful. You might try Revive with the MF pad first then go to the the Blue foam.....

[07stanggt]

Can you take some close upshots...

[bamablueoval]

Yea I'll get some close up shots. I only posted the others just to show my ride! it's an awesome truck. Just trying to get rid of the dealer installed scratches and such..haha. 

[Dan@Adams]

My friend Bobby has the same problem with the gloss black B pillars on his Ford Focus. They seem to swirl just by looking at them funny out of the corner of your eye

 

Hopefully Ford will start to use a little more durable finish on these areas soon. I have piano black painted pillars on my Regal G.S. daily driver that hold up fine to washing.

[butters]

I have the same plastic on my M3 and Suburban - both swirl up no matter what I do. I'm thinking about correcting them as best I can and then wrapping them with clear bra or Xpel. Does anyone have any experience wrapping these?

I deal with them on my BMW too. I attempted to put XPel film on the passenger front b-pillar cover - which is at highest risk because of the way people shut the door from the outside. It works well, but I plan on re-doing it in the spring because the cover actually comes off the car fairly easily, and should make for a near perfect installation. As it is now the edges aren't perfect, it was a pain to do with the cover still on the car.

[PacificNWBuckeye]

I have them on the 2013 Explorer I'm driving and I was able to correct them with fine machine polish and a 4" pad and a drill. It didn't take long for them to swirl again though, super soft clear or whatever coating is on them.

[jbaildon]

I would just do a vinyl wrap on these. They will keep scratching over and over again, it is a lost cause. 

 

The good thing about wrap is you can easily do it solo if you just have some patience and it won't swirl on you.

[Jason S.]

Lots of auto makers are adding those these days. My GTI has the same thing. My product of choice is Plexus plastic polish. It will not level the scratches and swirls, but it will lightly fill them and add a small layer of protection. It's perfect for a post-wash routine. Just spray it on a clean microfiber towel very liberally, then wipe on, let haze, and wipe clean with the dry side of the towel. The results are much better than you'd expect. You can pick it up an any marine store or motorcycle shop. It's also a great product for use on headlights and tails.

[bamablueoval]

Lots of auto makers are adding those these days. My GTI has the same thing. My product of choice is Plexus plastic polish. It will not level the scratches and swirls, but it will lightly fill them and add a small layer of protection. It's perfect for a post-wash routine. Just spray it on a clean microfiber towel very liberally, then wipe on, let haze, and wipe clean with the dry side of the towel. The results are much better than you'd expect. You can pick it up an any marine store or motorcycle shop. It's also a great product for use on headlights and tails.

Great! thanks for the tip. I may get some of that for the interim. I'm trying to decide on vinyl now. A guy of the F150 forum used a carbon fiber pattern and it looks pretty sweet.

[Jason S.]

Bonus tip: Plexus is AMAZING on your clear plastic, covering your instument panel. I keep a sterile Adams double soft towel in a plastic dust free bag and only use it for the instrument panel. I try to avoid cleaning it altogether, but if I have to do it, this is the product. Everything else I've used has lightly scratched the surface, which shows badly when reflected by a certain sun angle.

[Dan@Adams]

Good suggestion. Another great option would be our Brilliant Glaze. It has good filler properties and brings out a very nice clarity to glass. I glaze all of the exterior windows on my rides quite frequently.

[Jason S.]

Interesting, Dan. I never thought of using the brilliant glaze for that but that makes sense.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Jason S.

[avvblanc01]

Ive had good luck fixing the black door pillars with the white polish and white foam pads on my Flex. I never thought of trying the glaze on the instrument cluster though, Ill have to give that a shot! 

[Dan@Adams]

I was more recommending Brilliant Glaze for headlights, exterior glass, chrome, and any painted exterior surfaces. I have not tried it on a clear plastic instrument cluster panel, so proceed with caution.