i've complained a couple times that i can't get my side marker and cowl vents to stay black because they are hard plastic and have faded to a grey-ish color. i've tried everything and nothing worked. being pretty OCD i ordered new ones from pelican and received them. i paid $50 for all 4 of these grills, vent whatever you want to cal them. there are some subtle differences that i noted- i have a 2003 R50 BTW:

side markers- my old side markers were black and untextured, the surface was flat to the touch if you will. the new side markers i received are indentical in every way except they are textured, seems like they will hold a protectant much better.

cowl vents/ grills- the black honeycomb vents i had again were flat and untextured. same issue nothing would get them black. the new ones are textured like the side markers and where my old cowl vents where just honeycomb, these are honeycomb with horizontal slats underneath.

fairly useless knowledge i know but, if anyone else is going crazy keeping those vents black - $50 buys you all 4.

HUGE FLAW- ok i know there have been plenty of people with windshield problems. friday evening i decided to wash my MINI. it wasn't too hot of an evening- around 75 degrees. i started my pre-rinse as normal when i heard a "pop". thinking it was nothing i carried on until i realized what the "pop" was, my windshield CRACKED! i was totally shocked as it wasn't that hot and the water wasn't that cold. i've lived in texas for 28 years and washed cars in much hotter temps and have NEVER seen this before. my fault? maybe but, shocking nonetheless. just a heads up.